League boss backs Athletic to prosper

LORD MAWHINNEY is optimistic Athletic and other clubs in similar positions can weather the economic downturn.

Having overcome an even bigger crisis with the demise of ITV Digital a few years ago, struggling clubs are being backed to survive by Football League chairman Lord Mawhinney, who is delighted that professional football has managed to preserve its 92-club status.

That is a major achievement, bearing in mind 25 clubs – including Athletic – have entered administration since 2002.

Lord Mawhinney said: “From time to time we have a little excitement when one or more of our clubs gets into financial difficulty.

“On the whole, the league is stable from that point of view and we have made great strides in the last few years.”

Lord Mawhinney took up his post in January, 2003, at a time when clubs lost a fortune following the collapse of ITV Digital.

He said: “I remember at my first press conference two questions were asked.

“What is a Member Of Parliament doing chairing the Football League?

“And how many clubs do you think you will lose by the end of the season.

“I counted up all the numbers the journalists said and the average they felt we would lose was between six and eight between January and June, 2003. So far we haven’t lost any.”

Lord Mawhinney admitted football shares the pressures facing other businesses in these difficult times.

He said: “Unemployment is rising and businesses are closing and the fact this club (Athletic) is still flourishing is a compliment to the chairman and the board.

“They don’t have any legal protection from the economic pressures everybody else faces, and they have to handle them.”

Lord Mawhinney said clubs had been helped by the new television deal which sees them receive a 130-per-cent increase in revenue compared to last season.

He also believes clubs are becoming far more involved with the community.

Indeed, Athletic boast one of the most progressive programmes as they often set up pioneering projects within Oldham.

Lord Mawhinney said: “A lot of kids who may otherwise be out on the streets are given training so this place is not just a venue where two teams meet on a Saturday.

“It is also a focus for developing what is good in the town, particularly for young people.”

Lord Mawhinney said the importance of the work done by the community programmes has been rewarded with Government grants.

And he encouraged the town to support its football club, saying: “The crowd at Boundary Park will be the biggest expression of community in this town.

“There will not be another gathering in Oldham that will have more people in it from the local community than this one.

“That is why it is important to the town that they should have a football club.

“In recent years, I have spent a lot of time trying to get local authorities and chambers of trade to understand that it is in their benefit and the whole community that the football club should grow and prosper.”