I'm sure all the other City, County and Town clubs will be clamouring for his suggestions. perhaps a Club Name Consultancy is the first commercial spin-off. And for those wondering why this continues to run and run, it's because there are a number of posters who seem to believe that if they ignore it, it will go away.
As Mr A Wilson says in the comments section, there are many people, like myself, who will simply not attend a single match whilst we are 'Hull Tigers', or, equally bad, 'Hull City Tigers'. I read in FourFourTwo last month a comment from a Coventry fan who said that there are thousands of supporters not attending games in Northampton, and asked how many of them will have lost the passion for football or found something else to do on Saturdays by the time they return to their own city in 3-5 years. It's the same for me now. How long will the Allams remain? It could be 12 months or it could be 12 years. By the time they sell up and someone comes in and reverts the name, I could have a wife and a couple of wee Eriks running around. For a while I'll probably watch the games on TV. In time I'll begin simply checking the results on Ceefax on Saturday evenings. At some point after that, I'm going to stop even looking for the score. I'm pleased that Allam has finally stated what I have been saying for the past couple of years - he is a businessman, not a City fan. Hopefully now a few more fans will wake up.
On the plus side it'll maybe stop some of the morons from the BBC confusing us with Ull Eff Cee and putting their badge up for match previews...just a thought
Dear All Please get a grip. We are above this. It is our football taem. It will always be our football taem. Just give support and be a part of the wider success. Thx to all. Can we move on?
Have you ever met someone who you simply could not like, even though they did good things for some folk and made themselves very popular by their generosity and magnanimous actions and statements? Because I have, the trouble is that I had that gut-feeling that what-you-see is only a short-term what-you-get; itâs like that old catch-phrase from a TV show â Will the real Assem Allam please stand up! Why is it that those big actions and statements concerned me? Simply put, they seemed as self-serving as they could get, the arguments about how altruistic they are didnât stack up (in the case of Hull City AFC, at least â even the other stuff seemed more tactical than saintly), and there was a game-plan, make no mistake about it. Do you recall the statements of how all of this was some crazy reward to the people of Hull, the city that made him welcome and where he made his fortune? So why is it now very clear that he has nothing but contempt for those people (a broad-brush statement, but reasonably accurate), why is it that he holds his business nous above our heritage and social dignity? Well, those of us that has some. He comes out with this remarkable statement: "From day one when I took over the club, which was facing a winding-up petition, I said, to the Football Association and the fans, I was doing so as a businessman, that I would be running a business," Allam argues. "Nobody said: 'Go away, we want somebody who runs it as a football club.' What I donât understand is why he fails to recognise that he not only runs a sports business, but he also owns a football club; the two are inseparable and the fact that he has made the decision (itâs not really a misunderstanding) to ignore the football club element simply outlines his arrogance directed at those good folk he was supposed to be helping and honouring. Is this statement tongue-in-cheek, or does he speak with the sincerity of a fool? "In a few years many clubs will follow and change their names to something more interesting and I will have proved I am a leader â remember this discussion," Allam predicted. "City, Town, County: these are meaningless. In marketing the shorter the name the more powerful - think of Coca Cola, Twitter, Apple. By next year I will change the name to Hull Tigers. If I were the owner of Manchester City I would change the name to Manchester Hunter â you need power. In time I would suggest names for all the clubs called City, but I do not have the time." Is City, as a term associated with our football club, a term that offers Kudos and acknowledges its historic achievements, no more credible than the farcical Doctor that he so pompously adopts? Is this about a name or about power and how he enjoys exercising it? From the get-go I voiced my concerns, I also said that it was instinctive and I therefore gave him the benefit of the doubt; that changed some time ago. The Barmby / Pearson fiasco simply threw up some smoke and mirrors. Our club, if left to this fool, will lose not only its true identity, but also its credibility and heritage. If this happens then I will have nothing to be a supporter of, I will have no club as the club I identify with will be extinct and a business franchise will have taken its place; my football life has no place for that. Non-league football, struggling clubs of all age groups, who play with passion and pride, beckon; I will fight for my club, but only to a point as it is a part of an organisation (PL) akin to a gang that is out of control and bleeding its own neighbourhood, family and friends. The beautiful game gets uglier by the day; there are many good things to be won and enjoyed and I am not so sure this war is worth the hassle, as Allem is only one of many raping our countries football clubs.
The old man gets more embarrassing by the day if that's possible.. not a fan of David Conn either though - he always seems to like to stir the ****.
Would a successful company like Coca Cola risk alienating there current core customer base to try and gain a few extra customers? They're are tons of successful companies with long names. Facebook, Proctor and Gamble and Microsoft to name a few. If he really thinks changing the name to a sacred animal in the far east is going to got more people interested in buying merchandise and followering the club he's deluded. There only interested in iconic and successful clubs like Real Madrid, Barca and Man Utd.
Jesus Christ, this stuns me. How can you not see that it's an entirely different interview? He has spoken direct to David Conn. Just keep on burying your head in the sand.
How is it about 'getting a grip'? I honestly don't know what could be more serious. People talk about Allam saving the club, but he hasn't. He has done more to destroy it than any other owner in our history and because of him, from next season there is no Hull City.
I've only flicked through this thread, so this has probably already been said, but it's always seemed to me, that to get interest from a 'global market' you need to have half the worlds most popular players and win the league, not change your name. It might get a few new fans in, but I don't imagine many people thinking "hmmm, Hull or Man U... United win all the time, are on tv all the time and everywhere sells their merch, but on the other hand, I really like Tigers." Even if it does work, any of these new fans are likely to be fickle ones who'll jump ship at the first sign of trouble, or for the next flashy sounding name. Good luck with your protest guys. Ps, does Abdoulaye Faye still play much? He was an absolute beast for us, we got a massive picture of him on the side of the Britannia.
The only "war" that is about to start is between City fans themselves. The more the anti-brigade stick their boots in and attack the Allams, the more vocal the pro Allam supporters will become. This is NOT the same as Newcastle. At Newcastle, Mike Ashley is unanimously disliked by the supporters. This is not the case at Hull City. Do not underestimate the % of fans of who the Allams can do no wrong because they have brought them from the brink of extinction to premier league football. And they continue to invest in the club on the pitch.
Right to a point, but the people who have had most impact on destroying, not just football clubs, but the essence of football itself, is the Football Association and the Premier League. The whole sorry concept must be torn down and rebuilt, as should the whole shameful mechanism for distributing the TV money. It is long overdue that some control should be imposed on players and managers wages which are out of control. The arrogance and manipulation of Assem Allam is a symptom, certainly not the underlying cause of this terrible football (and other sports) malaise.
I don't understand why people continue to say this. He's doing the exact opposite, he is making Hull Cuty extinct.
