Our end of season newsletter has just gone out to subscribers. If you would like a copy please ask for one by contacting us through info@qpr1st.com.
The newsletter covers the latest on new stadium plans and looks at our view of how the club has been managed over the past year – improvements, but a need for more clarity and detail on how the club aims to achieve financial sustainability in the coming years.
The history of Supporters Trusts starts back in 1992 with the formation of the Northampton Town Supporters Trust. Supporters Direct was formed in 2000 following the 1999 “investing in the Community” report by the Government’s Football Taskforce.
Full details of the History of Supporters Direct can be found at the link below
Following discussion with the supporters consultation group, the Club has agreed to freeze season ticket prices for next year. QP1st agree that this is the most appropriate decision
QPR1st understand that a restructure has taken place in how the club is run on a day to day basis. It means that although Les Ferdinand remains responsible for player recruitment and day to day football matters, Lee Hoos has been given greater authority to immediately approve decisions rather than having to wait for approval from the club’s owners. This is a rational development given the delay in the decision making process when the club’s owners are in a different time zone
Do you think your club is being run better now than it was ten years ago? That was one of the questions QPR1st was asked by FCBusiness – a magazine looking at the business side of football – which has just published an edition looking at fans’ views. We were also asked about what the club gets wrong and what it gets right. We said: “It consults with supporters on some significant issues and is now trying to manage the finances of the club better. Things that the club gets wrong are amateurish tweets from the chairman, and a lack of clarity on the medium and long-term plans for the club. Reflections of this include contradictory statements and inconsistent decision-making.”
We were asked what one thing would you like to see changed at your club immediately? We said: “Face to face communications with the chairman and management team, not just the CEO, director of football and manager; welcome though this is.”
We have the impression that the owners appear to make too many decisions on the hoof in response to the short term performance of the team rather than sticking to a long term strategy. That was reflected in a number of answers we gave:
What one thing would you like to see changed at your club in the long term? Our answer: “Firstly, the existence of a clear strategy of where the current owners see the club and its business in a few year’s time; something that will convince more supporters that the club is in competent hands. Allied to this; more influence for supporters in decision-making and discussions on the future.”
Our answer to that question about whether club affairs are managed better now than ten years ago was: “Better – but that would not be difficult. QPR has been very badly run for many years with owners and chief executives who neither understand football and how to run a football club, nor the traditions of the club.
Other issues raised included ticket prices and games rescheduled to meet the demands of TV. We said there should be a significant reduction in the number of games that have their dates or times changed for TV purposes. Do any other sporting or entertainment activities suffer this? The changes are unfair and often expensive for game attending supporters.
The full article is here: (See pages 43-45)
https://cloud.3dissue.com/6374/7271/131371/FCBUSINESS98/index.html
What do you think and what do you believe are the big issues for the cub in 2017? Let us know on info@qpr1st.com
Damian Collins MP, chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee said yesterday that the FA’s current structure “makes it impossible for it to reform itself. As such, there is currently no effective governing body for football in England that is capable of responding to the challenges that face the modern game.”
Supporters Direct (SD) and The Football Supporters Federation (FSF) have supported the call for a clearer and more representative FA and, if necessary, Government legislation to bring about change.
We were involved in a meeting of SD and the FSF that came up with 20 recommendations on how the FA could be more representative and an effective regulator of the game.
More on that is here:
QPR1st welcomes the club’s statement that it takes historical child abuse allegations made against a former employee very seriously and that it will cooperate fully in any forthcoming investigation. It is also appreciated that the club now has robust recruitment procedures and safeguarding polices in place.
It is not clear what exactly the Club knew about Gieler’s activities. Gieler was not charged let alone convicted of child sex abuse. Accounts suggest that incidents occurred when no other adults were present and the boys themselves did not report what was going on. It can be argued that Gieler should have been more closely supervised but no evidence has been so far presented that the Club was involved in any kind of cover-up or that it attempted to pay off or intimidate any victims that came forth.
Nevertheless the media is clearly suggesting that the Club did know by implying that this was why he was sacked. The club is quite rightly being circumspect about what information it releases into the public domain. Nevertheless if Club records indicate that he was sacked for an unrelated reason, then it is in the Club’s interest to make this known.
We would ask the club to be proactive in contacting former youth players to advise them about what support is available from appropriate services if they were victims of sex abuse. We would also urge the FA to complete its investigation into an issue that is casting such a dark shadow over the game as a matter of urgency.
QPR1st
QPR1st Supporters’ Trust welcomes Ian Holloway back to Loftus Road. He has made huge contributions to the club in the past and we wish him the best of fortune on his return.
We know he will work had for the club, and we feel sure all supporters will get behind Ian and the team. We hope the club gives Ian the time needed to turn things round on the pitch.
Sadly, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s time at QPR did not see an entertaining, passing football at either Loftus Road or away from home. We wish him well for the future. We trust that likely replacements for JFH have already been identified by the club and that the new manager will be someone able to get the best from the squad; we don’t expect miracles, but we do expect hard-working players, team spirit, and a clear style of play that supporters can really get behind.
Well done QPR. It makes us proud that the club should work with the local council to offer help to people in great need. Life isn’t just about what happens on the pitch; there’s a world out there and people who need help.
