Derry City FC - the rightful property of the people
Derry City football club is aiming to deliver ownership of the club into the hands of its supporters.
Share Scheme - Standing Order form: download
Share Scheme - Membership form: download
Club chairman Pat Mc Daid spoke to Chris Mc Cann of the Derry News about how this will benefit Derry City and secure the Candystripes’ status as one to the dominant forces in Irish football . . .
Stephen Kenny signs up for the Share Scheme
For Derry City chairman, Pat Mc Daid the logic is self-evident. Derry City FC has always enjoyed a place in the heart of the local community, now that community can take control of how the club is run. The people of the city have always enjoyed the moral ownership of the town’s senior football club; under the board’s plans to sell shares in the club to the fans they’ll now also be able to claim the legal ownership.
“Derry City is a community based club and it’s something that we are very proud of and it’s something that makes us special, certainly in Irish terms. People talk about these millionaire investors involved in various other clubs around Ireland but what makes us stand out from the rest is the way we are rooted in the community. It’s our supporters, local business community and volunteers that make Derry City Football club something to be proud of. Not having the millionaire investors that some other clubs in Ireland now have isn’t something to be jealous of or afraid of as what we have at this football club is something much more powerful than money and that’s the pride and commitment that no other club can match. The moral ownership of Derry has always belonged to the supporters, what we want to do now is get the legal ownership of Derry City into the hands of the supporters. Without the supporters there is no Derry City,” he said.
It might seem an eyebrow-raising idea in the world of Irish football but, as McDaid explained, the model of fan ownership has already been massively successful elsewhere in Europe and on the grandest of scales, most notably at Barcelona
“What you will find is that the clubs that operate in this way are the clubs that are closest to the cities that they’re from and the supporters they represent; the clubs that have the real passion and community identity. Some of the clubs are obviously bigger than Derry City but that’s only in terms of numbers, not in terms of passion. The clubs that have gone down this road are those that are embedded in their community and mean something special to their city.
“Derry City is not a profit making business. The club is here to serve the people of the town and to be a club that the city can be proud of. If the supporters take ownership of the club then it won’t be possible for some outside interest to come in and look to try and make a profit out of our club. Derry City is here to serve the City and the surrounding regions not to make someone money.”
Of course as well as securing the club’s future ownership the sale of the shares will also raise funds to help first team manager Stephen Kenny strengthen his playing resources.
“For the club it’s a fantastic way to generate extra income. We are trying to put a team on the pitch that’s going to make the city proud and compete for honours at the highest level of Irish football. Given the fact that these shares are currently unallocated none of the money raised will be going to individuals as 100 per cent of the money is coming straight into the club. The money that is raised is going to go towards building an exciting and successful team.
“The next two or three years are pivotal in terms of moving our club forward and ensuring we are competitive but we can’t do it without resources. We have moved into a full-time era in terms of players and management and we need to fund that. Traditionally we have relied on the efforts of the volunteers around the club in terms of monthly draws, dream draws, half-time draws, programme committees, lotto sales and numerous other activities. We will depend heavily on these arms of the club this year again and in the years to come but we need to develop other sources of income at the same time and we see this share scheme as being a fantastic method to do so. We now want to give people the chance to proudly say they own a part of their club in the knowledge that every penny they spend is going straight back into the club, to make us stronger and more competitive.
“The last few years have seen a serious raising of the bar in terms of Irish football. The majority of the teams in the Premier League are now full-time, there are very few of them that aren’t full-time at this stage. That raises the standards in terms of fitness and impacts upon the games themselves, the standard’s better, the Setanta cup has been a fantastic success. Irish clubs in recent years have been more competitive in Europe and a lot of that is down to the full-time set-ups that have been implemented. It’s not a big shock when an Irish club wins a round in Europe when it used to be a shock if we scored a goal. Our club has played a major part in that with the fantastic run that we went on a few years ago and those are days we’d like to see on a regular basis.
“We need to put a budget and a plan in place to make Derry sustainable as well as being competitive. On an annual basis it costs an awful lot of money to run Derry City and make sure the team is competitive. Less than 40% of our required income actually comes from season ticket and gate receipts and the balance needs to be generated from other sources and we see this scheme as being an excellent vehicle to help us generate the required finance. As far as Stephen Kenny is concerned the more facilities we can make available to him and the better player we can bring here then the more exciting it will be for the fans and the more chance there is of bringing silverware to the club,” explained the Candystripes chairman.
The idea of owning shares can seem a little daunting but as McDaid explains this is an opportunity that will be open to everyone in Derry no matter their social status.
“The whole ethos of Derry City is accessibility. In our fans base you have people who are on very low incomes right up to others who are highly successful business people. We aren’t looking to shut out any body, one of the things that makes this club special is its inclusivity. No one is more important than any one else. If the man or woman in the street wants to pay £5 a week to own their part in Derry City then we will facilitate that. If somebody else wants to come in and buy several shares then we’re happy to accommodate them as well.
Hopefully people will be buying these shares as birthday presents, Christmas presents and anniversary presents as it’s something special to have a share in your own club – something to treasure and be proud of. Its something that our supporters will take to heart and it’s something that they will want to see be a fantastic success and we would urge everyone to support this project to deliver ownership of our club to the supporters of the club.”
Further Information
The club consists of 4,000 shares of which only 500 are currently allocated
We are targeting a minimum of 1,000 shares being sold over a 2 year period which will raise £250,000 of revenue; 100% of which will be invested straight into the club. Ideally we would like to release all shares, depending upon success of the project, and raise up to a staggering £875,000
Shares cost £250 each and can be paid for by cash, cheque or standing order. Combinations of payments are also very welcome e.g. £50 cash/cheque and regular standing order to follow.
Shares can now also be purchased via the Derry City FC Online Shop.
Individuals can purchase 1 or more shares depending upon what they can afford
Payments can be made on a regular basis via standing order for any amount from £10 per month up to whatever the individual can afford. Every time an individual pays in £250 they will be allocated a share e.g.
- £10 per month will mean after 25 months you will receive your share
- £25 per month will mean you will receive a share every 10 months
- £50 per month will mean you will receive a share every 5 months
Payments can also be made on a regular basis via cash or cheque at authorised outlets
Authorised outlets are:
- Derry City Club office
- Derry News office
- Best Deal 4 U office
- Donnybrook office
- Houston Financial Services office
Registration for shares can be also be made via post by contacting the club office or online via www.derrycityfc.net.
Share Scheme - Standing Order form: download
Share Scheme - Membership form: download
Shares may be purchased on behalf of other people e.g. as a birthday or anniversary gift.
