Share Liverpool FC

A very exciting plan to take over Liverpool Football Club will be launched today.

The model they're looking at is a co-operative one, based on the kind of structure that a number of clubs in Germany and Spain - most notably Barcelona - have adopted.

I've blogged a number of times before about ownership in football and I really hope that this initiative gathers a head of steam. It seems to have good people behind it - Rogan Taylor has been a voice of reason for many years - and I for one would jump at the chance to invest in Liverpool.

Something has to change. David Conn outlined the situation very well in yesterday's Guardian. My heart sank when I saw a banner in the Kop at the Aston Villa game pleading with Dubai International Capital to rescue the club from its current owners grasp.

Share Liverpool FC could offer us a real chance to put ownership of football clubs back into the hands of fans - and for football to be run once again for the social benefit of the many, not the financial gain of the few.

Comments

[Dave]

Right now I'm interning with Ashoka's Citizen Base Initiative and as I read your post about community ownership of football teams it sounded exactly like the concept I am writing about during the day. One way of describing it would analogous to a social enterprise having the community support and resource backing like a community owned football team.

also remember seeing this idea on springwise (http://www.springwise.com/lifestyle_leisure/crowdbuying_a_soccer_team/)
but you are likely right in the middle of that situation

[Rob Greenland]

Thanks Dave - yes it's an exciting idea and they seem to be doing pretty well so far in terms of getting people to sign up. Let's hope it can work!