weasel
Grenville Morris
I'm a well documented sceptic of the modern game, so I thought I'd go off on another ramble.
Football clubs aren't actually clubs in any capacity any more are they? Memebers i.e. supporters are merely customers. Clubs which are literally smaller i.e. Chelsea can perform better than otherwise their club would do with their Russian money.
In short what were clubs founded over 100 years ago by local enthusiasts, playing the beloved game which was invented here for the local people have now become franchises havn't they. In a world where a club can up sticks and move to Milton Keynes it can simply no longer be denied. English football clubs have been franchised out. The founders of NFFC back in 1865 surely didn't have this sort of stuff in mind?
In a world where Labour have sold out and lurched to the middle ground and Tesco have us all in their back pocket how awesome would it be if the country's biggest passion could actually belong to those who make it so lucrative? For it to operate in any other way is just unfathomable to me.
Imagine any other 'club' you might belong to. Your local chess club for example. Imagine one day someone came along and said funds were running low, we're upping sticks and moving to Milton Keynes. It makes no sense whatsoever that the people belonging to the club don't have absolute power. They'd simply say 'what are you talking about? why have a club if it's somewhere else or it's not ours?'. If money is tight, they should have a cake sale or move to cheaper premises or look for new members to pay subs. It should be run according to it's means, but obviously and fundamentally the only goal really is to provide somewhere for these people to meet and play chess.
Why can't football be like this? What business have 6 mysterious Arabs got in Notts County? If they care so much about football, and Notts, feel free to donate money to the club. I've got no beef with that whatsoever. They're fans of the club. They want to help it. That's their perogative. But when if comes to all these rich people taking ownership of our famous old clubs I take real exception to it.
If I had my way Nottingham Forest would be an actual club. Everyone who wanted to support the club could become a member like any other club. Perhaps this would have to be capped at like 50,000 members or something. Members (supporters) would pay an annual fee and be guaranteed their place as long as they wanted. If they were guilty of trouble at a match they could be booted out of the club. Members could select a chairman of the club. Perhaps since Doughty wanted to make donations to the club the members would select him as an appropriate chairman, but that would not be in return for absolute ownership. He could be replaced if the members decided they wanted someone else.
Also I don't think success on the pitch should be the sole aim for any club. Having a decent, safe environment in which the people the club represents can watch their football should surely be the first aim? There should never be any danger of administration. Once this is all sorted, then goal 2 should be to hope your club is successful on the pitch, because that's more fun to watch, but never if it puts the actual club in jeopardy.
Football is the people's game. It should belong to the people. They shouldn't merely be helpless consumers. That is all.
Football clubs aren't actually clubs in any capacity any more are they? Memebers i.e. supporters are merely customers. Clubs which are literally smaller i.e. Chelsea can perform better than otherwise their club would do with their Russian money.
In short what were clubs founded over 100 years ago by local enthusiasts, playing the beloved game which was invented here for the local people have now become franchises havn't they. In a world where a club can up sticks and move to Milton Keynes it can simply no longer be denied. English football clubs have been franchised out. The founders of NFFC back in 1865 surely didn't have this sort of stuff in mind?
In a world where Labour have sold out and lurched to the middle ground and Tesco have us all in their back pocket how awesome would it be if the country's biggest passion could actually belong to those who make it so lucrative? For it to operate in any other way is just unfathomable to me.
Imagine any other 'club' you might belong to. Your local chess club for example. Imagine one day someone came along and said funds were running low, we're upping sticks and moving to Milton Keynes. It makes no sense whatsoever that the people belonging to the club don't have absolute power. They'd simply say 'what are you talking about? why have a club if it's somewhere else or it's not ours?'. If money is tight, they should have a cake sale or move to cheaper premises or look for new members to pay subs. It should be run according to it's means, but obviously and fundamentally the only goal really is to provide somewhere for these people to meet and play chess.
Why can't football be like this? What business have 6 mysterious Arabs got in Notts County? If they care so much about football, and Notts, feel free to donate money to the club. I've got no beef with that whatsoever. They're fans of the club. They want to help it. That's their perogative. But when if comes to all these rich people taking ownership of our famous old clubs I take real exception to it.
If I had my way Nottingham Forest would be an actual club. Everyone who wanted to support the club could become a member like any other club. Perhaps this would have to be capped at like 50,000 members or something. Members (supporters) would pay an annual fee and be guaranteed their place as long as they wanted. If they were guilty of trouble at a match they could be booted out of the club. Members could select a chairman of the club. Perhaps since Doughty wanted to make donations to the club the members would select him as an appropriate chairman, but that would not be in return for absolute ownership. He could be replaced if the members decided they wanted someone else.
Also I don't think success on the pitch should be the sole aim for any club. Having a decent, safe environment in which the people the club represents can watch their football should surely be the first aim? There should never be any danger of administration. Once this is all sorted, then goal 2 should be to hope your club is successful on the pitch, because that's more fun to watch, but never if it puts the actual club in jeopardy.
Football is the people's game. It should belong to the people. They shouldn't merely be helpless consumers. That is all.
The game is being bossed by corporations and people with lots of money and is losing touch with many football supporters. Speaking about Forest though,, i feel we have a set of businessmen running the place more in touch with its supporters than most businesses (see my avoidance of the word 'clubs' there!). I think as Forest fans we are lucky to have the management we have. I know there are many on this forum who will debate this though.
