AFC TELFORD UNITED have moved away from fan ownership after the club’s Supporters’ Trust voted in favour of allowing external investment.
The Bucks, reformed after the original club closed due to massive financial issues, said they were struggling to survive as a supporter-ran club.
The National League North outfit revealed they needed to raise £25,000 by then end of October then another £25,000 a month later to avoid serious problems.
A proposal was put forward to change the ownership structure of the club and move away from Trust ownership to allow investment into the New Bucks Head.
And the Bucks’ Supporters’ Trust voted overwhelmingly to go along with the club’s plans to secure the future of football in the Shropshire town.
At an SGM on Monday night, 118 of 123 attendees voted in favour of the proposals with the Trust now set to sell their entire shareholding of 1,000 £1 ordinary shares to the club.
The Bucks will then issue 5,000 £100 ordinary shares for sale to and purchase by organisations or individuals.
A board statement read: “Our primary objective has always been to try and deliver the best club we possibly can and to ensure football remains alive in Telford.
“Fulfilling this objective has become increasingly difficult over the last 12 months, more so in the last few months with the loss of key personnel and a reduced number of directors to share the load.
“The club is now in a position where cash flow is extremely difficult. Income has fallen, particularly from gate receipts, and key costs have risen.
“We have urged the Trust Board to put in place a process to enable urgent changes to the ownership model of the club which would allow external investment.
“It would not be right for us to comment at this stage on the limitations of the model that we currently operate which we believe are currently hindering the business. We respect the Trustees – they are, fans who have always tried to do their very best to keep a club going that the fans can be proud of.
“The format that this change takes will of course be subject to debate but we have urged that this happens. Delay in allowing the change could prove fatal to the business.”
