Report of Trust meeting with BCAFC Nov 2024

November 27, 2024

In attendance from the Club were, Ryan Sparks (RS) – Club CEO and Paula Watson (PW) – Director of Operations.

Representing the Trust was, Manny Dominguez (MD) – Chair

 

Apologies were given from Justin Brett (JB) – Vice Chair, and Matthew Pickles (MP)

 

Bantams Supporters Trust met with the Club on Monday 18th November. 

The last meeting with the Club had been the 5th August, 3 months ago, but we hadn’t met with RS since February so this was a much-needed catch up.

 

This meeting covered a lot of ground and we hope it got across what matters for supporters, and in the process a Trust sense of involvement in Club developments. So, without further ado lets dive into it.

 

Season Tickets and Matchday tickets

The Trust feels that it is important that season tickets and matchday tickets should continue to be affordable for all. The Clubs position is it desires the same but the club will be facing extra costs of more than £300,000 due to the new governments recent budget measures on employers.

 

Home and away loyalty points

It was raised that supporters that come in any other way than through the turnstiles, for example going through to a sponsors’ box, don’t get their loyalty points added.

 

It was advised supporters using the boxes can email the club which matches they will be using the boxes so that they can be added by ticketing staff, or they can explain to a steward to exit to go through the turnstile to get their QR code scanned before the game.

 

It was also expressed that even getting QR codes scanned at home or purchasing an away ticket, doesn’t automatically enable supporters see their loyalty points added straight afterwards.

 

The Trust was advised to email the Club examples.

 

Away ticket availability

The concern was expressed that some away tickets come on sale quite late making it difficult to plan ahead.

 

It’s not always easy because supporters are at the mercy of the away club.

It was said our Club try to give at least 4 weeks notice or more about away tickets, and the Club have recently giving 48hr notice ahead of away ticket releases, with dates for purchase pending loyalty points collected, then season ticketholders and then general sale.

 

 

Atmosphere end consultation

It was said that there was still a lot of dissatisfaction among the regulars that sit in block B, and some say they will no longer buy their season ticket.

 

The Club said there have been 3 key consultations with supporters. One had been on season tickets and the outcome was most would be happy with an increase. Another had been on the branding, and over 4,000 took part largely rejecting any change to the Club crest. And approximately 80% of supporters were happy with the relocation of the atmosphere end to block B out of approx. 3,000 that took part.

 

It was also pointed out that supporters would’ve liked to be directly involved in the processes. The Club felt it was a case that fans in Block B wanted to be emailed about it.

 

Railed seating within the ground for both home and away supporters and cost

Staying with atmosphere, it was asked if there had been any thought of planning where in the stadium there would be a choice to stand for both home and away supporters – would block B be considered as the home choice for example.

 

The response was that it had been put on the back burner for the time being as there was a more urgent need for repairs over the shop, changing rooms roof at a cost of £75,000 which has largely been completed now.

 

Club Business Strategy (with regards to fan engagement)

We looked a this with particular attention to ‘supporters after the game’ and ‘fans feeling valued’ and there a plans to carry out surveys to understand how fans feel valued, and what would make supporters feel more valued.

 

Improving our structured dialogue and the Club promoting of work with the Trust and Supporters Board (SB)

It was briefly explained that more fans would understand the value of the Trust and SB if the engagement with them was occasionally publicised on the Club website.

 

It was felt from the Trust side, from the meeting, that the Club were more willing to commit to following up on decided action points being made.

 

Fan Engagement Plan (FEP)

We looked at this necessary requirement all EFL clubs have to commit to agreed to in the summer of this year.

 

Supporter engagement is a means of giving fans a sense of being closer to the club. A close association encourages and strengthens loyalty. It is a term that has come to encompass everything a club does to communicate with its supporters.

 

Clubs will be required to publish a FEP on an annual basis which will be overseen by a senior Club official. This requirement builds on the work clubs are already undertaking with supporters including hosting two meetings or fan forums each season to get their views on key issues faced by supporters and clubs.

 

Stoke City’s FEP is the best example of a template all clubs should aim towards.

 

The Trust picked up on the fact that the Clubs’ FEP has a quote from the SB’s Chair and dates of when they meet throughout the year and it was suggested that we have the same, a quote from the Chair and that we should aim for quarterly meetings in a year.

 

Governance Meetings

The Trust would get invites, and there we could raise ideas on diversity, community projects and sustainability.

 

The Club said it was aiming for silver in the Equality Code of Practice. Last season the Club achieved Bronze.

