![]() ![]() ![]() "I said 'I do not want to do that', mostly because I'm really busy," he said. Forest Green lost in the National League promotion final to Grimsby Town in 2015-16Īfter agreeing to help them out because of their community role and the fact they were "a good bunch of people", he was asked to be chairman after a few months by someone at the club. Vince founded and runs Gloucestershire-based green energy company Ecotricity, and his passion for sustainability is clear for all to see.īut it was never his intention to run a football club, until he heard the local side, Forest Green, were struggling financially. Holt's story of owning the club "by default", in his own words, echoes that of another owner - Dale Vince of Forest Green. As far as I'm concerned, Accrington Stanley is a beacon of hope for the town." The business 'symbiosis' "What I'm not trying to say is that football's a good business investment. It's an old Lancashire mill town, and they lack investment. "If we've done that, then there's umpteen thousands of kids and adults that we'll have helped. "My aim is in 50 years' time there's still an Accrington Stanley," he said. The council's been good to us, we use the roads more than anyone else."ĭespite losing "a long way past £1m" since taking over, Holt hopes the club can break even in the next year so that, in the long term, the town has something to hold onto. We've got businesses in the community and the community have been good to us. "There was no doubt that backing would be costly and there's no doubt I'll be unlikely to see it ever again, which is why I wrote most of it off (£1.2m) to get it to a debt-free business. "During all this time, I'm getting to know the people, I've seen what it's doing in the community and it'd be a real shame for it all to have ended. And if I do something at the end of October, I'll have to do it or you won't pay wages again. "I said I'd spend October looking at it and if I don't do anything you can consider the £100,000 a gift. Accrington lost in the League Two play-off semi-final to AFC Wimbledon They couldn't pay wages, but on the field and the community side of it was fantastic."Īfter initially agreeing to paying the £100,000 wages for September, Holt spent the next month mulling over whether to help the club further. "I spoke to Peter Marsden and he'd got to the end of his tether. I said 'this is madness', but they hadn't paid the bills. "I went to the first match after becoming a sponsor, which was a friendly against Burnley and we were 3-0 up after about 10 minutes," he said. After turning them down eight times, he finally gave in before things spiralled. Holt, who runs What More UK based in nearby Altham, was approached to sponsor the club earlier in the year. ![]() The community aspect of the football club was a major reason behind Holt's takeover from Peter Marsden in October 2015, but buying a League Two club was never his plan. "You have the football club, Accrington academy, where you have 120 kids learning to play football, and the Accrington Community Trust that helps 10,000 people a year with things like social isolation, mental and sexual health, does BTEC courses and all sorts." Accrington Stanley had the second-lowest average attendance in the regular League Two season, with 1,834 "Accrington Stanley is split into three parts," said owner Andy Holt, whose side lost in the League Two play-off semi-final to AFC Wimbledon. So how does this academic model look in the real world? The local ownerĪccrington Stanley has never been the most glamorous name in football, but in an old Lancashire mill town it provides more than just 90 minutes of entertainment on a Saturday afternoon. So in the academic literature, we have split that model into those 'trophy-asset owners' and then private investors that are there to make some sort of financial gain from the football club." "We've moved into this era where people have started to see a good financial return on investment. "We look back historically at the 1960s and 1970s - we'd probably just have the one model with the local businessmen done good that wanted to do something with their local football team," he told BBC Sport. ![]() Surely that's a fool's game?īut just imagine the potential earnings if that club have a great season or two, and football finance expert Rob Wilson from Sheffield Hallam University believes there are two main reasons for owning one. The prize money is so much lower, yet the outlay on wages and maintenance is still so great. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |