Hull owner says: Critics 'can die as soon as they want'

[gullside]

Maybe the F.A are Hull City fans.

 

[Notters]

He was supposed to walk out ages ago. It was 3 1/2 months ago he said:
"I'm a simple man," added Allam. "Do they want me to stay? If it's, 'No thank you', fine, in 24 hours the club is for sale, I do not put in one more pound and hopefully things happen quickly."

Well the fans kept complaining about the name change, but he didn't go. ****.

He sounds like a perfect match for Poyet. Perhaps they could go and play golf together?

 

[Deleted member 22389]

He was supposed to walk out ages ago. It was 3 1/2 months ago he said:
"I'm a simple man," added Allam. "Do they want me to stay? If it's, 'No thank you', fine, in 24 hours the club is for sale, I do not put in one more pound and hopefully things happen quickly."

Well the fans kept complaining about the name change, but he didn't go. ****.

Well you almost feel like saying, well foff then. We need to get back to local people owning clubs again, people that have links with the club and have supported the club thorough thick and thin. It's hard with the money involved. In that respect we are so lucky to have Tony Bloom. We as supporters just have to support the dream and at the moment or though the season ticket leaves me a bit tight, I will continue supporting my club and that dream.

 

[Husty]

Well you almost feel like saying, well foff then. We need to get back to local people owning clubs again, people that have links with the club and have supported the club thorough thick and thin. It's hard with the money involved. In that respect we are so lucky to have Tony Bloom. We as supporters just have to support the dream and at the moment or though the season ticket leaves me a bit tight, I will continue supporting my club and that dream.

So then, this bloke who has lived for Hull for 30 years and poured a lot of money into the club? Sounds like an ideal owner to me...

 

[Deleted member 22389]

So then, this bloke who has lived for Hull for 30 years and poured a lot of money into the club? Sounds like an ideal owner to me...

Well I didn't know that until you told me so I will make sure I have the facts before spouting off. Hands up may be I got it wrong.

 

[father_and_son]

I can see what he is trying to do - "Tigers" is an easy sell in the far east. The imagery and connotations are already there, slap them in a Red shirt and you have a product highly marketable in the far east.

But then, there are ways to persuade your home fan base that you are doing something they dislike but for the right reasons and there are ways to alienate them all and, in no uncertain terms, call them all c*nts and threaten to take your ball home with you.

I think its very clear where Allam stands on this issue. For someone who has made a success in business and pumped huge quantities of money into his hobby/investment he clearly knows f*ck all about customers/psychology/marketing/etc. CJTC is the only description for someone like this.

The sooner we stop refering to "Owners" of clubs and title them properly... "Custodians"... the better.

Tony is doing a great job of looking after our club and I am personally very grateful to him, but he is looking after this club for future generations to enjoy. Allam would do well to remember his place.

 

[Deleted member 22389]

I can see what he is trying to do - "Tigers" is an easy sell in the far east. The imagery and connotations are already there, slap them in a Red shirt and you have a product highly marketable in the far east.

But then, there are ways to persuade your home fan base that you are doing something they dislike but for the right reasons and there are ways to alienate them all and, in no uncertain terms, call them all c*nts and threaten to take your ball home with you.

I think its very clear where Allam stands on this issue. For someone who has made a success in business and pumped huge quantities of money into his hobby/investment he clearly knows f*ck all about customers/psychology/marketing/etc. CJTC is the only description for someone like this.

The sooner we stop refering to "Owners" of clubs and title them properly... "Custodians"... the better.

Tony is doing a great job of looking after our club and I am personally very grateful to him, but he is looking after this club for future generations to enjoy. Allam would do well to remember his place.

I have said before marketing anything other than Arsenal, Man UTD abroad is hard task. Have to think about the clubs abroad.
AC Milan or Catania
Barcelona or Elche

It doesn't matter how succesful those other teams get, these foreign supporters will always pick the most well known names. It's like us, we could one day become the Arsenal of the South Coast, but we will never be the Arsenal of the world.

 

[Badger]

I can see what he is trying to do - "Tigers" is an easy sell in the far east. The imagery and connotations are already there, slap them in a Red shirt and you have a product highly marketable in the far east.

