Season 2011-12 Fan Articles

FC Basel ? a useful template?

By Graham   Atherton  ::  08/12/2011   31 Comments (»Last) I had a browse around how a small club like FC Basel have achieved CL success the likes of which we would love to have. They have a stadium of around the same size as we do, same number of season ticket holders and have had to come back from a low point in their history around 12 years ago, playing in a relatively small league.

I found this article which goes into some detail on how FC Basel works: http://p15432.typo3server.info/fileadmin/template/kupfer2/pdf/fc_basel.pdf?

Interesting how similar they are in active fanbase size to Everton:

• They formulated a long term plan for gradual improvement of team and stadium.
• They attracted a small amount of extra investment year on year from corporate investors and a small fans group which is impressive but I suspect that the most important points are:
  • Brand new stadium developed from the old, plenty of room for expansion costing a little more than £100 million (in 1999/2001) paid for by private investors and rented back from them for £3 million a year. Sounds like peanuts now but I bet it wasn't in 2001.
  • Excellent transport links.
  • Multiuse - basically part of a retail development that pays for 60% of the stadium rental!!
• Performance related salaries throughout the club. Would that would spell doom for us as we would fail to attract the best talent? Well we are already in that situation and it would certainly help team togetherness.
• Small league, much easier to get into Champions League regularly
• Best youth development in the league

Other similarities:

• Outsourced merchandising
• Balance books on transfers, all low value
  (http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/en/fc-basel-1893/transfers-alle/verein_26.html)

Worth discussing??

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