 

On sustainability the Club are concentrated on working with the EFL’s ‘Green Code’ sustainability programme.

 

Restorative Justice and Crime Reduction

It was raised about incidents at away matches against Walsall and Tranmere. Examples were given that at Tranmere, supporters were allowed to stand on the steps of the stands, and when our first goal was scored supporters toppled over each other. The Club hadn’t heard about that and it was suggested to email the Club and Tranmere Rovers.

 

It was also raised that disabled supporters get a raw deal at many grounds where we travel to especially where there is no choice of two areas of a ground to get into. Where we only get one stand, other supporters tend to stand in front of wheelchair users, obscuring their sightlines.

 

Asked about the appeals panel – where supporters accused of doing things they shouldn’t have been doing can appeal a decision, and have their case looked at again, availability for a Trust volunteer would be made.

 

Transport – Getting supporters to and from matches on a week night

It was explained that fans can get a day rider for £3 on a match day by using the promo code 'BANTAMSMATCH', check here, but it’s much more difficult to get home from a night match. It was asked if the Trust could contact the local authority and the West Yorkshire Combined Authority to see if they have any ideas to improve this situation, and response from the Club was favourable.

 

Football Governance Bill

The FSA was at the heart of 2021’s Fan-Led Review of Football Governance which made a range of recommendations to strengthen the game’s governance – most notably the commitment to introduce an independent regulator. 

 

The Bill, which has cross-party support was stopped in its tracks under the Tories due to the snap general election, and kick started again under a Labour government. In the Trust’s view, we feel it has been strengthened to protect both football supporters and clubs.

 

The stand out changes since the first draft of the Bill are:



  • New powers in the Bill include consulting fans on ticket pricing, home stadium relocations, and fan representation at clubs
  • Parachute payments included in Regulator’s remit so it will have full oversight to tackle financial sustainability across the football pyramid
  • Requirement to consider government foreign policy dropped to cement regulator’s full independence

 

However, the Bill has not yet run its full course through parliament and therefore it is not law, and as such, the Clubs position is that it is committed to following the regulations as laid down by the EFL.

 

It remains unclear how long it will take to become law. It currently has 19 amendments and it is likely there will be more tweaks to it than that before it gets over the line.

 

What is likely to take longer is the limited period it will take for the Premier League (PL) and EFL to agree an amount of money (after years of failure to agree) that the PL redistributes before the Independent regulator would come in to choose a proposal from either or impose a figure of its own. There is a view of course that this will never happen. But one thing is true; this financial redistribution underpins the whole Bill. The disparity of wealth between the EFL clubs and PL clubs is far too great already and is still widening.

 

EFL Sky Deal

It was asked by the Trust how the Club benefits from the new Sky deal and it was said that the Club is £50,000 worse off in League Two compared with having iFollow under the previous arrangements. The Club votes with the collective generally when it comes to voting to accept new changes, it also voted in favour of the new TV deal with a view to being in League One or higher as the rewards are financially greater under the new deal.

 

Under the previous EFL iFollow streaming service agreement, the Club benefited generating £250,000 from supporters using the service to stream home and away, live streamed matches.

 

Club Maintenance Costs

The Club said that maintenance costs on the stadium were significantly up on last year. More than £70k has been spent on the pitch and drainage, so far, with more works taking place over the coming weeks and months.  

 

Ownership

It was asked if there was any developments in terms of Stefan Rupp’s intention to be involved and investment since his open letter to fans and his attendance at the fans forum last summer. It was said he had come over for the Doncaster Rovers game at home in October, and nothing has changed with regard to his commitment to the Club, and was in the UK’s for Saturday’s postponed visit of Accrington Stanley.

 

With regards to the stadium, it was said that the Club are in a stronger position with Gordon Gibb and there will be consultation with the Trust should Gordon Gibb wish to sell in regard of the Asset of Community Value (ACV).

