£1m in the pot to save United

Sep 24 2008 by Sam Wood, The Journal

NEWCASTLE United supporters have pledged more than £1m to a planned fans’ takeover of the club in just two weeks.

Last week The Journal reported how 600 fans had signed up to a scheme to buy the club from current owner Mike Ashley.

And in the last few days a further 500 people have said they will contribute the £1,000 needed from 300,000 fans for the buyout to take place, taking the total signed up to more than 1,100.

The Newcastle Fans United group, fronted by supporter Peter Lee and football agent and lawyer Mel Goldberg, are hoping to set up a new foundation similar to Barcelona’s in which fans vote for the club president every three years.

They are hoping to get backing from corporations and wealthy individuals, so will not actually need 300,000 fans for their scheme to work, though the bigger backers will not be given more than one share and one vote.

Just two weeks after the scheme was made public, interest in a fans’ takeover has been high.

Last night the man behind the scheme released more details of how it would work. Peter Lee, 45, who lives in the Midlands and has worked with the Government and one of the country’s top universities, told The Journal: “We are delighted with how things are progressing and we haven’t even come out with the finalised plans yet. We hope to have those ready for the public in October.

“At the moment I can say that there will be four levels of membership. The first level will be those who have contributed £1,000 or more. They will get a vote on club matters, a share certificate and entry into a lottery to buy match tickets.

“For any fan who has another 50 years left of supporting the club that is the equivalent of only £20 a year. We will also offer life memberships for £250, 10-year memberships for £100 and annual memberships for £25. “These will enable you to be entered into lotteries to buy tickets. But it is important to stress that we are not taking any money yet.”

The club would be a lot more closely linked with the community and would take part in events, Mr Lee said. Close to 15,000 have now logged on to the savenewcastle.com website with many of those pledging financial support. Another 400 fans have pledged support on two Facebook sites dedicated to a takeover.

And with no sign of a concrete offer for the club from any other groups, Mr Lee said he was becoming more confident they would be successful. He said: “The longer the club is left unsold, the lower the price will be and the more viable our scheme will become. Even if the club is sold, we will carry on with our plans because we are likely to be back in the same boat in 12 or 18 months.”