We can buy an Australian football club

sweet..., it won't happen, not in the EPL at least...........

To be fair Sydney has A clutch of other teams and sporting codes to deal with.

Interesting development from the UK - British Labour Party proposal to have supporters own 25% share of club and also give supporters first option to buy clubs when put on sale. http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/mar/28/government-plan-football-clubs-fans Here is the article in full. "Government's plan to fix football: give clubs back to fans" The government is to unveil radical proposals that would give football fans first option to buy their clubs when they were put up for sale and require clubs to hand over a stake of up to 25% to supporters' groups. The ideas, due to be included in the Labour manifesto with a promise of action in the first year of a new government, are designed to give fans a far greater say in how their football clubs are run and overhaul the way the game is governed. It is believed that No 10, which has been working secretly on the plans for weeks, has resolved to deliver concrete proposals to tackle growing public disquiet at the level of debt carried by some clubs, the ownership model of others and the dysfunctional structure of the Football Association. The plans include: • Requiring clubs to hand a stake of up to 25% to fans in recognition of their links with their local community. • Implementing a change-of-control clause that would allow fans a window to put together a takeover of their club if it was up for sale or went into administration. • Giving the football authorities a deadline to reform the FA and remove "vested interests" from the board, and streamline decision making. • Introducing a unified system of governance that co-ordinates issues such as club ownership and youth development. • Allowing professional leagues and the FA additional oversight of club takeovers. The plans are likely to put Gordon Brown on a collision course with the Premier League, which has vigorously defended its free-market model in recent years, but he will claim that the proposals are for the good of the game. Two policy ideas have emerged as frontrunners to improve supporter representation around the boardroom table, both of which would see fans taking a meaningful ownership stake in clubs. Portsmouth's financial collapse, the outpouring of anger in response to the leveraged buyouts at Manchester United and Liverpool that loaded the clubs with combined debts of more than £1bn, and last week's shock resignation of the FA chief executive, Ian Watmore, in protest at the "vested interests" on the board are all understood to have persuaded the prime minister to act. Reflecting the view that they will succeed in democratising ownership only if there is stronger leadership from the top, it will also set football a deadline of up to a year to overhaul its governance system. Under the scheme to give fans a stake, supporters' trusts with elected representatives, audited accounts and Financial Services Authority recognition would be responsible for maintaining the link between clubs and their community and ensuring fans are not priced out of the game. The government could, however, face legal challenges from existing owners over the dilution of their shares. It has echoes of the model proposed by the so-called Red Knights attempting to buy Manchester United. Wealthy fans will contribute 74.9% of the overall purchase price, but supporters will hold a "golden share" of just over 25%, giving them a blocking stake on any change of ownership and an influential boardroom voice. Legal advice is being sought on the idea of a change of ownership at a club triggering a mandatory window for fans to take the opportunity to shape the ownership structure and buy the club at a price set by an external, independent auditor. Under the proposals, fans would be free to set up their co-operative style model, shareholding trust or other structure that enabled them to have a say in the club. While the government will reiterate that it has no desire to regulate football directly, the prime minister believes the democratisation of football club ownership taps into wider themes about the "mutualisation" of public services and the need for regulatory reform.

1000 x 1000 is not enough However I do believe clubs should be movie away from the 'season ticket' concept and start also selling 'membership packages' where members vote on key issues such as logo, strip, board elections etc and be represented by one person on the club's board. I myself would consider buying memberships in several A-League clubs if it were necessary, so long as I had some say in the direction of the club. Club's could learn a LOT from their supporters!

If Frank Lowy came to Australia with nothing and said that he was going to achieve all that he has, most of us would laugh at his predictions. So the thought of owning a football club is not that unrealistic. But in order to do so, we would need Frank Lowy to come out and sell it to us. He has designed a league and put in place an administration that is trustworthy. Just set up the trust and ill transfer you the funds.

or that a little place called Townsville with 3.5% as many people as Sydney could draw more than 50% of Sydney FC's crowd average ;) One team at the bottom of the table, while the other was on top.

Quite pricey to buy an Australian Football club - just reading the other day that some of them have net assets of $20 mill plus.

Does anyone know how I can send my $1000 off to NQFury and become a shareholder? Don't want a board seat, just want to be part of the Club (am a victorian by the way) as I think NQF brought something different to the HAL last season (more spectators the GCU for a start) so think they are onto something.

