EC Project: Irish Football Survey
EC Project: Improving Football Governance
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Improving Football Governance through Supporter Involvement and Community Ownership: Led in Ireland by Friends of the Rebel Army Society (FORAS) and Cork City Football Club.
Project Background:
It was during the relatively stable tenure of Brian Lennox that the seeds for the Friends of the Rebel Army Society (FORAS) were first sown. Members of the Cork City FC Supporters Club sought to create an entity that could proactively support the club in its daily operations. Never, at any stage early on, was it envisaged that FORAS would fully own and run CCFC a mere five years later.
On the eve of the Trust’s launch in 2008, Cork City FC went into examinership. As a voice for supporters, FORAS immediately moved into the spotlight and remained a constant throughout the difficulties that followed. Concerned about the future of League of Ireland football in Cork, the Trust applied – and was granted – a Licence to participcate in 2010 First Division.
When the holding company of CCFC was liquidated on the eve of the new season, Cork City FORAS Co-op came into existance. A manager was recruited, a home ground and training facilities secured and players were signed – all accomplished just days and hours before the first fixture kicked off at Derry City.
On the field, the club battled to an incredible 1-1 draw that night at the Brandywell and has since been promoted back to the Premier Division of the League of Ireland as First Division champions (2011). Off the field, the Trust is a vital supporting organ – and not just for Cork City FC, but other supporters organisations and clubs around Ireland.
What is this Project about?
This EC-funded Project seeks to strengthen the argument that having supporters involved with their football team – in a meaningful way – has a number of positive effects for clubs, including increased financial stability, closer community ties and an increase in active citizenship ie volunteers.
Over the duration of the Project, working groups in eight different European countries will help conduct a European-wide survey of supporters’ attitudes towards a range of governance and ownership issues. National workshops in six countries, including Ireland, will assess Best Practices and Shared Experiences locally before overall findings are presented in an Irish Toolkit, which will then be available to any supporters’ organisation or club looking to improve its own governance.
Why is this Project important?
Ireland’s National League has hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons in recent years. We are not alone, however – football across Europe is struggling to overcome unsustainable financial models, weak governance structures and a lack of democratic accountability.
FORAS has seen the demand for supporter involvement and community ownership grow here over the last five years and is now demonstrating that there is another way to combine on-field success with off-field sustainability.
Our accomplishments to date mean the Trust is one of the first ports of call for any supporters’ organisation or club seeking support or advice. The Trust, too, has been able to lean on others, including Shamrock Rovers during our own ongoing development and this Project will bring all those collective experiences and guides together in one place.
How is the European Commission involved?
The European Commission, under the Preparatory Action in the Field of Sport, selected the Project for receipt of a grant last October (2011), following a submission of documents by all partners involved last July.
The Project – with its focus on good governance, supporter involvement and community ownership – will lay the groundwork for future European Union action in this area, on the basis of priorities outlined in the 2007 White Paper for sport, the 2011 Communication on Sport and the most recent European Dimension on Sport (also known as the Fisas report).
What are the Project’s main objectives?
- to produce a body of research (ie a toolkit) in support of any future developments in the area of good governance, supporter involvement and community ownership in sport, both at national and European level.
- the provision of practical and actionable advice for supporters’ organisations and clubs in Ireland
- to help with the development of a national support network in Ireland
- to strengthen ties with supporters’ organisations and clubs across Europe
What’s next?
Phase 1:
- Completion of a European-wide Needs Analysis survey, which all working groups will feed into
- Development of an agenda for the National Workshop
- Early design and content ideas for the Irish Toolkit
Phase 2:
- Organisation and Hosting of National Workshop (late 2012/ early 2013)
Phase 3:
- Production of Ireland’s Toolkit. This will be informed by the Needs Analysis survey and Workshop findings.
Phase 4:
- Final report launch in the UK (June 2013)
- Lobbying local, national and European authorities for support of the Project’s ideals and findings.
For further information or to get involved, please contact ecproject@corkcityfc.net.
News Archive:
April 27: Improving Football Governance project gets underway
Project Links:
A la nantaise (FC Nantes: France)
Associação de Adeptos Sportinguistas (Sporting Portugal)
Cooperatives Europe
Federación de Accionistas y socios del Fútbol Español (National Federation for Supporters’ Trusts: Spain)
Svenska Footballssupporterunionen (Swedish Football Supporters’ Union: Sweden)
Unione Italiana Sport per tutti – Comitato Regionale Emilia Romagna (Sport for All: Italy)
Unsere Kurve (National organisation seeking to protect supporter-ownership: Germany)
Vzw Eskabee 1935 FC (A football club formed by the fans of the former KSK Beveren: Belgium)
Supporters Direct
Survey: What do you think about football in Ireland?
Survey: What do you think about football in Ireland?
Survey launched across Europe:
www.surveymonkey.com/s/SDIreland
For the first time, fans of football all over Ireland are being asked for their views on what’s going on away from the pitch in the Irish game.
The Survey is part of a European Commission-funded project with seven other groups from countries including Spain, France, Belgium, Italy and Germany. In Ireland the project is being managed by FORAS, owners of Cork City FC, and is co-ordinated by Supporters Direct Europe – the organisation the supports the involvement of supporters in the ownership of their clubs.
Over the coming month, Irish football fans are asked to share their views not only about their own clubs but about the future of the game here, at a particularly difficult time in the League of Ireland. The Survey can be found online at: www.surveymonkey.com/s/SDIreland and takes less then 10 minutes to complete in full.
Niamh O’Mahony, who is managing the project for FORAS, said:
“In recent years there’s been a real desire on the part of fans to get involved in some way in the ownership and running of their clubs in Ireland. There have been some tremendously positive developments; whether here at Cork City, Shamrock Rovers, Galway United, Dundalk or Bohemians, fans have been stepping up to the plate and planning for a better future for their clubs."
“This project is about working out a way of getting fans more involved before the crisis hits and we believe the whole game from top to bottom will benefit from a closer working relationship between fans, communities and the authorities.”
FORAS has already been working closely with supporters in Dublin, Dundalk and Galway to gain a better understanding of the views of supporters in Ireland about how the game is organised, both at individual club and national levels.
The project will also see the production of a Toolkit focused on helping fans in Ireland to organise themselves as democratic Supporters’ Trusts, while also assisting the growing number of clubs owned and operated by their supporters in the League.
Click here to find out more about the project itself or get in touch with the project’s working group by email: ecproject@corkcityfc.net.
