A football transfer is to be decided by an
internet vote of thousands of supporters for the very first
time.
Members of myfootballclub.co.uk (MFC), who own Ebbsfleet United,
will decide if they should accept a £140,000 offer from an unnamed
club for John Akinde.
"It's quite historic," MFC founder Will Brooks told BBC
Sport.
"The summer has been full of talk about Gareth Barry and
Cristiano Ronaldo, but this transfer allows fans to have a say in
whether it is right for the club." <!-- E SF -->
The 30,000 plus members have 48 hours to decide whether they
should sell the highly rated 19-year-old striker, who has played
fewer than 20 games for Ebbsfleet.
He has already been watched by Chelsea scouts and the club have
turned down an offer for Akinde from League One side
Peterborough.
The non-league side's manager Liam Daish and board has
recommended the striker should be sold to allow him to play at a
higher level.
Players who have recently turned professional like Akinde are
unlikely to be earning more than £200 a week.
"The fans are legal owners of the club," added Brooks. "Whereas
transfers at other clubs are decided by a few board members this
decision will be taken by 30,000 board members."
Earlier this year over 20,000 MyFootballClub members, who had
each paid £35 to provide a £700,000 takeover pot, took control of
Ebbsfleet, to give each fan an equal share in the club.
Since then members have voted on a number of major decisions
affecting the club, including the price of season-tickets to watch
Ebbsfleet, but this is the first time a transfer will be decided by
the team's fans.
MFC's membership now stands at over 30,000 people, with members
living in 122 countries.
"It has become very apparent that members are taking the
responsibility of ownership very seriously and considering
decisions made so far."
In July MFC members helped raised £20,000 to enable Daish to buy
striker Michael Gash from Cambridge.