Supporters' trust
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In British sports, a Supporters' Trust is a formal, democratic and not-for-profit organisation of fans who attempt to strengthen their influence over the running of the club they support.
A Government-funded body, Supporters Direct, was established to encourage the formation of supporters trusts to promote democratic supporter ownership. Supporters Direct encourages the formation of supporters trusts as Industrial and Provident Societies (IPSs), and assists with their formation, legal and running costs.
There are over a hundred Supporters’ Trusts across England, Wales and Scotland and the majority of these are affiliated to football clubs, however trusts also exist for Rugby league and Rugby Union.
Supporters' trusts are often founded in response to a financial crisis which threatens the future of a team, as was the case at Chesterfield, Lincoln and York. Supporters’ Trust involvement has reportedly ensured the survival of 13 different clubs enterrring into administration.
The first trust established was at Northampton Town F.C. in January 1992. The largest is The Foxes Trust, which owns a significant stake in Leicester City F.C..
Contents |
[edit] Methods for influencing clubs
The main objective of a Supporters' Trust is to provide a vehicle for fans to influence the running of their club. This is achieved by a number of different strategies, including gaining control by fundraising to finance the acquisition of shares in the club or direct board representation.
[edit] Club ownership
The most effective method of influencing the running of a club is club ownership. 61 Supporters' Trusts currently hold equity within their football clubs while Supporters' Trusts have outright or majority ownership at 4 football league and 8 non-league clubs. These are as follows:
League clubs:
- Brentford F.C. - Bees United
- Chesterfield F.C. - Chesterfield Football Supporters Society Ltd
- Rushden & Diamonds F.C. - Rushden & Diamonds Supporters' Trust
- Stockport County F.C. - Stockport County Trust
Non-League clubs:
- AFC Wimbledon - The Dons Trust
- AFC Telford - Telford United Supporters' Trust
- York City F.C. - York City Supporters' Trust
- Exeter City F.C. - Exeter City Supporters Trust
- Newport (IOW) F.C. - Newport (Isle of Wight) Supporters' Trust
- Enfield Town F.C. - Enfield Supporters' Society Ltd
- FC United of Manchester - (club established as an IPS itself)
- Clydebank F.C. - United Clydebank Supporters
[edit] Board representation
39 Football clubs currently have supporter representation within the boards of their football clubs, such as the Lincoln City Supporters' Trust at Lincoln City F.C..
[edit] Supporters Trusts in other sports
The following are Rugby Union supporters trusts currently in the UK: -
- Bristol Rugby Independent Supporters (BRIS), representing Bristol RFC.
- Call To Arms Supporters Trust, representing Cardiff Rugby (Cardiff RFC and the Cardiff Blues).
- Newport Rugby Supporters Trust, representing Newport RFC.
