The Albion NEED £2 million to survive. The board needs YOU to help

[Marc]

yeah suppose fair enough, maybe I'm thinking they need it like now so theres no time for fund raising events! Either way if anything is thought up I will do my best to help out/contribute etc etc, just depends when the club need the money by really.

 

[tinx]

I think you're wrong.

Say we had a sponsored walk - Withdean to Falmer for example.

I think I could get sponsored by friends, family, next neighbour etc.

Those people probably wouldn't give any money usually but through a link to me may be willing to part with a small amount.

Times this by a few hundred and its a bit more money raised.

This is a great idea and would encourage a far better response than begging.

I for one would be more than happy to participate in something like this, reckon if a few hundred people even thousands of people joined in each raising 50 quid thats a decent return, a fe more ideas like this and they are well away. And not a begging letter in site.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

If the club could sort out the Park'n'Ride objections with the council sharpish, maybe a 'Sponsor An Extra Seat' scheme might work. Individuals buy the club one or more of the extra 2,000 seats, thereby sparing the club the initial expenditure. The club then benefits to the tune of twenty quid every time there's a bum in one of those seats.

 

[balloonboy]

This is a great idea and would encourage a far better response than begging.

I for one would be more than happy to participate in something like this, reckon if a few hundred people even thousands of people joined in each raising 50 quid thats a decent return, a fe more ideas like this and they are well away. And not a begging letter in site.

Why don't we do a sponsored Falmer March on, say, 27th Sept, and kill two birds with one stone?

 

[CHAPPERS]

I think the point is that there is no time to get fundraising orgainsed. The club are desperate for funds and this seems like one of the quickest ways to do it. I think the last thing they would have wanted to do is beg for the money but if that is the last option then so be it.

 

[Publius Ovidius]

what Tinx said!!

 

[tinx]

If thats the case and they are that desparate that quickl;y for money why not come clean earlier and give fans time to raise funds rather than having to just dig in their pockets, they could obviously see it coming so come out and say ok we're struggling, please help with ideas and ways of raising the money oh and if you feel you would like to donate then thats cool too.

Ok I know its retrospect and as such its not worth tihnking about but you get the idea.

 

[Turkey]

Starting to speculate now.

We need to know how quickly the money is needed.

 

[balloonboy]

I think the point is that there is no time to get fundraising orgainsed. The club are desperate for funds and this seems like one of the quickest ways to do it.

I think there IS time....the club don't need the whole £2m by next week (at least I hope not!!), hence the standing order option. There most definitely IS time to organise things like sponsored walks. I can remember doing one when I was about 8 to enable us to buy Bert Murray....this time it's a bit more important!

 

[beorhthelm]

Ive tought about this abit today and have come to a couple of conclusions.

Firstly, the actual Appeal itself. Lets not view it as desperation, but as a bit more progressive. the usuall story is for a club to get into trouble, scrape around for a few years, then as things get really bad they start selling players and culling staff before *then* going to the fans who have just seen the club go down the toilet and its in the high court facing a winding up order.

What would we get for our players anyway? half the team is youth players on lowish wages and the rest is motley crew that we love dearly but being honest are often rejects from the sort of clubs that could afford to buy players.

Why now? iirc there's a 1m plus VAT liability siting on the balance sheet, so maybe thats due soon.

So BHA have decided it makes more sence to go to the fans first, while we still have a team worth watching and saving, and potentially save '000s in legal fees in the process.

secondly, as a bit of a swipe at some people moaning, its a CLUB, not a business. If your in club and the club wants to invest in some new stuff, they'll ask the members for a whip round. Just a different scale really. Real companies DO ask there customers to improve their payment terms while stretching out how long they can pay suppliers. They can also go to the banks or the markets raise funds as appropriate. I suspect our credit line is pretty thin these days, as there isnt any promise of growth and existing revenue is all accounted for already.

I dont think the club is really targeting the season ticket holders, rather they are seeing if the 15000 fans who went to cardiff and dont normally get involved will dig into their pockets. I appreciate those who hold season tickets, have families or are just skint will feel they cant give any more. But many other can and hopefully a few '000 will come forward. Id prefer a share issue thing, but when you think about it the share usually issed by clubs are non-voting so count for jack anyway. A seat with your name on it should be seen as a 20000th share in Falmer and as such is a bit more honest.

 

[Brovion]

My customers have a vested interest in my company. We supply software that runs part of their business if we go under they have no support for their software so have to invest in other software which will cost them huge amounts of money. So its entirely the same thing.

I don't deny I would love to take my Son to his first albion game when we go to Falmer but at the same time no other business would ask thei customers, whether a veste dinterest or not to bail them out so why should Brighton and Hove Albion?

The simple rule of business is you supply a product or service, customers pay for this product or service.

Not you pay for the service and then if thats not enough then the supplier asks for a some extra to help the cause.

But this is our football club! It's NOT just a business. If Asda went bust we'd all shop at Tesco's without another thought. So if Brighton go bust we can all happily go and support Palace or Portsmouth. After all they're just 'businesses' the same as Brighton selling the same product (better even as they're Premiership). The only grumble would be we'd have to travel a bit further to buy the 'product'.

