Five questions fans need answered about their club's owners

Posted Friday, March 05, 2010 by BBC.com

How much do you know about the ownership of your club? Are they are using offshore tax havens and have they put any money into the club to invest?

Five questions fans need answered about their club's owners
Do the owners have sustainable plans?

Politicians and football supporters groups have united in calling for the Football League to make public who owns its clubs after the league approved as "fit and proper" the offshore owners of Leeds United while keeping their identity private.

Does this issue raise any alarms over the ownership of your own club? Here are five questions you should be able to answer. Please let us know your thoughts below the line:

1 Do you know who the individual people are who own your club? At most clubs in the Premier League and Football League, this is clear, but at some, like Leeds, it is still not.

2 Do you know clearly what their motivations are, and do they have sustainable plans for the club? Are they supporters who want to contribute to the club's health and future, and if they have other motives, have they clearly explained them?

3 Do you know what structures they are using. For example, are they using offshore tax havens to hold the shares in English football clubs? Are they holding the shares in such a way as to enable them to avoid paying UK tax when they finally sell the club?

4 Do you know whether they have put money into the club for them to invest, and if so in what way?

5 Do you know whether they have been paid money out of the club in salaries, dividends, interest on loans, or made money from the sale of shares, and if so how much?