Time for talking is over - Government must act on new proposals to increase supporter ownership

FC United of Manchester has welcomed the publication of the Government’s Expert Working Group report on supporter ownership and engagement in football, but said its recommendations must be implemented without delay to help increase the number of supporter-owned clubs and fans involved in running their clubs.

FC United particularly welcomed the report’s endorsement of Supporters Direct’s proposals for Community Owned Sports Clubs (COSCs) which would reward supporter-owned clubs with tax breaks. FC United general manager Andy Walsh said: “At FC United we have demonstrated the very significant value that supporter and community ownership can bring in terms of public benefit. The proposed tax changes endorsed by the report would be cost effective and enable existing community owned clubs to be more sustainable, increasing the public good they deliver. We have also shown that this applies beyond football into lots of other sports.???

The report’s main conclusions seek to level the playing field by removing a series of barriers to supporter ownership which it says are currently too high and prevent fans from taking ownership of their club. It recommends that in cases of insolvency, administrators should meet with a club’s supporters’ trust to invite it to bid for the club. It also calls for the relaxation of rules on paying up contracts from a previous ownership regime which also act as a disincentive to supporter ownership. Recognising the significant costs involved in bidding for clubs, the report also recommends that funding be made available to supporters’ trusts to help them develop bids for clubs and engage professional advisors.

Commenting on the report as a whole, Andy Walsh said: “There have been good reports and proposals about reforming football in the past, but this cannot be another one that sits on the shelves of ministers. The time for talking is over – the government must act and implement the report promptly and correctly. If they do there is real potential to dramatically increase the number of supporter-owned clubs and an opportunity to begin a new chapter for supporter ownership and involvement in football.???

You can download the report here.