Hull City AFC: Supporters Direct Statement

A spokesman for Supporters Direct (SD) today welcomed the news that The FA Council has today rejected Hull City’s application to change their playing name to Hull Tigers, saying:

“We are pleased at the decision of the Council. We welcome their recognition that Hull’s name is intimately connected with the identity of the Club.
 
“However this is not the end of the process. As we have said all along, we share the same view as most of those in the game that these sorts of cases must be decided with a new approach, one based on the views of those people who sustain and nurture these clubs over years.

“We have been consistent in saying that The FA must create a democratic, transparent process for consultation in matters such as these, and one that ensures that supporters have the final say on such matters through a binding vote.

“We are currently consulting informally with a wide range of organisations – including experts concerned with upholding standards of democracy and openness in public life – about how The FA could incorporate such a process into their rules.

“We believe that football has a lot to learn by looking outside of itself for answers. Indeed part of the reason that the running of the game is under such scrutiny is because of English football’s failure to be more outward looking.

“These rules must be part of a reformed structure to govern the game, allowing Leagues to be more concerned with organising their competitions, spending less time struggling with the difficulties of self-regulation: it’s failed in banking, it’s failed in politics, and it’s long-since failed in football.”