Promotion! And Prospects on the pitch

July 28, 2025
If anyone wasn’t able to be at the last game of the season at home against Fleetwood on May 3 rd 2025, they will know they missed probably one of the best endings of a match at Valley Parade in it’s history. Looking back ahead of that game, City had looked wobbly in terms of achieving results. Their last win was 2- nil against Crewe at home a month earlier (Sat 5 th April), and lost their following match away at Swindon, and then drawing the next 2 – one at home to Notts County (1-1) in front of the Sky TV crew on a Thursday evening and then away against the Spirites (3-3) before losing to Donny Rovers 2-1 at theirs. So, City had it all to do on their penultimate match and overcome Walsall at least on goal difference who had thrown away their lead in the table since we had beat them convincingly by 3 goals to nil back in January. The pressure was on then because we had to win. For the most part of this game, it was poor, and City played cautiously. It looked like for most City fans we were going to get in the play offs, especially when news came through that Walsall were winning away at Crewe on the hour. At the same time there was a massive urgency from the crowd to encourage a goal. It was only in injury time when the real drama took place. Antoni Sarcevic's shot on the turn went over! And then minutes later George Lapslie with the shot that got deflected in by Sarcevic, the winning goal which brought unbridled joy to Valley Parade in front of a record 24,033, with 420 from Fleetwood for the 25,000 capacity stadium built 25 years ago. The goal brought on a pitch invasion, but once the pitch was eventually cleared to play the remainder of the injury time, it was invaded again! It was almost unbelievable. Incredible scenes of jubilation at Valley Parade. All the frustration from years of lack of success, transformed itself into its’ opposite in an instant. We achieved automatic promotion, and to achieve it in that way, the Bradford City way, and then the celebrations on North Parade, the open top bus on the Tuesday evening was just something else. The result on the day was also the greatest gift to those we remember, our friends and family who never returned home 40 years on after the fire. Playing in League One So now we are in League One, both Club and supporters alike are looking forward to some mouthwatering fixtures. We certainly have more Yorkshire derbies to play. Donny Rovers, who came through with us as League Two Champions, Rotherham and Barnsley are our 3 south Yorkshire rivals, but we know have our West Yorkshire rivals, the ‘dog botherers’, Huddersfield Town to look forward to playing again. It will be interesting to see how former Premier League achievers Luton Town will fair this season, and going to Kennilworth Road will be a popular aim for many. And we have some fairly long distance travel to also, Plymouth, Exeter and Cardiff (another former Premier League team), and we have some Lancashire derbies too, Bolton, Wigan and Blackpool. We do face the return of playing Lincoln City too. The last time we were in the same league was League Two in 2010/11. Whilst the prospect of reacquainting ourselves with some of our rivals is exciting, there will certainly be some disappointments with getting to away games, because as we are now in a higher division, there will be greater demand from our fan-base to get tickets for getting to the away fixtures, and whilst we will see greater availability at some of the bigger grounds especially, it is inevitable some of these matches will be moved at police request or indeed for TV with a month’s notice or in some cases perhaps less. We will certainly keep a look out for that, and also not having enough loyalty points or ‘City Points’ will be a key frustration for many, and for some it will be rising costs of getting a ticket, especially from the bigger clubs in our league. These factors will bring supporters back to the reality of how costs and constant moving of fixtures dominate the modern game and with it, alienate supporters. How well will we fare in League One? The prospect of rising demand for away tickets, largely depends on how well we do on the pitch – picking up points from scoring goals in this results based industry. In terms of players who have departed then, it is a shame that, Richie Smallwood, Romoney Crichlow, Jamie Walker and Vadaine Oliver had to go. There was a lot of experience and team effort from these key players last season. In terms of who we have coming in this summer on free transfers, we have Stephen Humphrys (27-year-old center-forward from Barnsley), Josh Neufville (24-year-old right midfielder from AFC Wimbledon), Joe Wright (30-year-old center-back from Kilmarnock FC), and Matthew Pennington (30-year-old centre-back from Blackpool). They join Max Power, 31 from Danish Superliga side AGF, signing on a 2 year deal in May and, he joined Will Swan, 24 year old forward signed for an undisclosed fee from Crawley Town in June for two years. And just last week, we signed Everton’s Jenson Metcalfe, 20, on a 3-year permanent contract for an undisclosed fee. It’s always difficult to predict how Bradford City will do. No one predicted automatic promotion to League One before the start of last season, especially in the way it actually played out. The reality on the ground, we can say it will be tough in a new, higher division. We can hopefully, safely say that Graham Alexander will build a side based on the senior regulars and some of the new blood that has come in from May up to present. Jensen Metcalfe sounds promising playing alongside Andy Cooke and Bobby Pointon and Callum Kavanagh. There will be a lot of competition for places. If there is confidence in our squad against our opponents and we can regularly find the net as well as being able to prevent opposition forwards score goals consistently we’ll be doing something right. If we can consolidate our position in League One finishing the season strongly that would be amazing. But predicting how well we will do is a bit like prediction the British weather. Most supporters will be pleased with finishing strongly. There are probably over 16,000 season ticket holders at this point in time, and so if Graham Alexander and his coaching staff can create a real buzz in the team, we could see more attendance records being broken and away tickets snapped up quickly, but we shall see how this coming season will develop. Newer fans and certainly younger fans will have greater expectations than simply consolidation. Older fans know what to expect. We are sure there will be many twists and turns as the drama plays out. There will be injuries, and periods of peaks and troughs. It is always a roller-coaster ride, with fans divided on particular players and complete popularity on others as we dissect the game over a season. Another chapter that is unwritten as yet for 2025/26.

