FC United join Co-ops UK

Football Club United of Manchester, owned by its members has joined Co-operatives UK. They are in the Unibond Northern Premier League, which is three divisions below the Football League, and playing at Gigg Lane, home of Bury..

Andy Walsh, General Manager at FC United says: “We are proud to be an Industrial and Provident Society and it felt like a natural progression to join Co-operatives UK."

Story at Crain's Manchester Business.

Ownership of football clubs

Andy Burnham's (Minister of Culture and Sport) speech at the Co-operative Party Conference about the ownership of football clubs received plenty of press coverage. The response from Lord Triesman, chairman of the FA was encouraging. It has a wider implication beyond the multi-million pound owners of English Premier league clubs. Emilio Butragueno until recently vice president of Real Madrid warned that it could affect the Champions League with it being dominated by English clubs. He won't remember his own club dominating European football in the 1950's. Then it was backed by the fascist Franco regime.

Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, chairman of Bayern Munich said "Germany needed to have an open discussion about relaxing the country's strict ownership rules and making it easier for individuals to make big investments in Bundesliga clubs." ESPN Soccernet

Back in Blighty, Andy Burnham has responded to a request from FC United of Manchester, our own co-operative football club, to meet and discuss the issue of ownership. Currently clubs in the Football League and Premiership cannot have a mutual ownership model as in Germany and Spain.

Conference : Club are alienating fans

"Andy Burnham, who on Thursday outlined his views in a speech at the Co-operative party conference in Westminster, said that the Football Association were duty-bound to revise their 'fit and proper persons' test for club takeovers and also insisted that the organisation should attempt to promote competitiveness."
Press Association

This story was trailed in the press before the speech.

Mutual Football

Readers will be familiar with our previous posts about the world game and mutual endevours. The season has seen success for fan owned football clubs.

a) FC United of Manchester win their 3rd successive promotion and it's up to the Unibond Premier (3 divisions below the Football League).
b) AFC Wimbledon eventually get to the Blue Square South (Conference South) - they might be on Setanta Sports next season.
c) Stockport County win their play-off and climb to League 1 (Division 3 in old money).
d) Exeter City, another fan owned club, return to the Football League from a spell in the Conference
e) Ebbsfleet United, owned by mutual Myfootball Club (Registered No. 30275R) are going to Wembley won the FA Trophy final and £25,000 in prize money. Myfootball Club now have over 29,000 members, their target is about 53,000. You can still join or buy membership as a gift - it costs £35. They voted to leave the team selection for the final to the manager.

f) Next season sees the start of AFC Liverpool, a fans owned club in the North West Counties League Division 2. They'll be playing Cheadle Town, Blackpool Mechanics, and the local derby will be against Bootle. They have some summer friendlies coming up. Check out their brilliant Soviet retro crest.

Co-operative Football

You couldn't possibly get more community and co-operative than the forthcoming FC United v. Bamber Bridge fixture at Gigg Lane, Bury on Saturday 1st March. The kids (u-18's) have free admission, there are free fairtrade snacks provide by The Co-operative and other activities if you get there early to Youth United Day. FC United are owned by their members, and personally as someone who watches the Premier League I must say I do really enjoy an afternoon in the Unibond Division One North with 2-3,000 Mancunians.
Details

Bought Your Own Club

A return to one of our favourite subjects...Co-operatives and Football.

I didn't think it would happen so quickly but MyFootballClub (Independent & Provident Society - one member one vote) have bought 51% of Ebbsfleet. I didn't know much about Ebbsfleet in the Blue Square Premier until I realised last season it used to be Gravesend & Northfleet in the Nationwide Conference. It would appear quite a few clubs wanted to be bought out. Sloppy reporters refer to a website taking over a football club - which is nonsense - when it's a collective of individuals. It's not the only football club run on co-operative lines by fans (FC United, AFC Wimbledon). I'm given to understand that Football League rules prohibit a club being an I&PS and not a capitalist company which shows how out of touch they are with the Government and UEFA backing of Supporters Direct. There is every chance of promotion this season or next.
Story - BBC News

Football Co-operatives

Regular readers will know we often stray off into football matters, well we are in Manchester...
So reading today's Non-League Paper (£1.40 at the local co-op store) discovered a couple of co-operative football clubs that you can buy one share in and have one vote like everyone else. Your vote will even pick the team, appoint the manager and decide all sorts of actions.
Myfootballclub (IPS No. 30275R - so you can look it up on the FSA Register) has 53,000 members so far, shares and annual fee cost £35, and they are looking to buy at least 51% of an existing club, outside the Championship. Buying Leeds United is the favourite amongst the investors.

MyBUFC is a trust to buy and own Biggleswade United (it's in Bedfordshire). Costs £23.50 in shares and annual fee. Again you can vote on everyday actions like who is going to be the striker this week.

FC United of Manchester had their AGM today, couldn't go as was working. The share and annual fee is £10. You don't get to pick the team but you do decide about replica shirts and the price of tickets.

The football season has started just as the political season has its annual holiday. Picture is of Stanley Mathews who had boot deal with the C.W.S. for which he received £20 a week. The commercialisation of football begins. But I don't think you can blame the co-op or the poorly paid football star for what has followed.

The in-store appearance in Ardwick, Manchester coincided with Blackpool's fixture with Manchester United that day. So he probably got away to do some dazzling dribbling at Old Trafford. United won 1-0.

The Stanley Mathews football boots were manufactured at a CWS factory in Heckmondwike, Yorkshire. He also made several promotional films for the C.W.S. advertising the "flexible boot".