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Rangers – Fan ownership, or not, as a consequence of Fan Unity.


iang2911

Membership model to support Scouting and Youth development  

133 members have voted

  1. 1. Do you think this is achievable?

    • Yes
      68
    • No
      65
  2. 2. Would you sign up to such a scheme?

    • Yes
      81
    • No
      52
  3. 3. Do you think the wider global fan base would buy in to it?

    • Yes
      74
    • No
      59


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Over the last while I have been reading, thinking and talking about fan unity, I know I must have bored a fair few people about it!

The latest very public utterances involving fans groups, individuals and outsiders have been solely on fan ownership, citing Hearts as the obvious comparison. Well, we are not Hearts and our ambitions as a club and as fans are not the same!

I want to put an alternative scenario down and see what the reaction is.

Uniting the fan base to support the club financially not just for now but going forward in to the future is a must. There are various ways to do this that are easy to set up but how do you get a fractured group of supporters to buy in to it? A lot of good work and suggestions have been done on here, RangersMedia, and else where on this and what follows is just my suggestion of a possible way forward.

Rangers Football Club is owned by a PLC. We have to live with that and yes, fans can buy shares but will they ever agree on anything? The future of the clubs success will rely heavily on a strong scouting system and youth development, I think this should be our focus.

A recent survey across Europe on the subject highlights that top clubs spend in the region of €4-€6 Million per year on scouting and youth development, this sum should be achievable for the Rangers fans to raise via a membership scheme paying £20 per month and I would hope that every fan could see the long term benefits it would provide to the future of Rangers.

Who runs it?

Normally the first question asked! Well, no fan should run it, if this organisation is to have such an impact on the future health on and off the pitch then it needs to be run properly. I would suggest that it be run the same as any company employing professionals to do the day-to-day business. Committees would be set up for the various sections of our support those who go to the games every week, season ticket holders, families, kids and those fans who only get to see the team at Ibrox every so often either from home or abroad, country specific committees associated with NARSA etc. so over seas fans get involved and of course media relations and other necessary topics.

Interaction with the Football business.

If this body has such an influence on Scouting and Youth development I would argue for a seat on the footballing board, we have to accept that it is this board that manages the business side of the day-to-day running of the club. I would also suggest that the place on this board is taken up on the behalf of the fans by an experienced professional in player development, the contribution they make needs to be valid and beneficial. If we can achieve this, then a NED position on the PLC is the next obvious place to go, again I would employ someone qualified to do this and in a strict rotation every 2 years.

Fan Ownership.

This is often taking as meaning fans own and run the club themselves, it cannae happen like that for a club our size and with our expectation, IMO. However it does not need to be 100%, with money that is left over each year shares are bought, up to a maximum of 26%. This would still allow for existing investors to remain and new investment to come in but would allow the fans to protect the clubs future.

So, as a consequence of the fans coming together we could cement the future of the club and protect its status going forward, while working within an AIM listed environment.

I think this could be achievable, do you?

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No x3, although you could have done with putting maybe options

This is my thoughts mate and I think the only way forward. I do think it is achievable and for now just want to see how much support there would be.

If I am to continue putting more time and effort in to it I need to know if it has the backing.

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It would really depend on how any membership scheme was operated and by who.....it would have to be democratically elected and offer all fans a voice instead of the select few as is.....if I'm honest I just can't see it working as there is far to much division amongst our support! It's my honest opinion that the best thing for our club is to have one owner who calls the shots.....despite the risks involved in that model I think for the demographic if our club and support that's the most effective model!

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Did you not have a few meetings about this, what happened?

Ongoing mate but slow. Today's article in the DR prompted me to put this out as I can see things that are moving that are doomed from the start and won't lead to long term success for the club.

Fan ownership is only one part of all this, the financial future and stability of the club needs to be addressed and the fans are a big part in that. I am just trying work on a framework which negates the recent history within the fans groups and allows for everyone to get together and influence that future in a way that does not just rely on buying season tickets.

If there is no support for it in this thread then I will stop pushing it. No point if at this stage there is no real interest.

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It would really depend on how any membership scheme was operated and by who.....it would have to be democratically elected and offer all fans a voice instead of the select few as is.....if I'm honest I just can't see it working as there is far to much division amongst our support! It's my honest opinion that the best thing for our club is to have one owner who calls the shots.....despite the risks involved in that model I think for the demographic if our club and support that's the most effective model!