Total Amount Raised from Bucket Collection

May 23, 2025
On the 23 rd May the Club announced the total amount raised from the bucket collection before the last game of the season on the 3 rd May. Supporters donated an amazing £7,387.70 during the matchday bucket collection – almost double last year’s total – where volunteers gave up their time to help raise funds around Valley Parade ahead of the game against Fleetwood .  Those volunteers were you, who did an absolutely fantastic job! There were approximately 15 or so volunteers, mostly Trust members, but also from the Disability Club and Shipley Bantams. It is something that has been traditionally been done every year since the fateful tragedy and should be continued as a way of paying our respects to those who we should always remember. A phenomenal £18,580.74 has been raised for the Plastic Surgery and Burns Research Unit (PSBRU) since our game against Fleetwood Town. For more of a breakdown of what was raised when, please see the Club article here. The Trust would like to give a special thank you to all involved in the collection .

Fans Forum

May 22, 2025
There will be a Fans Forum at the Club on Wednesday 11 th June, where fans can ask questions to Chairman, Stefan Rupp, CEO, Ryan Sparks, First Team Manager, Graham Alexander, Head of Recruitment, Stephan Gent and Head of Football Operations, David Sharpe. The event is free but there is limited capacity of 450, and tickets will be available on a first come first served basis to fans that already have next seasons’ season tickets. It will be in the McCall and Hendrie suites, starting at 7pm. For more details and tickets here . Book early to avoid disappointment.

Your Stories from Valley Parade Community Event June 22nd

May 22, 2025
Bantams Supporters Trust have been supporting a community project led by Chris Gaffney, a professor of Archaeological Science at the University of Bradford, with his team at the University of Bradford, by promoting a survey , City supporters have been asked to fill in that asks you about your best memories of being a City fan when you have been at Valley Parade. Your stories will come to life by local artists and shown through the University's immersive technology at an event at City on Sunday 22 nd June, from 10am till 2pm. “Using their technology and your stories, they will be making the unimaginable imaginable. Enter the immersive igloo, explore the digital copy of the University of Bradford Stadium and watch as supporters’ stories are brought to life by artists from across the city.” The survey is still live so if you haven’t taken part yet, now is your chance. Find out more about the day’s event and to register here .

Share Your Stories from Valley Parade for Virtual Reality (VR) Project

May 13, 2025
Were you at Valley Parade on the 3 rd May 2025 to witness incredible scenes of joy as Bradford City clinched automatic promotion in the 96 th minute? Was this your best and most memorable experience ever? We, as Bradford City fans are being asked to participate in telling our stories of being at Valley Parade by answering online survey questions about your experiences of Supporting City at Valley Parade. You can choose which questions you want to answer and your stories / memories can be told anonymously. The questions include sharing memories of their first Bantams match, most memorable game, how they started supporting the club, family members’ memories of following the Bantams, where they sit at the University of Bradford Stadium and what it means to be a Bradford City supporter. The stories will be shared with artists who will turn them into different art forms e.g. paintings, film, poetry. The different artists interpretations of the stories will be embedded into a digital copy of the stadium that Chris Gaffney, (Professor of Archaeological Science at the University of Bradford) and his team are creating, and people will be able to explore using VR. There is an intention to embed the stories in the physical stadium that people will be able to access using a QR code when attending matches. They will be revealed during the Bradford 2025 City of Culture celebrations. The stories may also feature in a book being written to tell people about the different innovations that have been created by the Plastic Surgery and Burns Research Unit as a result of fans donations. Any profits from the book will be go towards the future research of the Plastic Surgery and Burns Research Unit. For further reading please go to the University of Bradford’s press release about the project. 

