Soldato
- Joined
- 22 Sep 2008
- Posts
- 10,152
- Location
- Burscough
I don't post in TFS very often, but I am writing here to express my complete disapproval of the whole Hull City AFC name change debacle.
First of all though, I would like to re-iterate the amazing investment that Assem Allam has put into this great club. He rescued them from the abyss after the relegation from the Premier League, ploughing £70M of his own money into the club to stave off administration. He has since brought in a great manager and has invested heavily in the team. All of which I am extremely grateful for.
Aside from Hull City, he is also a man who is extremely proud of where he lives. He has invested/donated heavily to many organisations within Hull, such as the University and one of the Rugby League teams, Hull Kingston Rovers to whom he donated £1M. He is an extremely generous man to the local community, beyond just the sporting scene.
For these reasons, it makes me increasingly frustrated as to why he is persisting with the "Hull Tigers" issue.
His argument is that a simple name such as Hull Tigers will be more marketable as it stands out from the rest (by that he means, Stoke City, Man City, Swansea City, etc). To a certain extent, I can understand his motive. He has put a lot of dosh into a cash guzzling machine that never makes a decent return (if at all). Some marketing streams may become available because of this, but I remain extremely doubtful on this point. How daft would we look if we got relegated, for example? Laughing stock springs to mind.
He has now come out in the press to re-iterate his threat to put the club up for sale if the FA do not approve the name change, stating that the re-branding was necessary in order to increase revenue streams and reduce the burden on his own pocket. He has also accused the FA of being prejudiced towards his plans by the PR generated from the "City Till We Die" group, stating that the silent majority disapprove of their ideals.
As such, he has stated that season ticket holders will be balloted on the name change, presumably a simple yes/no question. The only reason any season ticket holder would vote "yes" to the proposed name change is because they don't want Allam to go as he has done a lot of good for this club. Therefore, any ballot on the name change would quite clearly be a very loaded question. That's what infuriates me about the ballot idea, its just utterly pointless. It's like making people vote in an election with a gun to their heads.
If the name change went ahead, what then, would this mean to the club and to the every day supporter?
It would mean renaming the club, removing all previous references from the kit, signs, and within the media (I would presume). To a certain extent, the century of tradition disappears and with this, I believe it cheapens not only Hull City but the whole branding of the football league. It makes a fundamental statement to the rest of the league that this is acceptable. It stands out (which is incidentally the look the owner is going for) but it makes a mockery of the whole history of the football league but putting in some "American esque" team names into what is a very traditional sport. Conversely, we are lead to believe that the financial burden will be eased and Hull City supporters will hopefully continue to enjoy life in the Premier League with a well funded team. Similarly to Cardiff, supporters will still "go to watch City", chant "City till I die" etc, those sentiments will never be lost amongst the supporters.
If the name change won't go ahead, what then, would this mean to the club and to the every day supporter?
More worrying, is that the owner that has rescued us from death and taken us so far, will now drop us like a stone. We can say goodbye to the Premier League and brace for the worst in the Championship, especially if a potential new owner cannot be found. That is the worst case scenario and if you believe the rhetoric being thrown around, this is the realistic scenario.
The other thing is though, we have seen this all before. He has taken Hull City Council right to the brink because he has not been allowed to buy the KC stadium "on the cheap". It was built for the City, not just for football but for Rugby League and other such functions. It is essentially a "community" stadium, not a cash cow or a gift for the benefit of the football club. He made threats at the time to up sticks and leave the KC and build his own stadium at another site just outside the city. Most of these claims have since proved fruitless and the situation has effectively died down. But is this a sign from a man who pushes people to the brink but doesn't have the bottle to carry it through? Time will tell.
From a personal standpoint, I think the economic benefits of changing the name will be negligible. There has been no proof to this effect. Common sense prevailed, as shown by the FA decision to reject the application. Why upset your supporters in such a pointless way, whom without there would be no club!
First of all though, I would like to re-iterate the amazing investment that Assem Allam has put into this great club. He rescued them from the abyss after the relegation from the Premier League, ploughing £70M of his own money into the club to stave off administration. He has since brought in a great manager and has invested heavily in the team. All of which I am extremely grateful for.
Aside from Hull City, he is also a man who is extremely proud of where he lives. He has invested/donated heavily to many organisations within Hull, such as the University and one of the Rugby League teams, Hull Kingston Rovers to whom he donated £1M. He is an extremely generous man to the local community, beyond just the sporting scene.
For these reasons, it makes me increasingly frustrated as to why he is persisting with the "Hull Tigers" issue.
His argument is that a simple name such as Hull Tigers will be more marketable as it stands out from the rest (by that he means, Stoke City, Man City, Swansea City, etc). To a certain extent, I can understand his motive. He has put a lot of dosh into a cash guzzling machine that never makes a decent return (if at all). Some marketing streams may become available because of this, but I remain extremely doubtful on this point. How daft would we look if we got relegated, for example? Laughing stock springs to mind.
He has now come out in the press to re-iterate his threat to put the club up for sale if the FA do not approve the name change, stating that the re-branding was necessary in order to increase revenue streams and reduce the burden on his own pocket. He has also accused the FA of being prejudiced towards his plans by the PR generated from the "City Till We Die" group, stating that the silent majority disapprove of their ideals.
As such, he has stated that season ticket holders will be balloted on the name change, presumably a simple yes/no question. The only reason any season ticket holder would vote "yes" to the proposed name change is because they don't want Allam to go as he has done a lot of good for this club. Therefore, any ballot on the name change would quite clearly be a very loaded question. That's what infuriates me about the ballot idea, its just utterly pointless. It's like making people vote in an election with a gun to their heads.
If the name change went ahead, what then, would this mean to the club and to the every day supporter?
It would mean renaming the club, removing all previous references from the kit, signs, and within the media (I would presume). To a certain extent, the century of tradition disappears and with this, I believe it cheapens not only Hull City but the whole branding of the football league. It makes a fundamental statement to the rest of the league that this is acceptable. It stands out (which is incidentally the look the owner is going for) but it makes a mockery of the whole history of the football league but putting in some "American esque" team names into what is a very traditional sport. Conversely, we are lead to believe that the financial burden will be eased and Hull City supporters will hopefully continue to enjoy life in the Premier League with a well funded team. Similarly to Cardiff, supporters will still "go to watch City", chant "City till I die" etc, those sentiments will never be lost amongst the supporters.
If the name change won't go ahead, what then, would this mean to the club and to the every day supporter?
More worrying, is that the owner that has rescued us from death and taken us so far, will now drop us like a stone. We can say goodbye to the Premier League and brace for the worst in the Championship, especially if a potential new owner cannot be found. That is the worst case scenario and if you believe the rhetoric being thrown around, this is the realistic scenario.
The other thing is though, we have seen this all before. He has taken Hull City Council right to the brink because he has not been allowed to buy the KC stadium "on the cheap". It was built for the City, not just for football but for Rugby League and other such functions. It is essentially a "community" stadium, not a cash cow or a gift for the benefit of the football club. He made threats at the time to up sticks and leave the KC and build his own stadium at another site just outside the city. Most of these claims have since proved fruitless and the situation has effectively died down. But is this a sign from a man who pushes people to the brink but doesn't have the bottle to carry it through? Time will tell.
From a personal standpoint, I think the economic benefits of changing the name will be negligible. There has been no proof to this effect. Common sense prevailed, as shown by the FA decision to reject the application. Why upset your supporters in such a pointless way, whom without there would be no club!
Last edited:
