What Happens to the Bill after the General election? Part 1

June 2, 2024

With the general election now called for the 4th July, the Football Governance Bill, which has had 2 readings in parliament already, will not have time to go through the final Committee stage during this parliament.

 

However, all is not lost, as there is cross-party support and the Football Supporters Association (FSA) to which Bantams Supporters Trust is affiliated to, has launched an open letter to the political parties appealing for their commitment to the bill in their manifesto’s should they win the election. The letter is co-signed by Kevin Miles, CEO of the FSA, and Tracey Crouch, the Chair and author of the Fan-led Review.

 

The letter also has more than 200 FSA member supporters’ group signatories including Bantams Supporters Trust.

 

You can see the full letter and signatories here.

 

Concerns about the Bill after the general election and proffered by the PL

The Guardian, 23rd May says that, “There remains uncertainty, however, over whether an incoming government would pick up the bill as it is or seek to redraft it. This could lead to another extended period of lobbying by football stakeholders, and further delay the introduction of a regulator.”

 

And the Premier League (PL) clubs cannot agree a distribution package to the EFL and cannot agree with the EFL regarding the regulator’s proposed backstop powers to enforce financial redistribution from the top flight down the pyramid.


The Football Governance Bill – an opportunity for the Premier League, not a threat

The PL, who are not entirely on board with the Football Governance Bill, have called it a threat to a successful British business, when in fact the PL could help bring about an improved healthier competition throughout the whole pyramid with a significantly better financial redistribution process. And as well as the wider improvements the Bill can bring to the PL, it will improve it as a business.

 

The PL’s income is already far ahead of the top divisions in Germany, Spain, Italy and France. According to Deloitte forecasts, Premier League revenues in

2023/24 will be €3.2bn ahead of its nearest competitor, Germany’s Bundesliga.

 

Deloitte 2023/24 projections (Annual Review of Football Finance 2023):

1. Premier League - £6.66bn*

2. Bundesliga - £3.45bn

3. LaLiga - £3.4bn

4. Serie A - £2.45bn

5. Ligue 1 - £2.05bn

 

It would take a failure of spectacular proportions for this commercial dominance to be lost, and that failure will not come a result of improvements to governance that have been carefully thought through by MPs, fan organisations and clubs at all levels of the game.

 

The huge income of the PL is offset by massive financial losses, due to a lack of financial constraints. The latest financial returns show combined annual losses by PL clubs exceeding £1bn – all while paying players and agents a combined £4.4bn.

 

*New reports indicate the latest Premier League club accounts showing revenue as £6.1bn.

 

Championship club owners, gambling to earn a share of the riches at the top of the game, delivered annual losses for their clubs of £400m. The dreadful lack of financial controls in the game has led over the years to significant numbers of insolvencies.

 

Since the PL was formed in 1992, 64 English league clubs have gone into administration or been liquidated.

 

What does success look like?

The PL is an enormous cultural success generating enormous global interest as its clubs collect the biggest prizes in football and create fantastic sporting moments. But is that the only measure of success and how sustainable is that success for every member club and every other club trying to be a member? How does the vast commercial gap between the PL and the rest of English football affect the strength and sustainability of the whole game?

 

How is success defined?

Is success a club like Nottingham Forest spending more on players in one summer transfer window than it had previously spent in its entire 157-year history?

Is success Everton making losses that broke the Premier League’s own rules three seasons in a row? Is success Crystal Palace going bust, twice, to clear debts? Is success Brighton and Hove Albion, a club often cited as an example of what good management can achieve, being one of the most indebted in football and sustained by the huge generosity of a single owner via a £373m interest free loan? Bolton Wanderers and Derby County show how quickly that approach can go wrong.

 

One problem the PL does not acknowledge is that its success incentivises its own clubs to take desperate measures to stay in it, while EFL clubs take desperate measures trying to get into it – all because of the enormous disparity in income between Premier League and EFL clubs.

 

It has even distorted the commercial market and the competitive playing field by introducing a special system that recognises this - so-called ‘parachute payments’ to clubs who are relegated from the Premier League. These payments are made over a three-year period to help relegated clubs bridge the income gap they experience when dropping out of the top division. But the very existence of that system is an admission of commercial weakness. And it distorts competition, because clubs not receiving payments must deal with the realities created by clubs that are.

 

Parachute payments or trampoline payments?

While we have referred to them as parachute payments there is no doubt they act as trampoline payments – giving relegated teams a huge advantage over other Championship clubs. The threat to football’s competitive balance is that the same handful of clubs could repeatedly be promoted to, and relegated from, the PL – creating a de facto closed shop league.

 

The recent offer proposed by the Premier League to the EFL would allow relegated clubs to spend 85% of their revenue on wages while other clubs in the Championship would be limited to 70%. Clubs in the 85% band already receive more revenue and would be allowed to spend a higher percentage of that revenue. EFL chairman Rick Parry said this would equate to a budget of around £110m for relegated teams while the EFL was bound to restrict EFL clubs to a £20m budget. This cliff edge must be removed and revenues spread more equitably through the game.

 

Of course, some clubs will always be more financially healthy than others, and so be able to spend more, but the game should not put systems in place that widen the financial gap, nor encourage reckless behaviour in the name of fair competition. The very existence of parachute payments is an admission of failure – the free market that so many in football argue should be left to run naturally needs intervention because otherwise clubs would go out of business. The answer is to address the distortion of the market at root, not seek to mitigate by distorting it further.

