Renew, reform and reclaim the game says crowdsourced Manifesto to ‘transform Scottish football’
The publication of a ‘Fans Manifesto’ for the future of Scottish football is being marked by an event at the Scottish Parliament on Thursday 7thJanuary 2016 – to be addressed by former First Minister Henry McLeish, Alison Johnstone MSP, commentator Gerry Hassan and others.
The Manifesto, entitled ‘Transforming Scottish Football’ is formally published next week, and highlights some key concerns from a survey of 10,000 Scottish football fans across Scotland.
It is being produced by the Scottish Football Supporters Association (SFSA), which launched less than a year ago and already has a membership of some 50,000 supporters.
SFSA is Scotland’s first independent national fans network, and has already received recognition from the European supporters’ network.
“Our message is that we believe Scottish football has a positive future, and that the voice and contribution of fans is vital and central to renewing, reforming and reclaiming the national game in Scotland,” says Scottish Football Supporters Association chair Simon Barrow, who is a lifelong a Dumbarton supporter.
He continues: “SFSA is launching a range of initiatives alongside this Manifesto – which will be expanded and developed in the coming months. It is the first document of its kind to be crowd-sourced from fans themselves.
“League restructuring and a fans’ right to bid or buy in the event of a club coming up for sale are among the ideas that are now firmly back on the table.
“Now we need a ‘big conversation’ about the future of our game involving all those who care about it,” says the SFSA chair.
* The ‘Fans Manifesto’ event at the Scottish Parliament takes place from 1-2pm on Thursday 7th January 2016, and is by invitation. If you would like to attend, ring Simon Barrow on 07850 120413 immediately, and by 10am tomorrow at the latest.
Image: Action Images / Graham Stuart Livepic