It's silly really, their nickname is still the Tigers so he can surely just use that to sell the club in the far east without having to actually change the name of the club.

 

[Deleted member 22389]

It's silly really, their nickname is still the Tigers so he can surely just use that to sell the club in the far east without having to actually change the name of the club.

Pathetic really. Does it have to take a name change to get people interested in supporting a club.

 

[father_and_son]

It's silly really, their nickname is still the Tigers so he can surely just use that to sell the club in the far east without having to actually change the name of the club.

Broadly agree, but when the PL game is shown on whatever domestic channel in whichever far east country, I can see how he wants the commentators to be reinforcing his "brand" and referring to Hull Tigers not Hull City, which would confuse the fan base.

He could have achieved this by "branding" the team "Hull City - The Tigers" and including this description everywhere. I find it rather strange that he has such an objection to the word City. I've been there and, on a global scale, referring to Hull as a City is bigging it up somewhat!

 

[Creaky]

Personally I think Allam's intentions for Hull have the best interests of the club at their heart - in regards to the renaming he just appears to have misjudged the views of the majority of fans.

To put it into perspective the full quote on which this thread's title is based was, [they] "can die as soon as they want, as long as they leave the club for the majority who just want to watch good football."

He has tried unsuccessfully to buy the freehold of the ground for the club in order to develop it in a way to help make the club self financing as well as increasing its capacity. Unable to improve finances locally he has been looking at ways of increasing income from other sources, the name change is part of this.

This is a man who has lived in Hull for for over 40 years, went to university there and has made numerous philanthropic donations to groups in the area, including a £1M straight gift to HKR Rugby League club.

When he bought Hull City he could have waited just 4 days and the club would then have been in administration and many local businesses would not have been paid what they were owed - instead he immediately ploughed in £36M to pay off all the club debts.

Overall he appears to be someone with the best interests of the club at heart but has misjudged the situation regarding the name change.

It's a difficult one, my inclination is to side with the fans against the name change but on the other hand Assam made a rather chilling point, (one which maybe we as Brighton fans ought to bear in mind), when he asked, "What if I dropped dead tomorrow?"

 

[father_and_son]

I have said before marketing anything other than Arsenal, Man UTD abroad is hard task. Have to think about the clubs abroad.
AC Milan or Catania
Barcelona or Elche

It doesn't matter how succesful those other teams get, these foreign supporters will always pick the most well known names. It's like us, we could one day become the Arsenal of the South Coast, but we will never be the Arsenal of the world.

I agree, this is the case now... If its not Manchester, London, Madrid or Barcelona, it's nothing globally. However, if you are trying to break into this market as a new entrant then you have to use every trick in the book. Red shirts, americanised name, etc etc. All this will be needed just to snatch a tiny slice of the global cash cow.

Like I have said, I disagree with him because he's a c*nt, but I do see what he is trying to do. If BHA were to become a global brand, we would have to ditch the Seagull. It's not a globally recognisable animal. Sad to say that Palace have dibs on the most globally marketable bird!

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I wonder if it's wise for a 74 year old man to say others 'can die as soon as they want'.
Sounds a bit like tempting fate to me.

 

[The Large One]

He was supposed to walk out ages ago. It was 3 1/2 months ago he said:
"I'm a simple man," added Allam. "Do they want me to stay? If it's, 'No thank you', fine, in 24 hours the club is for sale, I do not put in one more pound and hopefully things happen quickly."

Well the fans kept complaining about the name change, but he didn't go. ****.

And that is the truly pathetic part.

He made the ludicrous link of the fans saying they didn't want their name changed with him believing they didn't want him about - which was not the case for a moment. That was a scenario he invented - probably to force the hand of those who didn't want the name change.

