Motherwell’s majority shareholder The Well Society has launched its vision for the future of the Fir Park club.
The plans are contained in ‘Our Club, Our Future: Our plan for growth for Motherwell Football Club and The Well Society’ and a detailed prospectus has been sent to Well Society members and is available online.
The launch comes before Well Society members and club shareholders begin a two-week voting process on July 8 after an offer from Wild Sheep Sports was recently amended.
The Lanarkshire club’s board revealed plans for a £1.95million cash injection which would have seen control of the club shift to Erik and Courtney Barmack (Wild Sheep Sports) and ultimately end a period of fan ownership.
Motherwell claim the amended deal would allow the fan ownership vehicle – which currently holds a 71 per cent stake – to maintain a majority shareholding of 50.1 per cent.
The Well Society’s new and wide-ranging plan has been endorsed by former Motherwell chairman Brian McCafferty, who suggested that voting for the Barmack proposal was a “gamble”.
In a statement he said: “This is a very clear vision for Motherwell Football Club and the Well Society. It is full of forward-looking, achievable, and pragmatic ideas to grow income while strengthening the club’s community ethos and bonds with supporters.
“I applaud those in this Well Society Board who have taken the initiative and developed this ambitious blueprint.
“For me, this document provides a clear pathway to a secure long-term future for the club based on creative and sensible initiatives, in contrast to the gamble of putting our club and our cash reserves under the control of a largely-unknown foreign investor.”
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The plans, in development since the beginning of the year, take four strands: A new vision for Motherwell Football Club; A new approach to investment, focused on local partnerships and strategic investment; A new strategy for growth of the Well Society; The identification of further opportunities around season tickets, the women’s team, and off-pitch revenue growth.
Well Society Board member Philip Speedie said: “This is an exciting time for Motherwell Football Club and a reinvigorated Well Society as majority shareholder.
“Our fans have spoken: it’s time for change and we agree. The status quo is no longer an option, with the old guard making way for fresh leadership at the Football Club and the Well Society.
“Since the election of a refreshed Well Society Board in October, we have moved quickly to host a series of workshops with fans on key issues like governance, membership, events and communications.
“We’ve established operating priorities, workstreams and are harnessing the talents of ‘Well supporting professionals working in finance, business, governance, engagement and communications.
“Working with experts, we have undertaken detailed investment modelling, aligned with the principles of fan-ownership and also reviewed, in detail, the proposal from Wild Sheep Sports.
“Our clear recommendation is for members to reject the proposal from Wild Sheep Sports, which promises little investment at a significant cost to fans.
“Another, brighter and more ambitious future is possible. That’s why, we are delighted to launch our plan for growth.
“The prospectus, developed with leading Scottish, UK and US-based advisors, promises a ‘fresh start for fan ownership’ with a major investment proposal and new fan engagement model.”
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