To be fair we are not known as Hull City AFC or City here. We are just called Hull. The name change will probably have 0 effect here as no one is going to call us Hull Tigers and we will still be known as Hull. I talked more about what draws me and my friends to the English game as opposed to other leagues such as Italy, Germany, Spain and even the MLS. I tried to explain what threats to the English game that I saw and my opinion that some of those threats could be mitigated by a stance to protect the history associated with the historical name of the club. It is just my opinion and probably means nothing without other fans in international markets weighing in. I would think the FA has done market reasearch so I doubt anything I said is actual news. Still, its good to feel like you said your peace.
I'd like to think they read and consider each email, but suspect they simply count them. Either way, the more the merrier. We can all play our part.
I have a plan! Let him have Hull Tigers Let's see how detrimental that is (or isn't) by having a few of you boycott games to show some of that resolve you're so proud to type out on the internet (doubt some of you will follow through come next season and the transfer window though) Directly affect AA's pockets by doing so and make him reconsider. Then you actually have leverage, which at the moment you don't (besides praying the FA will make the right decision) This, in my opinion, is the only way you will get to the stubborn man that is AA.
Again, you're talking to me like I'm someone who's strongly against it and involved in the group. I support the campaign purely because I've yet to see any evidence that changing it will provide a significant benefit to the club and I don't think anything should be changed unless there's a benefit to it. Change for the sake of change costs more than it brings in, so ironically if it is changed I would be against changing it back unless there was a negative effect on the performance of the club as reversing the change will also cost money.
I am against it but I have never insinuated that I will change my support. I believe there is no benifit in changing it only the possiblity of negatives associated with a name change. I see this issue as a small part of a much bigger problem, which in my opinion is the altering of the English game into one that more closely resembles the sports in my country. If I wanted to watch American sports I would change the chanel to ESPN right now, I am sure there is an NBA game on or the like. In your lifetime how much has the game changed? If you like the progression than by all means. If you do not like it then you can be against it like me without withdrawing your support for the club.
Dear Mr Allam Our 3 biggest clubs in terms of reputation, finance and global awareness are Liverpool, Man Utd and Chelsea. They are succesful in these fields for a number of reasons. 1. They win trophies and play in major finals broadcast to a global audience 2. They have a very good marketing policy 3. They have built up a large core fan base over a number of years by doing pre seaon tours to there specific chosen markets, Asia, USA, etc. this gives fans a chance to meet there heroes who they watch on global television. Hull City have not played in a major globally televised final Hull City have not won a major trophy Hull City have not regularly visited a potential overseas market. Changing the name to Hull Tigers will in no way generate income through global awareness. Being a succesful Premier league club will, playing in major finals will, doing a pre season tour of an overseas market will. If Mr Allam wants to have awareness in other world locations then the easiest option for him for a quick fix is to go out and buy a popular player from the asian countries ( as he has done from Egypt with Elmo and Gedo). For the sake of a 3 to 5 million pound outlay and a good marketing strategy he could quite easily generate a sizeable income from overseas markets without changing the name at all. i sincereley hope (although i doubt it) the F.A will see sense and block any name change, not just for the sake of Hull City fans but also for football in general.
