Fans Back At VP - A Plan

Because?

 

I'm with @SimonW on this though. I am not convinced the PL should be bailing out the EFL. The PL clubs are making loses as well.

People laughed at me and @BSABantam74 when we said football had to offer different kind of proposals to allow fans to return. Them proposals might upset a few short term but this lets all please everyone wasn't going to work. This government plays games. It tries to suck people in and fool them.

 

https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11661/12081318/coronavirus-governments-ineffective-test-trace-system-preventing-fans-returning-says-shadow-culture-secretary

 

Slightly off topic but this is the best of a bad situation I have seen.

The Denver Broncos put the whole town of South Park behind the posts at their stadium last night.

 

To Rt Hon Oliver Dowden MP, Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

cc Nigel Huddleston MP, Minister for Sport

Dear Oliver

We wrote to you in May this year setting out the financial crisis facing football clubs, and particularly those in the English Football League (EFL), because of the loss of match-day revenue resulting from the government's policies to combat COVID-19. We also detailed a game plan that could be put in place to prevent this. Since then clubs have been able to sustain themselves through advance season ticket sales, solidarity payments from the Premier League, and had agreed to start playing the new season in the belief that fans would be allowed to return to stadiums this autumn.

It's now clear that spectators will not be back in EFL grounds, even in limited numbers, for the foreseeable future. As a consequence clubs will not only lose this budgeted-for income, but will also have to refund season tickets to fans who will now be prevented from attending matches.

There has been no agreement reached by the football authorities on a bailout for clubs that need it, many of whom were already heavily indebted before the coronavirus arrived. From the statements made by ministers at DCMS questions in the House of Commons on 24 September, it's equally clear that the government has no current proposals to provide financial support, and nor is it prepared to offer any guarantees for the future.

Without any plans being made to rescue football clubs, many in the EFL and others in the National League as well, are now actively preparing to make all but essential staff redundant, cease playing, close down their youth academies and community foundations, and put their business into administration. This could lead not only to the failure of many historic community clubs, but the collapse of the national league structure that we have known for over one hundred years. These are decisions that will be made in the coming weeks, with many clubs unable to meet their payroll obligations for next month.

There is still time to act, but not long left. The government made £1.5billion available to rescue arts and cultural organisations across the country that faced closure because of the coronavirus. We believe that football, like other well-loved professional sports in this country, is also a cultural activity. We would ask that the government now make clear what financial support it's prepared to give before it is too late. In particular, we believe that in order for clubs to sustain themselves over the winter and keep playing, they would need to be compensated for the loss of match ticket sales. The absence of this income is not a result of their actions, but the policies that have been put in place by the government in response to a public health emergency.

We understand that you had hoped that the Premier League clubs might make a significant additional contribution to support the EFL. Whilst this would be welcome those clubs too face swingeing losses from lost ticketing receipts and falling revenues from broadcasting matches. However, it cannot be the Premier League's sole responsibility to sort out issues arising from government policy. The government itself needs to take responsibility, or many already-embattled towns - often in areas of the country which have suffered many hardships in recent decades - will lose their last focal point.

Damian Collins MP, former Chairman of the DCMS select committee

Charlie Methven, co-owner Sunderland FC

Lord David Triesman, former Chairman of the FA

Lord Faulkner of Worcester, Vice-President The National League

Lord Goddard of Stockport

Malcolm Clarke, Chairman of the Football Supporters Association

Robbie Savage, former player and sports broadcaster

Greg Dyke, former Chairman of the FA

Karl McCartney MP for Lincoln and Chairman of the APPG for Football

Ian Mearns MP for Gateshead and Chairman of the APPG for Football Supporters

David Amess MP for Southend West

Rehman Chishti MP for Gillingham

 

@wetherbywhaler hope your letter is to the government or what Bradford City is going well. The letter above is good. Clubs need to put the pressure on now.

Bradford Council need to up their game as well. They just disappear and don't done enough.

 

It's a done deal then once Robbie Savage "former player and sports broadcaster" put his twopeneth in.

 

To be fair mate. I don't care if Edin is writing to the government now. I want to see action. I want Bradford City to make a stand on this. I want to see Bradford Council not be so weak.

I'm starting to think fans need to start making there voices heard else. Maybe, @JonButterfield can get the person that wrote him an email to stop the banner about Edin & Rupp flying across VP to also write to the government since that person must be able to write powerful emails.

 

The excuse being thrown out is that people at a football game would flood the pubs prior to the game, but the Colchester Chairman had already covered that in his letter requesting a relaxation in serving alcohol at the ground so people could have a beer in their seat.

The government push masses of people onto the street at 10pm in City Centres round the UK but are worried about 15% of capacity leaving a football ground.

 

What do you expect the council to do, they will do all they can to stop the crowds at games. They do not have the best interest of the public at heart, they just have the interests of the people who secure the running of the council in mind.

They wanted everyone locking down and were very vocal about it and at the time didn't want an area of zero cases released unless an area with 44 was released.

I actually think they are enjoying the authoritarian measures on the City.

 

If the government start bailing out loss making entities inside a billion pound industry it's going to be an utter scandal. I really don't understand what these people are on.

How can teams go cap in hand to the tax payer and then continue to sign players? If you've done everything to cut your cloth accordingly then maybe but anything else is a piss take.

 

I see it more as a push to allow crowds and therefore some matchday income back rather than dumping a load of cash on them. I might be wrong.

 

Yes the Premier League needs to take the load.

The Premier League stands on the shoulders of a fantastic league system, and now it's time to make sure we lose as few clubs as possible.

One less 20 million pound foreign footballer each. No sweat.

 

Should McDonald's help out all the restaurants?

 

It's not about the worth of the industry. It's about the clubs doing everything the government has asked then pulling that rug from under their feet.

Clubs are still losing money. Don't be fooled to think Bradford City are not losing money right now.

 

And they're not interested in getting crowds back for any other reason than £££. When that's rejected then it will be cap in hand time to "rescue clubs"

They're not going to start releasing restrictions on a pleasure industry at a time when they're increasing restrictions on everything else no matter how "safe" people think it is. It makes no sense.

Football, both as an industry and as individual clubs needs to stop whining and figure out a way around it without resorting bail outs. Bad enough that Premier League teams were taking furlough money at the start let alone having the industry propped up.

 

Clubs have lost money for 20 years. Diddums.

If you have less money coming in then have less money going out. Is it that tricky?

 

No, it's not tricky but not allowing fans in isn't down to them.

You seriously have to look at the bigger picture here.

 

It doesn't matter who it's down to, they have to adapt not whine for bail outs and special treatment.