I think not.

No, I'm not happy about it either.

 

[Easy 10]

Ok lets get this clear, I don't see this as an excuse to put the boot in again, I have never said a bad word about the current board or the way in which the club is run, I have 100% support for the current board. I just think asking fans to give money for no reward is not the way forward. Coming up with more imaginiative schemes and ways to get money would surely be a better option.

You began by agreeing with FG's assertions and usual anti-Knight ravings, and had a moan about ticketing arrangements for the Playoff Final. Completely irrelevent to todays developements. This is hardly the time to start dragging up old arguments and using them as reasons why you don't think the club should be asking for more money.

To suggest that because I am not giving the club anything that I am giving the club the finger is total bullshit and the same elitest "I'm better than you cack" that has been spouted on here previously. I am openly saying the club will not get money off me but that doesn't make you better than me in the slightest. [/B]

I'm not suggesting anyone is better than anyone else. I don't even know myself yet whether or not I can afford to stump up the cash. Whether you do or not, as I said earlier, is your right and your choice. But what I DO object to is people coming on here, moaning about how the club is being run, and taking the attitude of "the clubs getting NOTHING out of me because of season ticket prices/playoff final tickets/litter patrols/Dick Tight ripping us all off (delete as applicable).

At the end of the day, its a personal choice and as part of my post I stated it was my personal opinion. If it doesn't agree with yours then tough shit, go preach to someone else pal. [/B]

Spot on, its personal choice. But if you're choosing not to donate, lets not all start slagging the club off for putting its hand out. This situation is shitty enough as it is, without the fans dishing out more stick.

Sorry about the "f*** right off" as well, that was harsh and I'm a bit wound up.

 

[clapham_gull]

As a season ticket holder I would be willing to hand over say a couple of tickets for re-sale, no probs if this was an organised initiative.

 

[tinx]

Sorry about the "f*** right off" as well, that was harsh and I'm a bit wound up.

Have to say didn't think that was your usual style.

 

[3gulls]

For fucks sake, if you don't want to donate anything to the club then FINE. You're not obliged to, you don't have to, but the club has only asked if you CAN. I am getting mightily pissed off with people using this as a stick to beat the club with. Does it really need explaining AGAIN exactly why the Albion are in such dire financial straights at the moment ?

You keep on comparing this to "any other business". Football is not like "any other business". We're not selling paperclips here, or making fire alarms. There isn't another business offering the same product down the road, so we can just shrug our shoulders and use someone else instead if we don't like the product here. This is a football club, and like most other football clubs outside of the Elite, it survives mainly on the love and passion of its fans.

Now if you're going to turn round and give it the finger in its hour of need, then that is your choice and your right. Nobody HAS to stump this money up. But using this appeal by the Albion to drag up all your grievences and negative opinions over your perceived mis-treatment by the club in the past is pointless and unhelpful.

Make no mistake, this club is fighting for its life right now. If you can't help for whatever reason, then fair enough. If you don't want to help, but instead see this as another nice opportunity to put the boot in, then you can f*** right off.

You are right. The Albion are a Football Club. However, football is also big business and CAN be very profitable. Leicester City recently reported profits of over £5million.

When we are in the Premiership and the Club makes big profits, will Dick Knight be at the gate handing out £50 notes?

 

[Easy 10]

Have to say didn't think that was your usual style.

Yeah, apols. I was shooting from the hip, I sometimes go a bit overboard with this sort of thing when I'm bashing the keyboard.

 

[Easy 10]

You are right. The Albion are a Football Club. However, football is also big business and CAN be very profitable. Leicester City recently reported profits of over £5million.

When we are in the Premiership and the Club makes big profits, will Dick Knight be at the gate handing out £50 notes?

If we ever see that day, Dick Knight could standing at the gate handing out rotten fish for all I care. I don't expect any "cashback" off the club if we ever reach the Big Time. Just seeing them there will be payment enough for me.

If you're in it for the money 3gulls, then I think you're supporting the wrong club.

 

[CHAPPERS]

You are right. The Albion are a Football Club. However, football is also big business and CAN be very profitable. Leicester City recently reported profits of over £5million.

When we are in the Premiership and the Club makes big profits, will Dick Knight be at the gate handing out £50 notes?

Ever wondered how Leicester could claim 5 milllion ound profits when not long ago they had debts of 60+million??

 

[Publius Ovidius]

....also ask the builders who worked on the new stadium and didn't get paid because the cheating bastards used the administration card to weasle out of their debts about the £5 million profit.

Leicester City are all that is wrong with the current footballing establishment - and they were awarded an England game too.

Absolute disgrace

 

[3gulls]

Ever wondered how Leicester could claim 5 milllion ound profits when not long ago they had debts of 60+million??

Yes! and I think that it part of my point. We are one division below the Premiership, and the rewards that offers. No wonder Dick Knight and the other shareholders don't want to issue any shares to the fans in return for their money!