 

The Football Governance Bill could do this, but the PL is insisting parachute payments should be beyond the new regulator’s remit, and the Bill as it currently stands entrenches that position (Clause 55). One of the Bill’s key objectives is “to protect and promote the financial resilience of English football”. How can it hope to deliver on this if it is unable to address what is widely considered to be the one element which distorts the football pyramid more than any other? That clause should be removed, and we ask for your support for an amendment that does so.

 

England’s unique football ecosystem

The PL deserves credit for funding community projects and for “solidarity” payments to the EFL, National League (NL) and women’s game – that solidarity principle is now well established, and we believe they can go further. The PL’s success is based on a football ecosystem that extends deep into our communities and our culture. No other country attracts 38,000 supporters to a fifth tier play-off final as the NL did last season.

 

The chance that any club can rise through the system to achieve the top prize is central to our game, and tens of thousands of fans showed how much they valued that when they showed their anger at the plans by the top six PL clubs to break away into a European Super League. That attempt could have destroyed the English game, but instead it sparked the fan-led review, which led to the Football Governance Bill and a potential new lease of life for football.

 

Clubs throughout the league develop players and coaching staff that PL clubs recruit. The game, our national game, is embedded in the nation’s psyche and loved by so many because it is played at so many levels from Sunday league youth games right up to elite level. That is what generates the loyalty and the passion that makes football such a lucrative and successful business.

 

Left unchecked, the PL club owners will destroy the fertile ground that nurtures its roots. And that is more of a commercial threat than a Bill that seeks, as the PL admits, to embed more normal business practices in the game. The PL sees the Bill as a threat because it sees the money its clubs have as PL money. But it is not. It is football money, generated by this national game of ours.

 

Facts and figures

Recent media stories reporting that the PL would pay £106m to fund a regulator have been jumped upon by opponents trying to portray this as an unaffordable cost. But let’s put the figure into context. That’s £106m across 10 years, equating to £10.6m per season, or £530,000 per club. Club sources tell the FSA the Premier League currently spends more than £20m per annum on legal and governance – twice as much as what a regulator would cost.

 

Let’s look at some more facts and figures to put regulator costs into perspective:

 

·        £400m spent by Premier League clubs on agent fees in one year.

·        £4bn spent on player wages during 2022/23 with a median wage of £70,800p/w.

·        £3bn spent on player purchases, up by 57%, with £979m recouped on sales.

·        £9.4bn total squad purchase costs.

·        £54m spent across all clubs on director and executive staff pay.

·        £3m bonus for Spurs chairman Daniel Levy – rewarded in the aftermath of 2022/23 when the club’s pre-tax loss increased from £61m to £95m, despite competing in the Champions League. Fortunately for the club Levy’s bonus will be covered “thanks” to an increase in season ticket prices and the phased withdrawal of concessionary rates.

·        Parachute payments fact #1: Between 2019-22 the PL  shared £887m via what it terms “core funding” - but £663m of this went to relegated clubs via parachute payments. That is 75% of the total given to the Championship as a whole. A small group of recently relegated clubs get most of the money leading to competitive imbalance.

·        Parachute payments fact #2: The PL shared £97.3m with League One and League Two teams across three seasons (2019-22). PL clubs have spent more than four times that amount (£400m) on agents fees since February 2023. £97.3m across three seasons equates to an average of £675,000 per club, per season.

·        Parachute payment fact #3: The EFL argues that instead of parachute payments there should be a solidarity fund combining the Premier League and EFL media incomes with 25% of that being awarded to EFL clubs. This would lower the cliff edge and be less likely to encourage risky financial behaviours by those desperate to claim a top-flight slot.

 

Premier League: A threat to itself?

We’ve explained how the commercial model the Premier League has created is storing up problems that can threaten clubs. But so are the Premier League’s attempts to regulate the financial monster it has created. It took 22 years for the Premier League to introduce a set of profit and sustainability rules for its clubs to follow. The clubs themselves voted for those rules, but some found they had to break them to try and compete in the distorted landscape the PL has created. So the Premier League had to punish them.

 

But the League’s belated attempt to regulate itself has resulted in a bungled process that is opaque, contradictory and which has failed to gain the confidence of fans. This is damaging the integrity of the brand, as people question why and how points are won and lost, with many supporters arguing that not all clubs are treated equally.

 

An independent regulator can restore faith by introducing clear rules and a clear regime of governance. That is the sort of system that has enabled many other industries to gain confidence from investors and consumers that has driven success.

 

Far from being a threat, the Football Governance Bill protects and strengthens a great British success story.

 

We will write a further article (Part 2) with a view to seeking amendments to clarity within the Bill as to how it looks at present. This will give an idea to members what work still needs to be done.

June 22, 2026
In attendance from the Club were, Ryan Sparks (RS) – Club CEO and Liam Mould (LM) – Fan Engagement Officer. Representing the Trust there was, Manny Dominguez (MD) – Chair and Carl White (CW). Apologies were given from Justin Brett (JB) – Trust Vice Chair & Matthew Pickles (MP) – Trust Board Member. Bantams Supporters Trust met with the Club on Monday 1 st June. We last met in early February, so as ever, and after an eventful end to the season, there was a lot to catch up on. So, without further ado lets dive into it. Season ticket breakdown for 26/27 We asked about sales for this coming season’s season ticket sales. 16,351 bought through the Early Bird window. Just over £15 per game for adults. The Club broke a record in that last year the total sales for season was 16,026, before sales were withdrawn ahead of the 25/26 campaign. RS said the total breakdown in totals for this coming season will be available in August. We asked if the Club had set a price for this season’s matchday prices yet. RS’s response was affirmative and that they will be announced in July. We asked if they would be nearer the £30 mark and this was affirmative as well. The Trust were apprehensive about the growing upward trend of ticket prices. RS’s response was that the Club must attempt to act as a viable business and has, at times, sadly, little choice but to pass on a proportion of the growing cost in utility bills, costs to employers in terms of the minimum wage and national insurance and other taxes to sponsors and our supporters because otherwise the Club would lose out on its competitiveness in its ambition to win on the pitch. We discussed discounts or special promotions , (Clubs have a minimum of 4). City have had £5 offers at select League matches and EFL Trophy matches. RS mentioned the Plymouth Argyle re-arranged evening fixture, saying it wasn’t taken up as much as the Club had hoped. With regards to community tickets , it was said that they gave out 9,141 tickets over 20 matches last season at £4 per person, mainly to schools and also grass roots community clubs through the Community Foundation. We said this was a good achievement. The Bradford End is the area for the community tickets. Supporters Trust Survey MD ran through some of the key findings in the Survey. He said it was a small sample and most that filled it in were older. It still reflected broadly the expected trends: Season tickets for 2024/25 – most bought online, fewer used the Club app, even fewer bought at the ticket office. Away matches for 24/25 - some had issues with not being able to buy/buy more due to not having enough loyalty points. 25/26 season tickets – most bought during the early bird period, most bought online and most paid in full. Fewer used the 12-month period and fewer still bought at the ticket office. Matchday tickets - A substantial majority believed we should have a flat rate £20. Nearly as many believed that there should be a discount in advance of a match compared with ‘on-the-day’ sales. RS said it £20 wasn’t going to happen. It could possibly work if that was the flat rate for young people and kids also but we may lose the fans of tomorrow – there is no filter categories that would encourage more sales. MD mentioned ‘reciprocal deals’ as a way of making special arrangements for away supporters – recalling a few years ago when we subsidised our away tickets with a free drink at Colchester. Offering a cheaper price where both sets of fans can realise a saving can be very valuable. Many supporters in our survey were in favour of this being a Trust campaign. See report here . The programme – Whilst most said they would probably not buy it, a significant minority said they would. RS said that in todays climate they don’t make money, and the Club are paperless now. The Club recently won an EFL award for its efforts on environmental sustainability but they would do a programme for special occasions – a cup quarter or semi-final for example. Kiosks/bars – Our findings matched the Clubs customer survey on this issue. Fans not happy with the queues, the limited choices and value for money. RS said that hopefully there will be an improved response this season. Atmosphere – this was seen as very good overall and that flags were definitely an improvement, and most said safe standing would be an added improvement too this. The issues – The shift from upper kop to NW corner and then B-Block. RS said that they were told to move to a lower position tier for safety reasons and if they didn’t, the stadium capacity would reduce by 10%. Nationalist flags appearing was a concern too. RS said that they would go by the EFL guidance of what they say are banned flags in stadiums. MD recognized the potential danger of removing them or commenting on them. The Club doesn’t get involved with the politics that is going on in the country. It is purely a football Club that showcases football. Other matchday issues raised – Tannoy/PA system, half time entertainment and Wi-Fi Supporters / Club relationship level of agreement statement trends: Supporters Trust do a good job - Yes but could do better Supporters Board do a good job - Yes / could do better Supporter engagement from the Club is good – Yes but could so better I feel like my Club cares about me, and my views – Yes but could do a lot more. More polarised but somewhat agree was high but neither agree nor disagree polled higher. State of the game level of agreement statement trends: 3pm black-out - strongly agree. Right to ban drinking from the sight of the pitch – most agree but consensus is changing. TV has too much sway to (K.O. times etc.) - Definitely strongly agree. Football Act & IFR (Independent Football Regulator) potential changes it could bring: Fairer redistribution of wealth – Very important Ensure competitive balance across the League – Very important Stronger protections for Club heritage & identity – Very important Enhanced fan engagement, consultation and transparency in Club decision-making – Most send it was important though slightly less than the others Match-day issue and development LED advertising Boards – MD said through our survey and via the Trust email we have seen many complain that they are too bight at night matches. RS said that they would be replaced this coming season with a new system and the main stand will have them as well. The floodlights will be replaced next year, if budgets allow. The second security gate in the Midland Rd - There had been some anxiety about this amongst fans especially most recently at the Play off Semi final against Bolton. RS explained that with the added segregation gate it gives 1,800 seats for the away supporters. It’s purpose is to be a safety net for an increased number of away supporters over three blocks but is not likely to be used in a standard, league fixture. For the Bolton game the arrangement for tickets was the same as what it is like for a cup match. We gave them 2,100 tickets, and the strategy was to create a greater atmosphere for the team to play in. We didn’t want the away support behind the goal because that increases their noise levels and we didn’t want to give Bolton any