Being British I am an avid follower of football (soccer). I recently came across a story about a lower division soccer team in England that is being run in a most unique way. Ebbsfleet United were taken over earlier this year by a web based fans group. The group, myfootballclub, requires each member to put forward $70 as a fee and with this they become a stakeholder in the club. The group currently has over 50,000 members across the globe. The venture started last year as a way of allowing fans to have a greater say in the running of a club. The members then voted on a team to takeover, bearing in mind the finances that were available to them.
The team does not have a manager, but instead a head coach, with members voting on team selection and the buying and selling of players. Members also act as scouts, recommending players they know for the club to purchase. This is one reason why they encourage international members. The web site is the hub of the football club and it is very interactive. There is a huge forum for members to give their views and also podcasts posted by members.
This is a very innovative experiment in running a sports team. It will be very interesting to see how this progresses; how large the membership base grows to and how successful the team becomes. A few days a go they won a trophy which bodes well for the future. If this venture works out, then with the Internet providing more and more opportunities for this kind of interaction, this form of sports team ownership could become more and more common.
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