General Football Thread

  • Please bear with us on the new site integration and fixing any known bugs over the coming days. If you can not log in please try resetting your password and check your spam box. If you have tried these steps and are still struggling email [email protected] with your username/registered email address
  • Log in now to remove adverts - no adverts at all to registered members!
Cromercanary said:
This old chestnut - should Delia + M relinquish control of the club, rears its head once again.
Fill your boots, KIO <ok>

https://norwich.vitalfootball.co.uk...-heres-one-fans-opinion/#.XwwfvwrAFlw.twitter
Click to expand...
I do wonder whether as well as Delia, Michael Foulger's role should be subject to similar scrutiny. He's also sat on a large chunk of shares, and hasn't put in any real funding since we signed Grant Holt (and arguably can't, because football finances have outstripped his personal wealth).

My understanding is that Delia, Michael & Michael are all open to investment as long as it's the right person, and that the three want to ensure Norwich City exists long into the future, without the threats of administration, asset stripping, etc. Their efforts towards this so far seem to consist of getting Tom Smith onto the board, with his main qualifications being a similar outlook to Delia, and the correct surname.

I'm entirely naive to the world of shareholders and executive boards, and control, etc, so perhaps someone might need to correct me, but can we not look at the Bundesliga 50+1 rule, as a way forwards? Making sure the club, or a supporters trust, own a controlling stake in the club, and open up the remaining 49% to investors? If someone hypothetically wants to buy <49% of the club and pump in cash to achieve a higher sale value on their shares, they could, but they'd have to do so knowing the board would only approve spending which didn't leave the club dependent on investor income. Want to buy Messi for £1bn? Great - but he can only be on £20k p/w because the board won't sanction an unsustainable wage bill.

Is that so deeply uninteresting to potential investors that there's no point in it?
 
There's an alternative model closer to home -- Brentford FC

https://www.beesunited.org.uk/us/

I don't know quite how the Bees United's special share works. Matthew Benham owns the club outright, so it doesn't involve supporters holding 51% of the shares. But it's clearly designed to provide the sort of safeguards our current owners want if they are to relinquish control.

It's worth noting that Bees United (i.e. the Supporters Trust) who, with Benham's help, bought out then owner Ron Noades's majority shareholding in 2006, agreed six years later to sell the club to Benham. It would be interesting to know why they decided that was the better option rather than retain ownership themselves,
 
  • Like
Reactions: DHCanary
However attractive the idea of a supporter-owned club is, history suggests it's a bit of a pipe-dream as far as football in this country is concerned. The latest illustration is Pompey, rescued from administration by the club's supporters in 2013. Four years later they voted to sell to a US company headed by ex-Disney CEO Eisner. As far as I know, the only example of a supporter-owned FL club is AFC Wimbledon, and even there the exact nature of the ownership is unclear. Ownership is vested in The Don's Trust, described as comprising a group of supporters but distinct from the club's independent supporters association. A comparable set up for us would be if Delia & co sold their shares to a small group of City supporter/trustees, which is rather different from the usual idea of a supporter-owned club.
 
robbieBB said:
However attractive the idea of a supporter-owned club is, history suggests it's a bit of a pipe-dream as far as football in this country is concerned. The latest illustration is Pompey, rescued from administration by the club's supporters in 2013. Four years later they voted to sell to a US company headed by ex-Disney CEO Eisner. As far as I know, the only example of a supporter-owned FL club is AFC Wimbledon, and even there the exact nature of the ownership is unclear. Ownership is vested in The Don's Trust, described as comprising a group of supporters but distinct from the club's independent supporters association. A comparable set up for us would be if Delia & co sold their shares to a small group of City supporter/trustees, which is rather different from the usual idea of a supporter-owned club.
Click to expand...

I believe Swansea did similar to Pompey, their supporter's trust selling to a US pair, which hasn't worked out all that well.

I think the highlighted suggestion is probably the way it would have to work. Rather than a supporter club which anyone can buy their way into, a hand-picked selection of supporters with a shared ethos that aligns with Delia's.
 
DHCanary said:
I believe Swansea did similar to Pompey, their supporter's trust selling to a US pair, which hasn't worked out all that well.