advantage. We consulted with Graham Alexander and he was happy with that plan. The possibility of a penalty shoot out also came into the consideration. The Midland Road stand will see some work. All of the seats will be replaced. Other works There will be improvements to the 2013 suite and the 1911 bar, and as well in the boxes, as well as the general maintenance, including the toilet facilities. MD said that the supporters thought the Toilet facilities were poor in the Trust survey. LM said there are plans to create more Fanzones and have more family engagement areas and other activities in the Midland Rd concourse. Heritage – MD brought up from the Survey that there is a feeling that there is disconnect with former players within the stadium with the idea of naming a stand after a player, murals of ex players or a statue. This prompted a positive discussion, firstly acknowledging what we have in the ground – the Hendrie and McCall Suite’s, the 2013 suite, 1911 bar, Framed shirts from by-gone era’s, and players have heritage numbers on their shirts. The Club were the first to do this in 2019. Next was the question of which player would we have as a mural or statue. When we all became supporters and loved the experience we all had our favourite players. Many older fans will think back to Bobby Campbell, Stuart McCall and John Hendrie. Newer generation of City supporters will think Bobby Pointon. Most supporters can identify with him as he is ‘one of our own’. Improving Fan Engagement MD went over some points with LM from our last meeting, regarding how the working groups are structured into engagement with the Club. It was said some are very informal that don’t have a structure, engaging with the Club occassionally, and others have engagement more regularly through the Clubs’ Governance meetings and that the Supporters Board was regarded as a Supporter Advisory Board (SAB). MD was invited to be involved with the drafting of the new FEP for 2026/27 season. At that point our Trust Chair quote and amendments to the calendar dates - to show we meet quarterly, and the amendments to heritage section were added to the draft pdf to be added by the designers. Also, we added that we were pleased to say that this year the Club reached its agreed commitment to meet with us 4 times this year which is a first, and the first of many for the future. This was added to the FEP for what the Club has achieved this year. This was part of our end of season review with the Club. The deadline for submission to the EFL is the 30 th June. Community Projects MD raised one project we could probably do at this stage is to run the My City, My Shirt Diversity photography project, capturing the diversity of Bradford City’s supporters, from coming into Valley Parade, to the concourse, in the fanzines, in the stands and at the Beap Centre, and with a small amount funding we could have some of the prints exhibited in the ‘Community Hub’ Café or indeed the possibly in the Midland Road Concourse. There was a lot of positivity about this from the Club and prompted more discussion about what could be there; potentially murals. Burns Unit Collection and Memorial MD raised that we felt the collection went well in terms of what was raised, however, there were some issues around it and felt we could have larger numbers involved and whether there could be a case for a new potential working group to involve other supporters groups, similar to the ‘Remembrance Panel’ of some years ago. MD said he would email them a Trust members’ letter. Also raised was so the lack of past players at the memorial this year. RS said we should ask the Council about this is. They are the ones that organize it all. Football Governance Bill & the Independent regulator MD reported that the Government had launched a new initiative, ‘On Fans’ side’, which explains in simple terms what the Football Governance Act means for clubs and supporters. See here and here . Also there has been a ‘supervisor’ from the Independent Football Regulator (IFR) allocated for all clubs in the EFL. They have a caseload of between 6 or 7 each. Financial Planning MD asked from the 24/25 Accounts review, what are the projections for 25 / 26 and beyond. RS said we lost £3m last season and are expected to lose a similar this year. Our income for this season (25/26) was £12m to £13m and guestimate income for next season is between £14m and £15m. This factors in sponsorship, EFL/Sky and ticket sales. Stefan Rupp has provided the biggest investment into the Club, more than any other previous owner. Mbanq is our biggest sponsor we’ve ever had and not only will they be a shirt sponsor, but they will also be sponsoring other significant assets in the near future. The Stadium MD explained that one of the popular campaign ideas was for Valley Parade to be community owned – to initiate a fundraising campaign. There was a discussion about the value of the ground. It prompted a very positive discussion about helping the Trust find what it does best over the course of a season. Getting volunteers to help with the bucket collection was raised as an example of that, and the advice was, that we need to have something reachable where we would be gaining the trust of the wider supporter base. MD said if we can pull off the diversity project, that would be noticed and attract more activity. Fundraising for a mural was also suggested for a reachable aim.
June 4, 2026
As the season draws to a close and the euphoria of cementing our place in the play-offs has subsided, our thoughts return to the events of 41 years ago. Myself, Helen and Manny were invited to the town hall before the memorial service as representatives of the Supporters Trust. This gave us the opportunity to meet up with the representatives from the Lincoln City delegation – Biff Bean, who is the lead on the Community Trust and Gavin Gordon, representing the Lincoln City Former Players’ Association. After congratulating them on a phenomenal season and discussing their club's plans to increase the capacity of Sincil Bank for next season, during these conversations it was interesting to hear how much fan involvement happens at Lincoln. Also how the club itself actively supports and encourages outside groups, such as the former Lincoln City Players Association. These have a team and still play charity matches. I personally think our beloved City could take a leaf out of Lincoln's book in this regard, because as a club we are certainly lacking in this department. As was blatantly obvious to me and Helen when we talked to Gregg Abbott he was the only ex-player in the room. We would’ve liked to have seen more! Eventually we got round to talking about the Lincoln fans' experiences of that day 41 years ago. Everyone has their own personal recollections of that day. But to hear it from the perspective of the away team hit home pretty hard with me. On returning to the bus they had travelled up on and doing a head count, they realised two of their number were missing. After remembering they had got tickets for the stand, all they could do was wait. After an absolute age the group realised their fellow fans weren't returning, so