GTFC fan's ownership

I have consistently argued on here about the benefits of fans owning football clubs. There have been some in support of it, but mainly it's about "we can't service the loans etc"

I sense the tide is slowly but surely turning towards fans possibly now being in favour of such a move? The pronouncements from BP about bullying, their backing of the Checkatrade Trophy, little comment on Bragate and numerous other PR gaffes highlight the problems of the kind of control any individual can hold over a club when the views of the fans are not taken into account. I think it's fair to say had the Trust been running the club on behalf of the fans then at the very least there would have been some kind of consultation about all such issues. True, some of the things wouldn't have changed, we'd still be playing in the Checkatrade Trophy, and the EFL would probably have ignored please made by the Trust in terms of Bragate, but at least the fans would be comforted by the fact that THEIR club was speaking out on THEIR behalf.

Fan ownership has to come sometime. If it's good enough for La Liga and the Bundesliga it's time has surely come for Town?

Quoted from jock dock tower

I have consistently argued on here about the benefits of fans owning football clubs. There have been some in support of it, but mainly it's about "we can't service the loans etc"

I sense the tide is slowly but surely turning towards fans possibly now being in favour of such a move? The pronouncements from BP about bullying, their backing of the Checkatrade Trophy, little comment on Bragate and numerous other PR gaffes highlight the problems of the kind of control any individual can hold over a club when the views of the fans are not taken into account. I think it's fair to say had the Trust been running the club on behalf of the fans then at the very least there would have been some kind of consultation about all such issues. True, some of the things wouldn't have changed, we'd still be playing in the Checkatrade Trophy, and the EFL would probably have ignored please made by the Trust in terms of Bragate, but at least the fans would be comforted by the fact that THEIR club was speaking out on THEIR behalf.

Fan ownership has to come sometime. If it's good enough for La Liga and the Bundesliga it's time has surely come for Town?

I do hope you're not trying to bully us in to accepting this Jock!  

All the people who have every run our club are GTFC fans (or were when they took the job on) to the best of my knowledge. It's not as though we have some foreign owner who doesn't have the club's interests at heart. Even if the Trust owned the club (laudable as the idea is) someone is still going to have to make the decisions, and that will be largely driven by finances rather than emotion, because that person's job is to settle the books.

All we need is around 2.5m to get the ball rolling then at least another 500k each season to cover losses ....

Quoted from moosey_club

All we need is around 2.5m to get the ball rolling then at least another 500k each season to cover losses ....

Last 2 years at least (can't be arsed to check further) we've made a profit so where did you get the 500k from?  

Edit over the last 7 years we have on average made a loss of 60k per year.

Quoted from GrimRob

All the people who have every run our club are GTFC fans (or were when they took the job on) to the best of my knowledge. It's not as though we have some foreign owner who doesn't have the club's interests at heart. Even if the Trust owned the club (laudable as the idea is) someone is still going to have to make the decisions, and that will be largely driven by finances rather than emotion, because that person's job is to settle the books.

Yes, and a damn sight more sensible the decisions will be. It won't be one man's ego trip. The board will be accountable.

I don’t think it would be possible for the Trust to own the club outright and that they would need benefactors or a consortium in order to be a success at FL level.

Quoted from GrimRob

All the people who have every run our club are GTFC fans (or were when they took the job on) to the best of my knowledge. It's not as though we have some foreign owner who doesn't have the club's interests at heart. Even if the Trust owned the club (laudable as the idea is) someone is still going to have to make the decisions, and that will be largely driven by finances rather than emotion, because that person's job is to settle the books.

It's alright being a fan and it's alright running a business but the last 15 years are living proof that the two are not mutually compatible in running the club of which you are a fan. By remaining silent on Bra-gate and then parading Steve Wraith as the club's spokesman on Checkatrade, John Fenty has, in the last two weeks, near as dammit stuck two fingers up at the very people who have kept GTFC afloat. I don't know how or why anyone can condone the last couple of weeks, he has displayed utter contempt for everything the fans stand for.

Quoted from TheRealJohnLewis

Last 2 years at least (can't be arsed to check further) we've made a profit so where did you get the 500k from?  

Rising attendances....Wembley play off final ....selling Bogle....do you see any of those scenarios coming up this season ?  Without those "football fortunes" we lose money.  JF and the directors cover those losses when they occur...as a fan owned entity we would have to cover those losses.
Having a whip round at the end of the season when the tax man wants paying isnt going to get us very far.  

Wonderful idea in theory...wholly impracticable and un workable for a League team IMO.

Quoted from MuddyWaters

It's alright being a fan and it's alright running a business but the last 15 years are living proof that the two are not mutually compatible in running the club of which you are a fan. By remaining silent on Bra-gate and then parading Steve Wraith as the club's spokesman on Checkatrade, John Fenty has, in the last two weeks, near as dammit stuck two fingers up at the very people who have kept GTFC afloat. I don't know how or why anyone can condone the last couple of weeks, he has displayed utter contempt for everything the fans stand for.

OK that's one instance of a person running the club. Numerous other people have run the club such as Huxford, Ramsden, Carr etc. There may have been bra-gate like incidents with the others, if there have I can't recall them.

Most football clubs are run by rich individuals. Most people (even on here) want to replace one rich fan such as JF with another rich man like (for the sake of argument) Ross rather than commnal ownership. I think fan ownership, like communism, sounds great on paper, but runs up against the problem of putting someone in charge who then becomes the decision maker (a de facto chairman).

Remember Ebbsfleet's great egalitarian scheme for collective ownership? It collapsed and they are now owned by a rich Kuwaiti!