Fans United to support their club

In 2017, at a time when Dundee United’s supporters were getting increasingly concerned about their club’s financial wellbeing, a group of fans met in Frew’s Bar (ironically, run by a Dundee fan!) to discuss setting up a supporters’ group, possibly with a view to stepping into the breach, should it be necessary. They got in touch with other club’s major supporters’ groups, principally the Foundation of Hearts and the Well Society and also Supporters Direct Scotland, all of whom gave them sound advice and guidance. As a result, the Dundee United Supporters Foundation (DUSF) was formed.

Among those fans in Frew’s Bar was Martin Manzi, now one of the DUSF directors Martin explained to me a bit more about how this non-profit organisation has grown from those very early days and how it now operates to deliver financial assistance to the club whilst ensuring that fans’ voices are heard at board level at Tannadice. 

“DUSF was established with a clear vision,” he told me, “Namely, to ensure Dundee United remains a thriving, community-focused football club for generations to come, with fans having a meaningful influence on its direction.

“We had a slowish start though. Given the United finances at the time, we were a bit of a protest movement. The founding members each put in £1K or £500 each before we went public. Over 50 fans did this, giving us a fair bit of capital, and that gave us the confidence to go ahead with a full public launch. We needed to be credible.   So, we developed a proper website, a functional membership structure and payment collection system, and took on board legal advice. We put together a professional brochure, effectively a mini prospectus, and had everything in place in the summer 2018. By this time, there were a few hundred more fans involved and the immediate crisis at the club was receding.  Owner Stephen Thomson sold Dundee United to American Mark Ogren and the latter has been putting in a  lot of money, so we became a different type of organisation. Rather than focusing on the possibility of becoming a fan-owned club, we pivoted to become more keenly focused on why and for what we collect this money.  Obviously, it’s for the club – that’s what our members want – but we’re open and democratic and every major expenditure is debated internally and subject to a ballot. Our approach is to rigorously assess each specific project before giving any money.  The DUSF members are not here to generate finance that replaces normal running cost that the club should   fund itself.  Often, it’s things they’d like but don’t have the cash for at the moment, so the Foundation money allows them to do things more quickly so that the benefits are realised sooner, and releases club finances to augment the playing budget for example

“One of our first projects was in 2018. This was to give £15K to help pay for a disabled elevator that sits outside the George Fox stand. Then during Covid, we gave the club £100K to help with what was obviously a very challenging time for all Scottish football.

“Perhaps the project we’re best known for is the development of Gussie Park, the training ground opposite Tannadice.  We have pumped in about £600K over the years, helping to finance the construction of a 220-seater stand for spectators, as well as upgrading the pitch and floodlighting to UEFA standards.  Our contribution has been recognised by this ground being renamed ‘Foundation Park,’ which was officially opened by Mark Ogren in August 2023.

“Other fan driven projects that we’ve given money to include the statue of Jim McLean, and we have donated to the guys that do the great TIFO displays for the big games at Tannadice,  We have also  donated to local charities such as Alzheimer Scotland.  When we give money, to the club, key requirements are written into the agreements, to ensure that the money is used for the specific purpose for which it was raised.   We have a healthy bank balance, so there is scope for careful investment in the future and we’re determined to make sure we continue to grow our revenue to provide more money as and when we believe it will benefit Dundee United.

“A key part of our relationship with the club is that we have direct, quarterly access to the exec team and the owner. This provides an avenue for us to raise any issue our members raise with us and we think this works well for both DUSF and for the club. I believe it’s important that fans have such a forum and a way of influencing the decisions of the board. 

“We now have over 2,300 members who have paid in since 2018.  While we’d always like more, that’s an impressive number. Adult members contribute upwards of £10 a month and junior membership is £2.50 a month. When a member hits certain targets for donations we give them rewards. Dundee is not a rich city and it always amazes us when we deliver rewards to people’s houses to see how much they care about our club. Consequently, we are very conscious that while we exist to strengthen the relationship between the club and its supporters and to contribute to the success, financial security and stability of Dundee United. When fans are giving their hard-earned cash, it’s vital that they can see they are actively involved in deciding on any projects which DUSF funds. That’s why we place so much stress on the robust management and democratic decision-making that are the cornerstones of our success.” 

In our view at the SFU, the Dundee United Supporters’ Foundation is an exemplary example of how an individual fans’ group can provide targeted financial support, whilst developing a proven track record of success based on a well-established, genuinely democratic structure.  We’d encourage all United fans who are not yet members, and can afford to do so, to join DUSF.

Alastair Blair, SFU Operations Director