they enquired which hospitals the injured were taken to. They then spent hours driving round the hospitals to find out information. Eventually the decision was made to return home. I personally can't imagine being put in that position, not knowing whether your mates had been injured or died. Then having to leave them behind. The service itself was as emotional as always. It always brings tears to my eyes, especially when the families go forward to lay their wreaths and floral tributes. We went forward and laid a wreath on behalf of the trust. Special thanks to John at Blossoms Florist for designing and putting together our wreath. Which incidentally will always have red and white flowers intermingled with the claret and amber. This is to represent the two Lincoln City fans that lost their lives that day. After the ceremony we raised a glass to the 54 City fans and the 2 Lincoln fans who never came home. These are two cities whose fans have become bonded by tragedy. Even though we have both been in different divisions for a long time, the respect and friendship between our two clubs is stronger than ever. We will always remember the 56 souls who never came home. And as the song goes: "They will never walk alone" Tony Deacon
May 27, 2026
Over the course of the 25/26 season we ran an extensive fans’ survey to encourage supporters to tell us your views on a wide range of topics. Over 70 supporters shared their views, highlighting strong season ticket uptake and generally positive matchday atmosphere. Fans support improvements such as safe standing and better engagement. Key concerns include catering quality, service speed, and stadium facilities. Supporters also called for fair ticket pricing, improved communication, and greater recognition of the club’s history. The last time we did something like this was during the 22/23 season. Our intention is to feed this back to the Club to help form Club thinking on supporters’ views. Members and non-members of the Trust Given that this is a Supporters Trust survey, over half were not members – 56% but a significant number were indeed our members’. Age, gender, background and where you live Out of all that took part, the vast majority ranged from mid 30’s through to over 65, and indeed those over 65 was the majority with 45 to 55 being the second highest number, and 55 to 64 came just before that. Only a small number of younger people found interest. Surprisingly the numbers of 18 to 24 year olds were larger than those of the slightly older category of 25-34. The vast majority of participants were white and male and most of you also live in the Bradford / West Yorkshire area. Disability Over 13% of you said they have a form of disability. Season tickets for 24/25 Nearly 83% of you said that you were season ticket holders for the 2025/26. Season 24/25 match-going, match day tickets This section of the survey had a lower number participation. It reflects the lower number generally that buy individual match tickets compared to the greater numbers that have season tickets, and cup runs have been low. But also it is about the 24/25 season. So here are some standouts: When asked about how many home matches you attended, most said they had only been to between 1 and 5, over 54%. Between 11 and 15 got none and between 16 to all matches received shared over 15%%. It shows that almost all taking part we not season ticket holders. When asked about how you buy match day tickets, nearly all of you said online, in advance and a couple of you said you get them at the ticket office. When asked about using the Club app to buy tickets, most of you didn’t use it (less than 50%), and out of those who did use it, the ratings showed a mixed picture. Very good and good outweighed the adequate and poor, but not massively. It shows there may still be issues about buying tickets online and using the app. Where do you sit at Valley Parade? This got more participants back. Most of you said the main stand. The lower tier of the Kop got the next favoured area, then upper tier, then Midland Rd and then the NW Corner. The atmosphere at Valley Parade Most of you rated it as very good (well over 50%) and a little over 40% rated it as ‘good’. Flags, an improvement to the atmosphere The overwhelming answer to that question was yes – Yes definitely and yes somewhat were the most chosen answers from you. Safe standing to improve atmosphere Asked whether you would like to see safe standing to improve the atmosphere most of you said yes. And remember, overall this is an older audience filling in this survey. There is a realisation that standing is popular especially among young people. Those of you that would have it as a choice is almost 70%. Ideas to improve the matchday atmosphere / experience Many chose to write about their thoughts and ideas about the whole matchday experiences. 23 commented and all were valuable, matching some of the issues we have already raised with the Club this season. Issues around needing to move together those who insist on standing, or make sure the stewards can get them to sit down, as it spoils the game for those behind them, is a common thought among today’s set of fans. Comments also about moving the atmosphere section around and it displacing many fans from the most recent move to B block is still an emotive issue as well Flags and banners, scarves in other parts of the ground was raised as a suggestion too. On the issue of flags, a concern was expressed about nationalist flags being divisive. Improving toilet facilities, especially for women is a common concern reflected in these survey comments, also too is the complaint about the LED advertising hoardings being too bright at night matches. Wi-Fi, the re-introduction of the programme, queues for food and drink, again are common issues raised. Fans also want improvements in the fanzone, improvements in half-time entertainment, and the PA system. Fans want to be asked by the Club for ideas about ways to improve these things. Interestingly one comment was about having a noticeable disconnect about our on-field player history reflected within the ground. Suggestions to remedy this were murals, or potentially naming a stand after a player or having a statue. There are many other comments /ideas. You can see them here . Away matches during the 24/25 season A vast majority filled this section in, and a significant minority told us that you didn’t go to any (25%), and perhaps don’t generally. There was no question why but a likely reasons is the changing nature of the dynamic amongst away supporters in recent years which is poor behavior of a significant minority putting people off from going. The top offence is standing in seated areas blocking the sightlines of others. Another factor is of course that it is only a small proportion of the fan-base that can go to away matches at any one time and that’s why demand is high for tickets particularly in successful seasons, another reason for choosing to participate in this section. Between one and five was the highest figure (36.11%), and then nearly all/all was the third highest figure (nearly 17%). Many of our regulars get on travel fan