I'm well aware of the hurdles mate but even with a one owner scenario this could work.

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Call me pessimistic, but the chances are less than Salmond ordering a public enquiry into

East End Land scandal.

I bought shares, and I may buy more, however, giving money to someone else to look after for me? No.

Reasons?:

I trust no one when it comes to finances.

Season tickets will be going up to normal levels soon, so supporters will have less disposable cash.

Fan base is fragmented into groups, each group will have differing views on strategy.

Can't agree on a manager, less chance of agreeing who should look after their money.

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Call me pessimistic, but the chances are less than Salmond ordering a public enquiry into

East End Land scandal.

I bought shares, and I may buy more, however, giving money to someone else to look after for me? No.

Reasons?:

I trust no one when it comes to finances.

Season tickets will be going up to normal levels soon, so supporters will have less disposable cash.

Fan base is fragmented into groups, each group will have differing views on strategy.

Can't agree on a manager, less chance of agreeing who should look after their money.

Cheers DP

Appreciate the feedback. I wouldn't put it out if I didn't think it was possible and I am aware of the challenges facing it.

I have tried to look forward rather than back.

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This is my thoughts mate and I think the only way forward. I do think it is achievable and for now just want to see how much support there would be.

If I am to continue putting more time and effort in to it I need to know if it has the backing.

I'm just very cynical about stuff like this these days but I could be wrong mate
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Can i make a suggestion Ian?

Could we not use this as a bargaining tool to the clubs major investors?

We will back the club in this way, if in return Ibrox Stadium and Murray Park are ring fenced and can only be developed/sold with an 80% approval of ST holders. Thus protecting the future of the club from property developers.

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Cheers DP

Appreciate the feedback. I wouldn't put it out if I didn't think it was possible and I am aware of the challenges facing it.

I have tried to look forward rather than back.

No prob, the club needs optimists and visionaries.

Maybe if the Whyte / Green / boardroom wars hadn't happened, I would have a different view.

Even if someone got this scheme up and running, there are too many hedge funds / venture capitalists with their hands on the shares.

As soon as they have wind of this scheme, they will be in heaven.

Share prices would rise as soon as the scheme started buying shares.

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Can i make a suggestion Ian?

Could we not use this as a bargaining tool to the clubs major investors?

We will back the club in this way, if in return Ibrox Stadium and Murray Park are ring fenced and can only be developed/sold with an 80% approval of ST holders. Thus protecting the future of the club from property developers.

Auchenhowie would form part of that discussion mate. As for the rest, it's a good suggestion

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No prob, the club needs optimists and visionaries.

Maybe if the Whyte / Green / boardroom wars hadn't happened, I would have a different view.

Even if someone got this scheme up and running, there are too many hedge funds / venture capitalists with their hands on the shares.

As soon as they have wind of this scheme, they will be in heaven.

Share prices would rise as soon as the scheme started buying shares.

We are where we are mate and I have can't ignore those investors if I want to put a package together that will satisfy everyone.

What matters is the continued success and viability if Rangers

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I'm not sure if it is achievable and I'm basing that on the amount of fans that bought into the IPO . Going by that I think we'd struggle to get 20000 to sign up to it.

That's not a bad number to start with. It does need backing and marketing correctly to get it out there. That's where support from the club will help

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I'm not sure if it is achievable and I'm basing that on the amount of fans that bought into the IPO . Going by that I think we'd struggle to get 20000 to sign up to it.

The IPO was badly timed and pricey. A monthly direct debit would be much more manageable and encourage many more to get involved. 20, 000 paying £22.50 per month would bring an annual amount of £5.4 million. I think this is totally achievable.

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The reason I do not think it will work is staring us in the face. Just look at the two share issues that have been offered to fans. One by SDM which was poorly subscribed by the fans and the latest one by CG again not as well supported as it could have been. If the fans will not support a share issue in there droves in the UK and world wide then how would you expect them t own a chunk of the club???

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It could be done but consider implementing it, everybody would have to be equal, no special treatment for the boys in the main stand, no freebies, you would have to do away with the directors box etc, sitting next to fans who don't invest and you are paying for them. The fact is football teams are living beyond their means and sponsorship is driving the costs up not down, having to compete even harder for the big prizes. It will probably work for smaller teams with smallish costs and little ambition just like Hearts, Dunfermline etc. :000000082: , but for a team like Rangers, we need about 60 million a year just to keep going.

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