All of this is explained much better on The Albion Roar from 15th February. http://albionroar.co.uk/recent-shows.php

 

[The Large One]

I will be really interested to see the reasons the committee gives for its recommendation. Allam does appear to be a CJTC about this issue (but not many others, having injected £70m into HCAFC), but he does own the club. He may be wrong, he may be an idiot for p*ssing off the fans, he may have weird motives for wanting to change the name, but, I repeat, he owns the club. Legally, I struggle to see on what basis the FA can refuse him the right to change the name to Hull Tigers. There must be rules that allow the FA to block a name change, but I wonder if those rules lay down under what circumstances they can legitimately refuse the application.

Owning the club does not give that person carte blanche to do what they want if they want to operate within the confines of the FA. Bill Archer came unstuck when changing the 'No Profit' clause in the club's Articles of Association. (Oversight, my ar$e).

David Conn reports that "The FA's subcommittee is understood to have found that the Allams had not justified the name change on commercial grounds or to have consulted adequately with supporters..."

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/mar/17/fa-set-reject-hull-city-owner-change-tigers

 

[BadFish]

Don't really see what the problem is..if people want success they have to get people in who have the money to bankroll them. If they want to change the name there is bugger all anyone can do about it.

I am sure if we got into the prem and needed some more money to buy players...tb gets a mate in with loads of dosh who said " I'll invest but I want brighton to be called the brighton blue bandits" , then would people really moan if it meant we could afford the likes of Suarez and such like?

Such is modern sport, be it rugby, footy or whatever

Quite right, if someone wants to buy a club, asset strip them, change some legal clauses, sell their ground and drive them to the brink of extinction then it is just a part of the rich tapestry of modern football and there is bugger all anyone can do about it.

 

[Goldstone1976]

Owning the club does not give that person carte blanche to do what they want if they want to operate within the confines of the FA. Bill Archer came unstuck when changing the 'No Profit' clause in the club's Articles of Association. (Oversight, my ar$e).

David Conn reports that "The FA's subcommittee is understood to have found that the Allams had not justified the name change on commercial grounds or to have consulted adequately with supporters..."

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/mar/17/fa-set-reject-hull-city-owner-change-tigers

Yes, I realise that the FA does have some control over these things. I was musing about:

1) How much control?
2) Whether the controls are clearly laid out anywhere? i.e. is it transparent what control they have?
3) Whether the rules (if indeed there are clear "rules") are consistently applied?

If not, then it's just a random free-for-all.

Taking the Conn quote as an example, is it not surprising that a sport's governing body can cite as a reason to not permit the name change the fact they they don't think it's justified on commercial grounds? Why should a governing body have any role to play in determining whether a decision is justified or not commercially?

Don't get me wrong, I think Allam is being a c*ck of the highest order over this, but I wonder if the FA are just winging their response...

 

[TonyW]

That bloke really is a complete tool.

Football doesn't need idiots like him.

 

[TonyW]

Quite right, if someone wants to buy a club, asset strip them, change some legal clauses, sell their ground and drive them to the brink of extinction then it is just a part of the rich tapestry of modern football and there is bugger all anyone can do about it.

Yes of course we'd moan, and do a whole lot more.

The guy is a moron, and hopefully the Hull City fans will force him out very soon.

 

[father_and_son]

Yes, I realise that the FA does have some control over these things. I was musing about:

1) How much control?
2) Whether the controls are clearly laid out anywhere? i.e. is it transparent what control they have?
3) Whether the rules (if indeed there are clear "rules") are consistently applied?

If not, then it's just a random free-for-all.

Taking the Conn quote as an example, is it not surprising that a sport's governing body can cite as a reason to not permit the name change the fact they they don't think it's justified on commercial grounds? Why should a governing body have any role to play in determining whether a decision is justified or not commercially?

Don't get me wrong, I think Allam is being a c*ck of the highest order over this, but I wonder if the FA are just winging their response...

I have no idea what rule/regulation they have in place, but the FA must have some say in name changes. I can't see them being keen on a scenario similar to the man who changed his name to "Lloyds Bank Are Facist B*stards" after a dispute with his bank, just so they had to issue cards/cheque books and address him by his new name.

Obviously this doesn't go that far, but I can see that they have a vested interested in "not bringing the FA or the game into disrepute" over the names of the clubs. While I agree with them, I expect they are over-stretching the spirit if not the word of their power and fully expect a legal challenge to follow.