group coaches as well as trains and there is a high cost associated with getting to away matches, but that doesn’t deter what is considered a popular activity, better than attending home matches. A Bantams family day out on the beer! Your experience purchasing away tickets in advance online with your loyalty points Slightly less filled this in but the numbers that where able to purchase as many tickets as they wished and those that didn’t have enough loyalty points for the matches they wanted to go to polled the highest, although those that where able to buy just edged it. Next highest were those that didn’t attend any away matches / buy tickets for them. Away matches that you didn’t attend but watched on Sky / iFollow Most of you, 54%, watched some of them, and a much smaller percentage (over 22%) watch on TV. A slightly smaller section of you said none at all. The smallest section never missed attending away games Season tickets for 25/26 Most of you bought / renewed your season ticket during the ‘Early Bird’ period. And most of you bought online with only a few of you going to the ticket office to renew. A surprising number of you paid in full whilst a much smaller number used the 12-month payment installments option. 55% were very satisfied with your experience of purchase online, and over 27% were somewhat satisfied. 11 of you gave us reasons why you were unsatisfied. The main reason given was the complex nature of the Ticketmaster ticketing system. You can see the comments in our stats analysis here . Level of agreement with multiple statements – Matchday ticket prices This was the first of several of these throughout the survey, and the topic of opinion was all about match-day ticket. On the issue that £24 in advance is a fair price – somewhat agree was the highest with over 38%, and only 21% strongly agreed. The next got slightly less participating, about the walk-up price of £28, and there was less agreement on this. Those that somewhat agree were still higher than strongly agree. Many of you agreed with the idea that there should be a discount for buying a ticket in advance compared with on-the- day sales. Over 47% of you strongly agree, a big qualitative shift in comparison to the previous two statements on tickets prices, and 30% somewhat agreed too. A substantial 78.46% majority of you, strongly or somewhat agree that a flat £20 matchday tariff represents the ultimate fair valuation for walk-up spectators. This statement did however get a slightly lower participation level. The Clubs online content and newsletters Nearly 54% of you were somewhat satisfied with the Clubs’ online content and newsletters. It was almost a tie with those that were very satisfied and those that were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied. The re-introduction of the Programme Almost 49% of you said the probably wouldn’t buy a programme, but roughly 21% said they would definitely would buy one. Yes probably only got approximately 15%, and approximately 14% said they would definitely not buy one. It was surprising that most said they probably wouldn’t, but that would suggest that most might on a special occasion quite possibly. Visiting the kiosks /bars on matchdays There was no majority on this. The options were all the matches, most of the matches, some of the matches, rarely or never. All games and the majority of games slightly swung it. There is a significant minority that bring their own food and drink. What you buy from the Kiosks/bars A lower number filled this section in, so hot drinks were the most popular purchase. Beer was the next most popular. Third highest was the old traditional favourite, the pie, then cold soft drinks, then a burger, and then chocolate and crisps. See details here . Value for money in the in stadium catering Whilst a lower number of you participated in this section, it gave us an unsurprising answer. This was possibly the most decisive in the survey; that you don’t think it is value for money for what you get. No one felt it that the value for money is very good. Adequate is what most of you said (over 38%). 20% said ‘good’, over 26% of you said it was poor, and 15% of you said very poor. Food and drink suggested offerrings from the kiosks/bars – in stadium catering A lower portion of you participated in this one too. However, chips was the most popular, then samosas, bhajis, gravy, mushy peas, bitter/ale, vegetarian/vegan in the order of the most popular to least of the selections. Suggestions from some of you were a wider selection of crisps and sweets, popcorn, curries, curry sauce, loaded chips, soup, gluten free options and local brewery lager. You can see more of what you told us here . Improving aspects of the in stadium catering The key aspect what you told us about what needs to improve is cutting the waiting time. Relating to this was ‘the need to put more staff on’. Some kiosks run out of food, drinks, confectionary, much quicker than others. The quality of the food was mentioned, and also the price. Re introducing the availability of cash was another suggestion. You can see more of what you told us here . Toilet and wash facilities within the stadium on matchdays This an issue we have members emailing us in about on regular occasions so we added it to the survey, and we were not surprised that a very small portion say they are very good. In fact over 40% of you describe them as just adequate, and the second largest portion of you, over 40% would describe them as poor. Over 11% describe them as very poor. Level of agreement with multiple statements Here is the second of the level of agreement with multiple statements starting with: The Trust is doing a good job or representing fans The vast majority said yes we do, however the somewhat agree was a higher number than that of strongly agree, so the reality is you’ve said we do but we should do better. The supporter engagement from the Club is good Supporter opinion in this survey gives a very similar picture to the opinion that the Trust does a good job, but it’s ever so marginally better. The supporter view is the Club does do a good job of fan engagement but it should do better. I feel like Bradford City cares about me and my views Again you’re opinion was very similar to the previous two although somewhat agree was higher than in the previous two and so was the opinion that is neither agree or disagree. Swearing and bad language is part of watching football This is a difficult one to decide because you either give it or you don’t. Strongly agree and somewhat agree were lower. Those sat on the fence and those that somewhat disagree were higher, but strongly disagree was low. It shows that while people may feel its bad, there is feeling of inevitability about it as has been part of football for such a long time. Watching football in a big crowd is like a release. You can see the stats here . It’s important to retain the 3pm blackout to protect the lower league clubs This was weighted towards in favour. As ‘strongly agree’ and ‘somewhat agree’ equated to over 64%. Those that sat on the fence was over 18%, and the ‘strongly disagree’ and ‘somewhat disagree’ were very