There were smiles all round in the port city of Ancona in Italy as the cities football team, A.C. Ancona became become the first professional Italian football club to be owned and managed by its supporters. Their 2-0 win against Pisa, in the Lega Pro, Girone B division on Sunday 31 January 2016, was a celebration of Ancona supporters’ achievement in taking over the running of their club.
Highlights of the victory over Pisa are here -
http://sportube.tv/play?titolo=Ancona---Pisa-2-0%2C-20%5EGiornata-Girone-B&id=17139&cat=106&sez=9
The age-old tale of mismanagement, lack of
vision, short-term financial planning, and a growing disconnect between clubs
and communities often makes it easy to forget what attracts people to the game
in the first place, what makes football so special. Passion. A sense of belonging,
ownership and collective participation. 90% of clubs never win any silverware,
but that does not dampen the fervour with which their supporters follow them -
football , to them, is about more than what happens over 90 minutes each weekend, or even
over the course of a season.
The Ancona
story proves this beyond doubt. The size and significance of the crisis
should not be underestimated, and for a time during that long summer of 2010 it
seemed that the story of the Marche region’s most historic club was set to end.
In the face of extinction and when all else
failed, the Ancona tifosi realised
that no one could save their club, their passion, and their ideas - except
them. They mobilised themselves under the slogan ‘passion cannot be relegated’ and they formed Sosteniamolancona (http://www.tuttoancona.com/category/sosteniamolancona/) a democratic organisation committed to the development of a community
club with supporters at its heart. After ensuring the club’s immediate
survival, their commitment persuaded local businessman Andrea Marinelli to
finance the formation of a new club – U.S.
Ancona 1905.
Although forced to restart from Eccellenza
(at the time Italian football's sixth tier) it was clear that Ancona’s lowly status would be
temporary. With an average attendance of more than 5,000 supporters (a figure
that outshone most Serie B clubs in 2010/11) and the support of thousands more,
Ancona began to rise once again; this
time not only on the pitch but also off of it.
Stadio Del Conero, Ancona
During their first year in Eccellenza, Ancona won every competition they
entered (the League, the Amateurs Cup, and Regional Cup) but for supporters the
most important was moment of that season was an agreement between Sosteniamolancona and the club that gave
supporters the opportunity to elect two members on the club board and a ‘golden
share’ agreement with key rights attached to it. These prevented changes to the
club's name, colours, crest and home stadium without the permission of Sosteniamolancona and their members.
The early successes continued, and in 2014 Ancona celebrated a return to the
professional leagues. Respect towards the supporters was key to this success:
during the 2013-14 season Ancona and Sosteniamolancona had agreed on the
removal of barriers between the stands and the pitch and jointly introduced the
Centro Relazioni con i Tifozi, a
Supporter Liaison Officer-like body that ensures the Ancona supporters enjoy the best football experience both on home
and away matchdays, but also during the week.
Slowly but surely the supporters have become
the heart of the club once more. David Miani, a lifelong supporter and former
President of Sosteniamolancona,
became Vice President and Managing Director of the club in 2015 .
Crucially, the project enjoys widespread
backing not just amongst the Ancona fanbase,
but other stakeholders: the Regione
Marche, Provincia di Ancona, and Municipio di Ancona. The club have also
built partnerships within the local community - businesses, social projects and
ordinary supporters are all part of a journey that shows no sign of ending yet.
Their successes have also inspired other
Italian supporters to follow a similar path: in Taranto, Cava de’ Tirreni,
San Benedetto del Tronto and many
other proud footballing towns throughout the country, aided by Supporters in
Campo (SinC), a national umbrella organisation for democratic supporters’
groups and member-run clubs.
Sosteniamolancona are, for their part, active members of SinC, and the group has many
positive experiences to share, both within and outside of Italy.
In November, it was announced that majority
owner Andrea Marinelli would gift his shares to the Fondazione Unione Anconitana, a democratic body established by Sosteniamolancona. In just over five years, the club has emerged
from a life-threatening crisis to become Italy’s first professional side to be
owned and managed by its supporters - a remarkable achievement. Things aren’t
going too badly on the pitch either: biancorossi are aiming for a play-off spot and promotion to Serie B the goal.
Now,
with news of this landmark agreement and assumption of full ownership by the
supporters of Ancona, the future
seems even brighter not only for the club, but for the entire city and its
wider community. The supporters have, apart from each other, many allies at
home and abroad that will help them in the future. Sosteniamolancona are founder members of Supporters in Campo, the national organisation for democratic
supporters' trusts and member owned clubs in Italy, who have played a key role
in helping to reach this historic agreement.
The
whole community can celebrate this exciting new era and look forward to the
future. Regardless of what unfolds on the pitch, it will be an occasion where
the power of supporter involvement will be clear for all to see .
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