Supporters Direct August column – You’ll always have the Trust

For those who follow the work of Supporters Direct and our member trusts and clubs you’ll be pretty familiar with the story of how a supporter takeover historically evolved: club is mismanaged, assets put at risk, owners depart, supporters left to salvage the club.

A combination of improved regulatory powers for the FA and leagues, and the bottom-up scrutiny from supporters, means these crisis cases are getting rarer.

Now supporter ownership is appearing from different, healthier circumstances, encapsulated no better than in English Non-League football.

Without looking too hard you’ll find… Majority shareholders who want to stay involved, but realise they need to open up the ownership if the club is to become better connected to its community, like at Bradford Park Avenue.

Fresh ideas and impetus from communities who have been given the opportunity to bid for the club by directors and owners interested in securing its long-term future, and giving someone else a go, at the likes of Bath City and Banbury United.

Clubs realising that with a more open structure – which better protects personal liabilities of its officers and club assets – they’ll have something more suitable to build from to secure the finances. See Wythenshawe Amateurs.

Even property developers keen to work in partnership with supporters; yes to make money but also to set up the opportunity for supporters to own the club and provide a facility better suited to their needs – a situation playing out at Dulwich Hamlet.

Call it supporter, community, member or co-operative ownership, it doesn’t matter; it’s a model we think can help Non-League clubs.

If this resonates with you and you’d like a chat about how to achieve it at your club, please drop me a line at [email protected]