Fans of German left-wing club St. Pauli have become part-owners of its stadium
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BERLIN (AP) — Fans of German soccer team St. Pauli have taken over as majority owners of their club’s stadium.
The Bundesliga club said on Thursday that a fan cooperative raised some 29 million euros ($33.5 million) by offering shares to become part-owners of Millerntor Stadium.
“This means the heart of the club now officially belongs to the cooperative — and thus to its members,” St. Pauli said in a statement. “With the takeover of the stadium company, a crucial step has been taken to secure the future of the Millerntor permanently in the hands of the FCSP community.”
St. Pauli is a part of Hamburg that includes its famous red light district. The soccer club of the same name is known for its left-wing fans. The pirate skull-and-crossbones synonymous with the club was popularized by supporters who identified as punks.
The club said more than 22,000 people took part in the fan cooperative action. It announced in April that more than 21,000 members joined the fundraising initiative after its near five-month subscription period ended, though members could still join if they missed the deadline.
“We have proven that a different kind of football and a different financing model are possible,” St. Pauli president Oke Göttlich said. “A cooperative and sustainable approach to business is also possible in professional football — as is the participation of many people who take on shared responsibility.”
Each member spent 850 euros ($980) for every share they bought, with 100 euros ($115) of that going on fees and contributions. Every purchase entered the buyer in a draw for prizes including a dinner with team captain Jackson Irvine, VIP packages, and signed jerseys.
Bayern Munich powerbroker Uli Hoeneß, who organized a benefit game for St. Pauli in 2003 when the club was in financial difficulty, was among the new stakeholders.
“We are delighted by the tremendous support for the cooperative, for the idea of a different kind of football and a different way of doing business,” Andreas Borcherding, the cooperative CEO, said on Thursday. “We are very pleased to have now taken this step.”
St. Pauli financial chief Wilken Engelbracht said it means the club can invest using its own resources, including in the expansion of the performance center.
Engelbracht was to present concrete figures at a meeting of cooperative members on Nov. 15.
St. Pauli was promoted to the Bundesliga last season, but it has been struggling on the field with six straight defeats before faceing Freiburg away on Sunday.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer