In this month’s newsletter there are updates on: our Summer Party, Senior Concessions, a chance to play in a football tournament, the Football Governance Bill, Spurs’ sponsorship partners and two plays featuring former Spurs’ players…..
THST Summer Party
Special guest Sandro, ‘The Beast’, made our annual summer party a day to remember for all who attended, as well as helping us to raise £1000 for Prostate Cancer Charity, PCUK.
THST members gathered at The Antwerp Arms in Tottenham on Sunday, 7 July, for a chance to enjoy a delicious barbecue and look forward to the season ahead with fellow Spurs fans. Special guest Sandro met with supporters to sign autographs, pose for photos and give a frank and entertaining interview with Spurs Show host and long-term friend of the Trust, Theo Delaney.
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Sandro described how important the Club is to him and that he now feels just like we do; he is a fan. ‘When we lose it hurts and spoils the weekend, but when we win it makes everything look good.‘ He talked about how much he loved playing for Spurs and how he resisted a move to Man City because Spurs, to him, was ‘home’ (much to the disappointment of his agent!). Theo compared The Beast to Dave Mackay and felt that he was everything a midfielder should be, strong, no-one will pass him, but also able to really play football. Sandro’s matches against AC Milan in the San Siro and White Hart Lane were held up as maybe his favourite games in a Spurs shirt.
To top it all Sandro then played guitar and sang with the wonderful Irish music band from the Antwerp Arms, truly making everyone’s day.
Sharing senior concession tickets
On 17 July the Club emailed holders of senior concession season tickets. The Club stated that they were seeking to ‘limit the misuse of concession seating that we have previously seen’ and that senior concession season ticket holders may now only share their season tickets with a non-concession supporter if they pay the difference in cost of a full price ticket and also may only now transfer the ticket to a One Hotspur Member. This new requirement was misleadingly described by the Club as a ‘Ticket Upgrade’’.
The Club added that it would be ‘monitoring their usage throughout the season. We shall contact supporters directly where our records suggest that a concession ticket has not been used by an eligible supporter’.
The Club shared the draft email with the Fan Advisory Board prior to sending it. The FAB (including the Trust representatives) raised a number of concerns regarding both the tone and content of the email. The Club did not alter the email in response to those concerns, and as a result, the communication has received a predictably negative response. We have been contacted by a number of supporters raising concerns. Others have contacted the Club direct.
We have reiterated to the Club the concerns which were previously raised, namely:
- the email implied that all senior concession season ticket holders were “misusing” tickets;
- the email referred to an “upgrade” when it was nothing of the sort. It was a requirement to pay extra money to transfer the ticket; in addition, those tickets can now only be shared with a One Hotspur Member, not with any fan with a Customer Reference Number, as previously.
- there was no equivalent option to “downgrade” when transferring a full price ticket to someone entitled to a concession
Clearly it is too late to change the first two points as the email has now been sent. However, we have said that the Club should take on board the negative reaction to the email.
In relation to the reference to “misuse”, we have been sent some further information by one of the supporters who contacted the Trust about the ‘upgrade’ email. This email exchange with the Club from July 2023 shows he was specifically told, in response to a direct question regarding sharing a concession ticket with a non-concession supporter: ‘Regarding your question in relation to Ticket Share, please be aware that you can share your ticket via Ticket Share regardless of the age‘. The Club’s response in July 2023 was undoubtedly correct and reinforces the point that it was not appropriate for the Club’s recent email to refer to “misuse” of concession seating when supporters had been specifically told that they could share seats with non-concession fans.
On the third point, we have reiterated to the Club that an option to “downgrade” to a concession ticket should be available. It should not be a one-way street. If the technology exists to “upgrade” it must exist to “downgrade”. This is a point we have made repeatedly and that we have reiterated with added force in the light of the Club’s email and the response it has provoked.
We have asked once again that the Club introduce and publicise a ‘downgrade’ option. We have stressed that this would be well received by fans and would be seen both as fair and as a gesture of reciprocity by the Club. The Club is considering our representations and we have been promised a substantive response and a discussion on the points raised.
We’re looking for the next Beth England – or at least some female Spurs fans who love playing 5 or 6 a side!
We will be helping to raise awareness of, and funds for, five Tottenham community projects while playing the game we love. THST will be entering a mixed 6 a side team into a series of Spurs tournaments, with the culmination taking place at Hotspur Way. We have got the makings of a good squad and will be having a training game shortly. The first tournament will be on the morning of the Bayern Munich friendly, Saturday 10th August, and further events are planned, including extra tournaments in October and March. We hope this team will stick together and continue to represent the Trust in further matches. If you would like to get involved, please email us on info@THSTOfficial.com and if you know of anyone who might be interested, please share the details with them.