Voice of the Fans Exhibition

May 13, 2025
A new exhibition looking at fanzine culture in English football from the British Library and the Leeds Library service opened just recently on Friday 9 th May and runs until Sunday 10th August. The “Voice of the Fans” exhibition examines the world of long-standing – and some FSA award-winning – fanzines such our own City Gent, the Square Ball ran by supporters east of Pudsey, national indie title When Saturday Comes, and much more. Charting the rise of “fan self-publishing” from the 1960s into today’s digital-era, Voice of the Fans explores more than 60 years of fan-made media, with highlights from the collections of the British Library and Leeds Libraries – a period that has defined the beautiful game. Born out of the DIY ethos of the music and punk scenes, the raw creativity of football zines remains inspiring and relevant in today’s global game. The exhibition showcases fan-driven creativity from the UK and Ireland, and features some of the longest running and most influential football zines, alongside stories of well-known names who started their careers writing for these grassroots publications. 14 th June Show Our very own City Gent Editor, Mike Harrison will be among other writers and editors including Daniel Chapman of Leedsista and formerly The Square Ball, Felicia Pennant from SEASON Zine and Zoë Hitchen from Girlfans who will be discussing fan-driven publishing in the present moment, including its role in the wider media landscape, what it offers audiences, why it’s important and how it has endured despite changes in the globalised game. The discussion will be chaired by Ffion Thomas, Deputy Editor of When Saturday Comes and co-editor of Along Come Norwich zine. See more about this event here . This is part of the ‘Voice of the Fans’ Exhibition. The exhibition is free to all members of the public and there is no need to book in advance. “Voice of the Fans” will run at Leeds Central Library, Municipal Buildings, Calverley Street Leeds, LS1 3AB.

The Trust Always Remembers

May 9, 2025
Remembering the 54 Bradford City supporters and two Lincoln City supporters who went to watch a game of football but never returned home. We stand with everyone at the Memorial Service in Centenary Square and those that join us from all parts of the UK and the world to mark the 40th anniversary of the Valley Parade Fire Disaster.

Memorial Service on May 11

May 8, 2025
This Sunday, the annual memorial service will take place at the Bradford City Fire Disaster sculpture, in Centenary Square from 11am, marking 40 years of the anniversary. The service, jointly organized by Bradford Metropolitan District Council and Bradford City will be attended by relatives and friends of the 56 people who lost their lives and were affected in 1985, as well as Club and Council officials and members of the public. The Lord Mayor of Bradford, Cllr Beverley Mullaney, will host a Civic Party from Lincoln who will also attend the service together, with City’s men’s first team players and staff in attendance alongside representatives from the Club, and from Lincoln City. The disaster claimed the lives of 54 Bradford City supporters and two travelling Lincoln supporters, injuring hundreds more, in one of the world’s most devastating sporting tragedies. Bantams Supporters Trust representatives will be laying a wreath on behalf of the Trust.

How we remember the events of 40 years ago

May 6, 2025
An article written four years ago, aimed at perhaps a younger audience of football fans, who may not be aware of the terrible tragedy witnessed at Valley Parade 40 years ago now, is a valuable educational resource. Written by Simon Lloyd of the online magazine www.joe.co.uk , he interviews Mohammed Ibrahim, who recalls his experience of the events of May 11 th , 1985. Simon Lloyd also interviews the Chair of Bantams Supporters Trust, Manny Dominguez how he remembers it too. The article features a short documentary called ‘Unheard Voices’, which is a series of interviews with Humayun Islam from Bangla Bantams, and others, predominantly from the Bangladeshi community who live in the locality around Valley Parade and how they remember too. You can see the article here .

The winner of the Young Player of the Year is...

May 1, 2025
We would like to thank all of you who voted for the Supporters Trusts’ Young Player of the Year 2024/25. They say that football is a game of two halves, and it is, but it needs to be said that our whole season has almost been like a season of two different ones. It was really our home record, a succession of 10 back-to-back home wins that began just before Christmas that propelled the Bantams into the position we are in today. And the future of where we are next season is still to be determined at the last match of what feels like a very long exhilarating rollercoaster ride for the long suffering fans. This season there has been a real team effort on the pitch, a team that has grown in confidence over the course of the season. Congratulations goes to the gaffer, Graham Alexander who picked up the EFL Manager of League Two, while the skipper, Ritchie Smallwood was named in the EFL League Two Team of the Season at the recent EFL awards. And well done to Ritchie Smallwood who picked up the Player of the Year Award from the Club’s main sponsor, JCT600, and most the supporters travel clubs, and from the team itself. Young Player of the Year The winner of the Trust’s Young Player of the Year is of course, Bobby Pointon! He was voted as Trust members’ Young Player of the Year for the second time running! We would also like to give a special thanks to Tony Deacon, who gave Bobby the award. Once again, a big thank you to all of you for taking part. You know who you are and we very much appreciate your involvement in this event and making it a success.