I think the highlighted suggestion is probably the way it would have to work. Rather than a supporter club which anyone can buy their way into, a hand-picked selection of supporters with a shared ethos that aligns with Delia's.
Click to expand...
I'm not 100% sure but I don't think the Swansea Supporters' Trust ever actually owned the club. I believe the long-time chairman Huw Jenkins, who oversaw the club's rise to the PL, fronted a consortium of local business people. So again, locally owned by supporters of the club, but not owned "by the fans". Much like the current ownership of Norwich in fact -- except that, when things started to go wrong, Jenkins backed the club's sale to Levien and Kaplan.
 
Personally I would rather be a supporter of a club permanently at Championship level than see the club I support owned by some sort of oligarch. Were that to happen I would most likely follow the club nearest to me, either Lowestoft or Leiston.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ncgandy
Farked19 said:
Personally I would rather be a supporter of a club permanently at Championship level than see the club I support owned by some sort of oligarch. Were that to happen I would most likely follow the club nearest to me, either Lowestoft or Leiston.
Click to expand...
King's Lynn
 
For anyone who wasn't keeping an eye out in the lower divisions - Wycombe Wanderers gained promotion to the 2nd tier of the English football pyramid last night - for the very first time.

I don't know about you guys but I am really pleased to see them go up.

As I have had several chats with their fans on Not606 over the years, I would ask if you would consider offering your congratulations on their forum page and build a bridge between the two fan-bases (they are decent guys)
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: robbieBB, ncgandy, zogean_king and 1 other person
Re. earlier posts about supporter-owned clubs, Wycombe, it transpires, are an example, having being owned by their Supporters Trust since 2012. I would think this makes their promotion to the Championship for the very first time that much sweeter. Congratulations Wycombe Wanderers FC!
 
  • Like
Reactions: DHCanary and zogean_king
Cromercanary said:
As John McEnroe might have said "You can not be serious, man" <yikes>

You must log in or register to see media
Click to expand...
That's a premium ST, standard are £380. Not sure on the number of each type of ticket available, but find it hard to blame the club for flogging a premium option for a bit more cash, when they're very dependent on ticket sales. But yeah, neither are cheap. £380 barely gets you below £20/game
 
DHCanary said:
That's a premium ST, standard are £380. Not sure on the number of each type of ticket available, but find it hard to blame the club for flogging a premium option for a bit more cash, when they're very dependent on ticket sales. But yeah, neither are cheap. £380 barely gets you below £20/game
Click to expand...
As a random comparison, here are Brentford's prices - currently third in the second tier and moving to a spanking new stadium. Read it and weep, Linnets.

https://newstadium.brentfordfc.com/season-tickets
 
Cromercanary said:
Wrong. Totally wrong and unjustified. :emoticon-0181-fubar
Although, if it's just once every thirty years......
You must log in or register to see media
Click to expand...
As pointed out in the replies, they tried to furlough their staff a few months ago to save costs, but now this is a justifiable expense whilst scores of lower league clubs are at threat of administration?

A £1m podium celebration in an empty stadium. That sounds like the peak of modern football.
 
ThaiCanary said:
For anyone who wasn't keeping an eye out in the lower divisions - Wycombe Wanderers gained promotion to the 2nd tier of the English football pyramid last night - for the very first time.

I don't know about you guys but I am really pleased to see them go up.

As I have had several chats with their fans on Not606 over the years, I would ask if you would consider offering your congratulations on their forum pagday'se and build a bridge between the two fan-bases (they are decent guys)
Click to expand...
my cousin, Charlie Gale, was a long time captain of Wycombe in their non league days.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ThaiCanary
DHCanary said:
As pointed out in the replies, they tried to furlough their staff a few months ago to save costs, but now this is a justifiable expense whilst scores of lower league clubs are at threat of administration? A £1m podium celebration in an empty stadium. That sounds like the peak of modern football.
Click to expand...
You'd think they would want to make it low key so as not to draw attention to how long it is since they last won the league. Serial winners don't see winning as such a big thing! Pathetic!
 
  • Like
Reactions: zogean_king
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom
Back