Football Governance Bill
Prior to the General Election the Labour Party had reiterated its support for legislation to reform football governance and establish an independent football regulator. Following Labour’s victory in the election, THST wrote to the newly appointed Secretary of State Lisa Nandy MP welcoming that commitment and looking forward to the Football Governance Bill being part of the new government’s legislative programme.
We called for the previous government’s proposed legislation to be strengthened by specifically including within its scope ticket pricing and the availability of concession tickets. Additionally, we stressed that the provisions regarding consultation with supporters’ representatives needed to be strengthened to ensure that supporter consultation is at an early stage, with sufficient information provided and the opportunity to consider and respond before a final decision is taken.
We were delighted to see the Football Governance Bill included in the King’s Speech which sets out the new government’s legislative programme for this Parliament.
The official notes to the King’s Speech state that the Bill will strengthen the previous government’s proposed legislation “to ensure that fans have a greater voice in their own clubs” and that this will be achieved by “setting a minimum standard of fan engagement” to include requiring fan approval to changes to badge and home shirt colours and writing the FA protection for club names into law.
The notes confirm that the Bill will also include the creation of a new independent regulator; the introduction of financial regulation to improve the financial resilience of clubs across the football pyramid; a new strengthened owners’ and directors’ test; requiring approval for a stadium sale or relocation; preventing clubs from joining closed-shop, breakaway or unlicensed leagues, such as the European Super League; ensuring fair financial distributions between leagues; and establishing a ‘Football Club Corporate Governance Code’.
The Sports Minister, Stephanie Peacock MP, emphasised Labour’s commitment to the Bill and the establishment of the independent regulator at the Football Supporters’ Association Annual General Meeting at which THST was represented – see here.
THST welcomes the proposed legislation and will continue to make representations for the strongest possible protections for consultation, fan engagement and the rights of supporters.
Sponsorship partners
The Club recently announced that the new sleeve partner for the men’s and women’s first teams is a crypto platform. This follows a worrying trend towards funding by crypto currencies and also by betting companies. Football clubs have a unique position within society, benefitting from a lifetime of loyalty from their supporters. This should not be taken for granted, and the responsibility that comes with it should not be underestimated.
Because the Club promotes these names, supporters could understandably assume that Spurs are endorsing the products and the habits they develop in their customers, despite the potential risks.
The company’s name is not placed on the retail version of the training top, but it is promoted broadly through the training session videos and new signing photos, normalising the name and industry. The Premier League has attempted to stop clubs from having such companies on the front of the playing shirts, and while our first team shirt sponsor conforms with this initiative, the training kits worn by the first team should not be exempt.
We understand of course that the Club needs to secure sponsorship, and we would love to think that this funding would one day be reflected in lower ticket prices for loyal fans. However, we would urge Spurs to seek sponsors whose products do not risk tempting fans into taking financial risks that many cannot afford.
The Ghost of White Hart Lane
The world premiere of the play, ‘The Ghost of White Hart Lane’, telling the story of Spurs and Scotland legend, John White, was held at the Tottenham Stadium on Sunday July 21st. The play, which was written and directed for the stage by Martin Murphy, is an adaptation of the best selling book of the same name written by Rob White and Julie Welch.
As well as playing for the Scotland National team (22 appearances and 3 goals) he was part of the 1961 Tottenham Hotspurs team which became the first in the 20th Century to win The Double and a part of the 1963 team which was the first British team to win a European trophy when they won the 1963 European Cup Winners Cup Final against Atletico Madrid.
The performance thrilled those who managed to get their hands on tickets. The one-man show was commissioned to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the death of John White, who was struck by lightning at the age of 27. John’s former team-mate Cliff Jones was in the audience along with Spurs Club Ambassador Gary Mabbutt. The play will be performed as part of the Edinburgh Festival at the Underbelly, Bristo Square (Dairy Room) from the 31st July until the 26th August. Tickets available here.
Our Little Hour
Show Racism the Red Card & Live Wire Theatre are delighted to announce the casting of Leon Newman, Neil Reidman and Susie Broadbent in – the new musical celebrating the extraordinary life of legendary Spurs and Northampton Town footballer Walter Tull by award winning playwright Dougie Blaxland and composer Chris Anthony.
Our Little Hour which will be staged at the Greenwich Theatre London on 22nd and 23rd October as part of a UK wide tour coinciding with Black History Month 2024 tells the inspirational story of how Walter Tull – the grandson of a Barbadian slave and orphaned at just eight years old – rose to prominence against all odds.
Spurs fans will know that Walter was the first black footballer to play at the highest level of the domestic game in the UK: he went on to achieve yet another historic breakthrough as the first man of his heritage to be commissioned as an Officer in the British Army.
Tragically killed in action just a few weeks before the end of World War 1, Walter Tull’s pioneering achievements have earned him a distinguished place in British History and in the hearts of everyone who hears his story.
Tickets for the show at The Greenwich Theatre London are available here.