Throughout this long drawn-out sorry saga, I have been asking myself the following questions:- 1) Why would a successful business man (AA), who has invested a significant amount of his own money (directly or through loans), alienate his customers (fans) by stepping on long-held traditional values within the game (name, identity, history associated with name). 2) Why, in the face of the strong backlash (CTWD, press reaction etc, possibly even the football governing bodies) would he persist in pushing forward his unproven (possibly unproveable) rationalization for a name change (greater market penetration as the name is less common(red-herring & faut-pas) or shorter, more punchy, more easily recognizable brand etc) ? 3) Whatever he has gained in good will over many years through his philanthropy in Hull & district (hospital donations, contributions to Hull University) and his creation of jobs (Allam Marine etc ), and of course his bail-out of Hull City AFC from the worst financial crisis in its history, why would he jeopardize all that for an idea that flows against all logic in a business he admits he knows very little about ? I think the following scenario may be behind his (as it appears to many of us) irrational, self-destructive behavior: 1) He remains a business man, but recognizes he made a wrong judgement call in thinking it would be easy to obtain ownership of the KC Stadium from the council on the cheap, which would have made the return on his investment a lot prettier. He's looking for alternative solutions to this miscalculation. 2) He now wants out (with minimal loss - or with some profit), as he sees he would need to stretch himself financially further and increase his risk in a business he realizes he has difficulty with. 3) The football team has some added value at the present time (reasonable team and a competent manager who might stave off relegation) and he recognizes that "foreign ownership" of Premier League teams is still in vogue, and that there are potential investors out there who have money to make a go of it. 4) He has a potential buyer lined up (US, Middle East, Far East, Russian oligarch ?) for a price (PRICE A) which satisfies AA's "walk-away" best profit/loss scenario - purchase conditions being: - must be an assured Premier League team when deal is signed - i.e. current & following season - all efforts possible must have been made to change the name to "Hull Tigers" as far as governing bodies (PL, FA etc) and supporters are concerned. If this condition is not met, this potential buyer would pay a reduced PRICE B ( AA's worst-case "walk-away" profit/loss scenario). I think both prices might be acceptable to AA, but PRICE A is clearly in his best interests financially, despite the tarnishing of his "legacy" in the eyes of the majority of Hull City AFC supporters & football supporters in general. PRICE B would be less palatable financially to AA but his legacy would be less tarnished. Either way he gets out of what he now sees as a financial millstone. I can think of no other logical reason why AA would be acting the way he is and has been recently, unless of course, as Groucho Marx once said, he is invoking the "sanity clause" !! Edit. After ploughing through the posts on this thread after submitting this , I notice a number of posters have similar thoughts, either "silent" sponsorship deals or potential purchase candidates in the background.
Why should we let me take our name from us? We defend what is ours. We don't have to pray the FA makes the right decision we continue asking them to refuse the application. The e-mails are great keep them coming.
tigerscanada: if he has a potential buyer in place with more money the next buyer will achieve greater success than him. If a new chairman arrives and changes the name again Assem Allam will go done as a footnote in the history of Hull City.
Most definately agree with your first statement (more money, greater success). If I understand your second point, if Allam gets out of his financial millstone with a small profit or minimal losses (his definition), I suspect being a minor footnote in the history of Hull City would not bother him in the slightest, given his perceived regard for HC AFC's history . We have to hope that this mythical buyer has lots of money. For the record, I am anti-name change. I was just postulating why AA may be acting as his has been. It doesn't change the outcome re the name change, unless the new owner is more tolerant to the wishes of the fans, but that battle would be continnued with a new owner with more cash.
tigers CANADA There are 2 reasons he is doing this 1, the council have pissed him off so he wants to drop the word city 2, CTWD have also now pissed him off as has the singing and abuse he has recieved on the forums etc. Several people when all this started said this would happen if you went up against Mr Allam in the wrong way. A proper business plan alternative to raise funds for the club should have been brought up and proposed to Mr Allam as an alternative to the name change i have worked in business for the last 15 years in Asia and the middle east and you have to be so careful as once they lose face with you, you can NEVER get it back and they will do all they can to get the better of you. CTWD have acted in what they thought was for the benefit of the people on these forums but they talk about he does not understand our culture well CTWD certainly don't understand the culture they have tried and unless the FA don't allow the name changed failed to go up against. Cardiff fans tried the same tactics and failed they now play in Red. Badges and scarfs and songs wont change his mind alternative ideas might just have done. Im actually against the name change and already have to put up with HULL CITY TIGERS on the tv out here already, but it looks like now the name change will come sooner and im afraid it may be down to the wrong course of action taken by the said CTWD group however good intentions they had.
Does anyone believe that he isn't pulling the strings of the two puppets at North Ferriby? Surely there is a point of argument there?
That had occurred to me, too. (But not, apparently, to our dear Tickler - who thinks they're not related )
In a word yes because the majority of fans will now stop buying the club merchandise and if you think that it will be made up by sales in the US and Far East you obviously live in LA LA land, same as Allam. Especially after seeing all the negative press Allam is getting abroad over this, might even affect Allam Marine sales abroad.
Of course they will after all THEY ARE SUPPORTERS OF HULL CITY does not mean they will but Merchandising with Hull Tigers on it does it. I know quite a few who where sat on the fence over this who have now been firmly pushed over to the anti name change by Allams total PR **** up.
I wonder if the FA will also consider the longer term? Mr Allam stated six years ago that he wanted to retire five years from then, so he's into extra time now. His family don't show much intrest in football (unless that's what Ferriby is about) so it's unlikely to be long term anyway. Any new buyer would see a massive gain from dropping all this ****e once they got control. My guess is the FA will take the non-commital option and refuse it on the grounds an application for a team of that name is already lodged with them and being processed.
