If there are some of you non LUST then I really press you to join. Michael Dr Michael Benjamin, Community Psychiatrist ------------------------------- myRay: On-line Self-Help CBT http://www.myRay.com http://www.myRay.org ------------------------------ Mental Health: http//www.MyDoctorExplains.com -------------------------------- Auditing || Quality Control http://www.MyDoctorExplains.com/alamo/ -------------------------------- Blog: http://www.DrMichaelBenjamin.com
On 5 October 2013 12:30, Rick Duniec <[email protected]> wrote: > by Phil Hay YEP > Published on the 05 October > 2013 > > Community involvement in European football clubs is a creeping phenomenon. > Supporters Direct has the statistics. Thirty three clubs are currently > owned > by their fans, Portsmouth included, and 73 have a Supporters Trust > representative on their board. Supporters Trusts themselves number 190, all > of them pursuing a model of football which promotes engagement with the > paying public. > These groups are not ploughing a hopeless furrow. In 2009 UEFA president > Michel Platini portrayed himself as a man of the people by saying: > "Supporters are the lifeblood of professional football. Owners, coaches and > players change but supporters always remain." > Several groups have chased the dream of becoming stakeholders in the clubs > they follow. Swansea City's resurgence can be traced back to the formation > of their Supporters Trust in 2001 and the Trust's purchase of a 20 per cent > share. Should the Leeds United Supporters Trust (LUST) have their way, they > will follow where Swansea led. > Plans are afoot for LUST to bring forward a proposal to buy a stake in > United. For several months the Trust have been working to open the door to > investment by adopting new model rules laid out by the Financial Conduct > Authority (FCA), one of the regulators of Supporters Trusts in England. > LUST anticipate that they will satisfy FCA requirements in time for their > 8,000-plus members to vote on whether to implement the new model rules at a > special general meeting in early 2014. The support of their membership is > necessary for a fan-share scheme to proceed in earnest. > Gary Cooper, the Trust's chairman, told the YEP: "This idea arose last > summer when it became clear that GFH Capital was trying to buy Leeds United > from Ken Bates. We discussed the idea of raising funds to either purchase > shares or perhaps help with the buy-back of Elland Road. > "The plan's grown legs and the Trust have devoted endless hours to dotting > the i's and crossing the t's with the FCA. It's been an exhausting process. > The model rules strictly lay out what the Trust can and can't do and we > need > to adopt those rules before we go forward. Any funds raised would be > asset-locked - in other words, ring-fenced for a specific purchase." > These schemes have a tendency to sound wishful but the Trust are making > tangible progress. Members of their board met with two prominent figures at > Leeds City Council last month - council leader Keith Wakefield and chief > executive Tom Riordan - and were promised what Cooper called "all the > support they could give us." The Leeds Credit Union is also offering help. > "That could be pounds, shillings or pence," Cooper said, "or maybe legal > guidance. These schemes are complex." > The Trust are most likely to aim for a 10 per cent stake in Leeds. Given > that GFH Capital's full takeover cost around £20m, a crude calculation > would > set the cost of 10 per cent of shares at around £2m. > Cooper refused to declare the exact sum pledged to the Trust so far but > said > it had so far run into six figures. The larger portions of funding have > come > from figures in the local business community. > "We had people - supporters who've done very well for themselves - saying > 'I > can't afford to buy Leeds United but I'll help you raise money by pledging > £10,000 or £20,000'," Cooper said. "Individually those sums won't allow us > to buy shares in the club but collectively it means that we're already > looking at six figures committed to the plan. > "We'd hope to raise enough to offer for a 10 per cent stake and we don't > think that's unachievable. It'll take a massive amount of work to get > there, > yes. But we've already put a lot of work into this." > Leeds United themselves are a key component in the Jenga tower. Even with a > full trench of money, the Trust's scheme can only go as far as the club > allow. GFH Capital has divided its shareholding since buying Leeds in > December, selling over 10 per cent to chairman Salah Nooruddin and another > chunk to Bahrain's International Investment Bank, and it favours the > involvement of "strategic investors." > Interviewed by the YEP on Tuesday, Nooruddin said he and GFH Capital were > being "very selective" in who they negotiated with. They wanted "investors > who share our vision but also have the financial capability to support the > club alongside us." But Cooper was a guest of Nooruddin's at the victory > over Bournemouth along with Ray Fell, the chairman of the Leeds United > Supporters Club. LUST have spoken to the club about their ambition and did > not find United unreceptive. > "We're due to speak again in the future to discuss the pros and cons," > Cooper said. "Leeds United aren't obliged to engage a fan-share scheme but > we hope they'd think that it could be beneficial for everyone." > An injection of £2million would be beneficial for the club. But what would > LUST seek in return? A seat among the directors or specific influence on > United's board? > "There must be people among our fans who could occupy a position, possibly > below board level, which allows some sort of direct feed into the > boardroom," Cooper said. "It certainly won't be me but someone out there > would be able to help the club foster the support and the local community. > This isn't about dictating Leeds United's policies or choosing which > players > to sign. That isn't our business. What we're aiming to do is involve > ourselves in a way which actively helps to make the club stable, > sustainable > and in-touch." > _______________________________________________ > Leedslist mailing list > Info and options: > http://mailman.greennet.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/leedslist > To unsubscribe, email [email protected] > > MARCHING ON TOGETHER > > _______________________________________________ Leedslist mailing list Info and options: http://mailman.greennet.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/leedslist To unsubscribe, email [email protected] MARCHING ON TOGETHER