low. It’s right to ban fans from drinking within sight of the pitch Again the consensus is still largely in favour of keeping things as is. Most of you either strongly agree or somewhat agree, but there does seem to be a change in thinking on this as over 14% strongly disagree. The Supporters Board is doing a good job or representing fans You said they do. Most of you ‘somewhat agree’. What was interesting here is that nearly 25% neither agreed nor disagreed with this statement, and a small minority strongly disagreed. There is always room for improvement. Football is doing enough to encourage diversity and welcome Women, LGBTQ people and ethnic minorities to the game Whilst most of you believe this to be true, many of you sat on the fence, and a small percentage disagreed which shows there is a layer that are saying it isn’t doing enough and therefore has to do more in this direction. TV companies have too much sway in deciding kick-off times/schedules The majority of you definitely strongly agree about this and somewhat agree and very few didn’t have an opinion one way or another. I would buy an away TV season ticket package if it allowed me to just to watch Bradford City’s away matches The majority agreed with this but it was on a lower scale. Many of you didn’t have an opinion, and there was a significant minority disagreeing with this view. It may bring income to the Club / Sky, but it could well impact on the level of support the team gets at away matches if this could be something all clubs could do. I consider myself a supporter of Bradford City Women's team This got a mixed response of agreement. The level of agreement that got the most vote was neither disagree nor agree, then there was Somewhat agree and then there was strongly disagree. Strongly agree and somewhat disagree had the same numbers. Had there been some more female participation completing this survey it would’ve helped to improve the idea of an identity with the Women’s game. The numbers of women following the men’s game has gone up, but it is likely that there is a lack of awareness amongst the Bradford City supporter base that there is a Bradford City women’s team. The Football Governance Act is now law, and an Independent Football Regulator is being introduced into English Football. How important do you consider the following potential changes an Independent Regulator could bring? Here are another set of statements where supporters told us their level of agreement based on the above question: Fairer distribution of finances across the football pyramid Most of you agreed this was very important, over 68% in fact. Ensuring competitive balance across the league Between somewhat agree and very important most of you agreed with this statement, although less thought it was as important as the fairer redistribution of wealth. Stronger protections for club heritage and identity Over 71% of you thought this was very important Enhanced fan engagement, consultation and transparency in club decision making Less of you surprisingly, thought this was very important, over 53%, as the importance spread into the somewhat important category, 22%. Enhanced rules to block unsuitable club owners Over 73% of you felt this was very important. Blocking the formation of breakaway competitions Over 62% of you felt this was important Greater transparency around club finances Over 66% of you felt this was important too. Are you a member of any other Bradford City supporters’ group(s)? When asked if you were from another group, 3 names came up: These were, East Bierley Bantams, City Away Days and North West Kollective. One supporter was a member of 2 travel groups and associate sponsors. Another was from the campaign charity, Her Came Too, and another said they were official BCAFC. However this got a lower participation rate than average. Getting our communications Of those of you that see or receive our comms, most of you said you get our emails, and then it is Facebook. Both Twitter and seeing our column in the City Gent shared the same number, and looking at our website received a lower number. A very small number of you say you don’t see or receive our communications. How we could improve our communications We got some helpful comments on this: More communications from us was a common theme – communication and involvement from the next generation was a good one. More up to date communications is a good one too. Better match day comment is another good one More generally, the feeling from the comments is that you like us engaging with you, and you want more detail in our reports of our working with the Club. What initiatives would you like us to campaign and communicate on? Working to lower ticket prices /reciprocal deals with other Clubs came out top. Raising money to potentially bid to buy valley Parade was the second most popular option, and getting to and from the ground was the other. Improving the atmosphere and safe standing were two significant others. In terms of additional comments and ideas, there were more to do with issues that need addressing with the Club that you had already raised, such as improving the catering, the toilets, having/improving wi-fi, and then there are issues relating to away experiences – all standing when there should be seating. Improving disabled facilities in the ground, in particularly car parking spaces was suggested. More in depth coverage of meetings, more fans forums were suggested too Other suggestions included, in-house catering, reopening Manningham rail station or `Midland Rd with direct access to the ground. Another was about the Club are-connecting with past players within the stadium, perhaps naming a stand after one, or having a mural with the grounds or even a statue was suggested. You can see all our survey stats here . The Trust always asks for volunteers – We ask if you can indicate what area of our activity you can you help out with We gave you a number of options to choose from. These were: media communications, Diversity, community outreach, other professional skills - design/legal, or events. Events came top, and second top came media communications, and diversity came third. Expectedly there was a lower participation in this section. On reflection The Survey was ready and out later than planned and came out mid November 25 and ran through till the end of March this year. 76 people took part and while this was lower than the number participating in the previous survey of this kind (165) the comments and opinions on key matters were very useful. The lateness of the survey to be ready and the length of the survey probably contributed to the lower number taking part, and not everyone contributing to every section, leading to some taking part in their favourite parts only. Nonetheless the numbers participating played an extremely valuable role in helping to gauge an understanding about how supporters feel about being an active supporter of Bradford City. We would like to thank everyone who participated in our survey and we will contact all those who have given us their contact details. If you want to get involved with the Supporter Trust contact us here . See all our stats to our survey here .
