GET OUT!
Newcastle fans have formally launched a campaign to buy the club
as they look to raise funds from banks, businesses and fellow
supporters.
Sportswear tycoon Mike Ashley recently took the club off the
market - for the second time - after revealing he was prepared to
part with the club for around £80 million. Ashley has faced
repeated supporter demonstrations against his tenure, and last week
incensed fans by changing the name of the club's famous old ground
to the [email protected] James' Park Stadium.
Newcastle United Supporters Trust (NUST), a not-for-profit
organisation formed in the wake of former manager Kevin Keegan's
constructive dismissal in September 2008, has spearheaded the
campaign for him to leave.
On Tuesday, it asked fans to pledge funds, backed by a deposit,
into a special bank account to be used as a war chest for a buyout.
It said further backers, including big names in the financial and
business world, would be revealed in the coming days.
Launching the 'Yes We Can' Campaign on Newcastle and Gateshead's
quaysides, NUST spokesman Mark Jensen said the campaign had been
months in the planning.
"We have emailed over 40,000 supporters to ask them if and how
they want to buy into the campaign to lead a city-wide bid to buy
back the club," he said. "There are a number of ways supporters can
buy into the model - which has been dubbed by the financial
community as the 'Barcelona on the Tyne' - which would see a
democratisation of the club to ensure that the current state of the
club would not be repeated.
"The idea is based on fans investing in the club through a
number of financial opportunities which will be held by a local
solicitor in an escrow account to demonstrate to Ashley that the
fans have proof of funds.
"Supporters will be asked to pledge 10% of their investment into
this account and guaranteed that the money will be returned if the
bid fails. It is clear that we have no knight in shining armour to
end the charade at St James' Park so we must look at how we can do
this ourselves.
"The club is a fantastic investment if run properly and we aim
to attract the type of investors who will seek to bring back the
values of integrity and honesty to the club. We've been in
discussions with serious people in the city and beyond and they
have thrown down the gauntlet to supporters to lead the charge.
"We've been obsessed by protest but this is the ultimate
protest. If people want more info, they can visit www.nust.org.uk
and find out more. There are a range of ways to invest, but fans
can be sure that it will be on a 'one investor one vote' basis with
fans electing six fans' representatives through the Trust and a
President who will bring in a professional team accountable to the
fans ultimately.
"There are serious investors who want to back this idea because
they can see the potential in the club. This is an investment which
is not only ruled by the heart but by the head also."
A spokesman from independent fans' website nufc.com said: "A
succession of real and imagined bids have failed to bring about a
change of ownership at SJP and in the meantime, the dignity and
standing of the club has steadily been eroded.
"Saturday's home game proved that unprecedented numbers of
Newcastle supporters are sticking with the team, while
demonstrating opposition to the current administration and their
plans.
"There's never been a better time to try and channel the energy
of those protests into something tangible. That's why we're pleased
to support the efforts of these lads and lasses and we're
interested in the detail of their proposals."