Following FIFA’s announcement that it may privatise or sell stakes in its football competitions, ATAC has issued an open letter to SFA Chief Executive Ian Maxwell, urging the SFA to oppose any such move.
Dear Ian,
On behalf of the Association of Tartan Army Clubs, we’re writing to ask the Scottish FA to oppose and publicly speak out against any attempt by FIFA to privatise or sell off any part of our game, and to stand alongside UEFA and other European nations in resisting such moves.
Scotland has always been more than just another football nation. We helped create the modern game, played the first ever international and have spent more than 150 years shaping football’s history. That gives us a responsibility to speak up when we believe football is heading in the wrong direction.
After waiting 28 years to return to the World Cup, thousands of Scotland supporters travelled across North America to follow the team. In Boston and beyond, the Tartan Army showcased everything that’s good about Scottish football. Our supporters built friendships, worked with local communities and left behind a reputation that money simply can’t buy.
But many also came home asking whether the World Cup is still being built for supporters.
Fans faced some of the highest costs ever seen at a football tournament. Ticket prices were eye-watering, accommodation costs spiralled and commercial interests seemed to take priority over the match-going supporter. Football risks becoming a luxury rather than a game for everyone.
The answer cannot be to hand even more control to private investors whose priority is delivering financial returns. That would only push the game further away from the people who made it what it is.
UEFA has rightly recognised that supporters are key stakeholders in football, not just customers. We believe the Scottish FA should champion that principle and be a strong voice at the forefront in protecting those values. Scottish football should be working with UEFA and other European nations to oppose any move that places private profit ahead of supporters.
Football doesn’t belong to investors.
It belongs to the fans.
Yours sincerely,
Association of Tartan Army Clubs
Contact:
- Hamish Husband +44 7943 875943
- Martin Riddell +44 7974 801315
- Graeme Baxter +44 7855 022097