May 11, 2026
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 41st anniversary of the Valley Parade Fire Disaster.
May 8, 2026
We would like to thank all of you who voted for the Supporters Trusts’ Young Player of the Year 2025/26. The annual awards and dinner on the 28 th April was a celebration of a team that have been at the top of the table all season. We had just fought to get a well deserved point at the last home match of the season in front of a great home crowd against Bolton Wanderers, and then at the weekend, we finally secured our place in the Play-Off’s beating Exeter City 2-1 in Devon in front of a sell-out crowd at St. James’ Park. This season, the team have had to really compete against much stronger teams in League One than those in League Two over the course of the season. Congratulations goes to the gaffer, Graham Alexander who has been the orchestrator of the team, encouraging a positive attitude to the game, belief and confidence throughout what is always a rollercoaster of a season. And of course well done to Antoni Sarcevic and Bobby Pointon who picked up the joint Players’ of the Year Award. Young Player of the Year The winner of the Trust’s Young Player of the Year is Jenson Metcalfe! He narrowly beat Bobby Pointon on winning the prize, voted by you, the supporters! We would also like to give a special thanks to Tony Deacon, who gave Jenson 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. You can see the list of all who won an award on the night here .
April 28, 2026
We would like to thank all of you who participated in the Bucket Collection on Saturday April 25 th at Valley Parade, our last fixture of the season against Bolton Wonderers. The Trust had 8 volunteers with buckets all around the ground. There will have been a few more helping out also. We raised an amazing £5071.27, which includes £545 of online donations on the day. We’d like to thank all the supporters of that very impressive attendance at Valley Parade of 23,732 that made a contribution. And, once again we would like to thank all the collectors for doing your bit. This has been a great collective exercise and great achievement.
April 21, 2026
Its not long till’ Saturday, and it would be great to have more volunteers. We do already have a handful of committed souls but we can never have enough. Last year, we had approximately 15 volunteers, with mostly our members and supporters from the Disability Club and Shipley Bantams. For the 40 th anniversary we raised an amazing £7,387.70 during the bucket collection before the match, almost double on what was raised the year before. If you would like to be involved in the bucket collection please contact us at hello@bantamstrust.co.uk . Arrangements Volunteers should arrive from 1pm outside the WD Gate entrance - the large gates opposite the club shop. Our names will be ticked off before we all receive buckets and then stand outside the various entrance points around the ground.
April 14, 2026
It is rapidly coming to that time of year when we will all be coming together give our respects to those who tragically lost their lived in the Valley Parade fire, and this year will mark the 41 st anniversary. Last year, we had approximately 15 volunteers, with mostly our members and supporters from the Disability Club and Shipley Bantams. For the 40 th anniversary we raised an amazing £7,387.70 during the bucket collection before the match, almost double on what was raised the year before. This year, our last home match of the season, versus Bolton Wanderers is on the 25 th of April, and as always there will be a bucket collection. If you would like to be involved in the bucket collection please contact us at hello@bantamstrust.co.uk . We normally expect volunteers to arrive from 1pm outside the WD Gate entrance - the large gates opposite the club shop. Our names will be ticked off before we all receive buckets and then stand outside the various entrance points around the ground. We don’t think it will be any different. We’ll be putting out another reminder next week so we hope to have confirmation by then.
April 9, 2026
It is coming round to that time of year when we will all be coming together give our respects to those who tragically lost their lived in the Valley Parade fire, 41 years ago now. This year, our last home match of the season, versus Bolton Wanderers is on the 25 th of April, and as always there will be a bucket collection. The bucket collection is a way of allowing all supporters to help participate in raising vital funds for Bradford’s Plastic Surgery and Burns Research Unit (PSBRU). This collective practice helps adds to the impact of the remembrance as well as the one-minute silence we have just before Kick off. If you would like to be involved in the bucket collection please contact us at hello@bantamstrust.co.uk Last year, we had approximately 15 volunteers, with mostly our members and supporters from the Disability Club and Shipley Bantams. For the 40 th anniversary we raised an amazing £7,387.70 during the bucket collection before the match, almost double on what was raised the year before. We’ll be putting out another reminder in the run up to this last match of the season with details of the time and where to meet to sign out the buckets from the Club for the collection.
April 8, 2026
Here is a personal account of Bantams Supporters Trust Board member, Tony Deacon, describe the very successful event of Tony Delahunty talk about his experiences as a commentator for Pennine Radio in the 80’s in aid of the Burns Unit. On Good Friday Helen Jeffery and I welcomed Tony Delahunty to the exchange on behalf of Bantams Supporters Trust. There were a lot of fans assembled in the Pub wanting to hear his talk. Over the next 45mins Tony delivered a very emotional and moving talk about his experiences on 11th May 1985, and the subsequent aftermath. He told of how he was asked to leave Pennine radio shortly after the fire. This was due to people writing to the radio station and saying his voice was too distressing. From Pennine radio he went to radio Trent. After a disastrous interview he thought, ‘seen as I’m here I will blag an interview with Brian Clough’, which he did. When this interview aired, radio Trent got in touch and said you’ve got the job. He then went on to be one of the few journalists Clough would talk to. He ended the talk by telling us about the documentary, ‘The Unforgotten’, that Manny Dominguez and I were privileged to attend the premiere of at the media museum ahead of the BBC screening last year. It has been nominated for a BAFTA. After the talk I took the time to walk him to his taxi. During this time he said he really enjoyed doing the talk and was made to feel so welcome in the Pub. He also said he would love to do another talk with more humorous stories about City & Clough. On behalf of the Supporters Trust we would like to thank Tony Delahunty for a very informative talk. Also Ben Hoole for allowing us to use the Pub. A collection for the Burns unit was held during the talk and extended during the day. So hopefully we will have raised quite a bit. Tony Deacon