Its an old article, but it seems democracy just didnt work for them and in the end they had to give some decision making back to the management... I dont know the current state of affairs. http://www.wsc.co.uk/content/view/3555/38/ Anyway, Sorry if im sounding negative here because i think what you are trying to do is fkn brilliant!

I just read that report in todays smh. Cheers Jarry. I submitted this article yesterday not knowing 300 Fury Members are willing to pay up to $1000each. Ironic to say the least.

TT i am agreeing with you yet again, More times than not, if i eat out at a dodgy restaurant, i say thankyou and never to return. If i was a part owner of that restaurant and i wasnt happy with the service they would know about it. dont get me wrong, corporate dollars and wealthy business people play a vital role in clubs, but there needs to be more of a balance when it comes to its members wants and needs, not theres. u said "Sports teams are inherently loss making ventures, and some of these guys are able to use these teams as a deduction against more profitable activities, provided it is a single owner structure." My questions is "how much tax did you pay last year?" we are no different to the likes of Palmer. We can use our earnings as a deduction and on your next tax return say i invested 1000 dollars into a football club. U make a profit, declare it, make a loss its a deduction.

I think the idea needs to be discussed. For my part I am already a part of the NUFC Supporters Trust, which did have ambitions of trying to buy NUFC, although I think there would need to be a bit of work before that happened and would be practical Same with Australian football, the fan scene is still at an organic stage of evolution so it may be some time yet before it is practical

If you dont like what you see on the field or like marketing or think ticket prices are too high, then its simple, you vote with your feet and your wallet. For whatever reason, the FFA elected to go down the private equity model for its ownership structure, and I suspect this was because they wanted to get the comp started as quickly as possible and quick $$$ were needed, look no further than Clive Palmer and the Gold Coast team, I think many people would say that this was a pretty short-sighted decision and the FFA were seduced by the apparent wealth of Palmer. Sports teams are inherently loss making ventures, and some of these guys are able to use these teams as a deduction against more profitable activities, provided it is a single owner structure. I think Central Coast have proven that you can be both a PE owner and engage with your community. I actually think the Fury have done a reasonable job, they average over 8,000 in their first season.

Personally I dont think there is a "model" As long as you connect with the community, the club wishes to communicate with, your cooking with gas. In Sheffield, Wednesday still connects with its community,so does United. Ask me or the average supporter its structure. Wouldnt have a clue.

Great line in the SMH Article 2day RE: NQFC http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/buckley-and-ffa-must-lead-the-fight-against-norths-antifury-forces-20100323-qu68.html "The mandarins in Zurich still recall how football got shafted by the stadium improvements at the 2000 Olympic Games, especially in Brisbane. They're not stupid enough to let it happen again. The Cup bid must leave a legacy for football, or there's not much point. In Townsville, that legacy is a thriving, community-based, professional team." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- EVERYONE knows how Football got shafted in Football Stadia infrastructure for the 2000 Olympics. How the %^& did the QLD government not just rebuilt Lang park then instead of upgrading $150M+ to a cricket/vicball ground that have NEVER SCENE THE SOLD OUT SIGN.( except for the odd cricket game)

True Tah youve got my point. What if i dont like what i see on the field? What if i dont like the fancy marketing name and dress? What if i think the ticket prices are too high? Im not coming from an executive background. im coming directly from the blue colar local community, and weather we have 500 members or 50,000 members it is the majority rule. You may have voted against Kevin Rudd, but the rest of Australia think hes great. Same principle. Some will be happy, others wont. The main thing is they had the chance to vote.

U got an article on that Rob because the BBC reports its differently http://www.myfootballclub.co.uk/

Sorry dont know how that happened but the Magnificant11 is on the ball. we dont need a rep on the board, the members as a wholle, is the major vote. Check out the ebbsfleet club as another example. the BBC video explains how people around the world bought into a football club. http://www.myfootballclub.co.uk/

Exactly

I appreciate all the comments, thanks I just got in so havnt had a chance to reply The main point of this article is how do we feel a more sense of ownership of our Clubs.1000 people with 1k in hand is just a figure and simply an idea. The people vote like a democracy and the decision is made. Great example of the Bundesliga by Art and Barcelona by the Magnificant11. Barcelona is “more than a club” for it is the peoples club. Barcelona represented more than just football, it was also a political movement that defied the regime of Franco. Ethnic clubs were the same. They catered to a minority group of new Australians that considered their football club more than just football. We don’t have this history in our new established clubs so the only way I can think of is to be a shareholder of a club. If you have ownership, then why would you support another. Ownership makes us responsible committed and many of us will no longer sit on the fence or not care who wins or looses.