On Wednesday 26 February at 14.00, the Fulham Supporters’ Trust (FST) met with Fulham FC via video conference.
The Club was represented by:
• Alistair Mackintosh (Chief Executive, AM)
• Carmelo Mifsud (Communications Director, CM)
• David Daly (Non-Executive Director, DD)
• Glen Sutton (Fulham Pier Director, GS)
• John D’Arcy (Safety Officer, JD)
• Jack Burrows (Marketing Director, JB)
• Jamie Nicholson (Head of Fan Engagement, JN)
• Nicola Walworth (Supporter Liaison Manager & Disability Liaison Officer, NW)
The FST were represented by:
• Simon Duke (Chair, SD)
• Steve Nicholson (Secretary, SN)
• Hayley Davinson (Vice-Chair, HD)
HOW IT WORKS
At our regular monthly meetings, Trust board members normally ask questions relating to as many topics as possible in the time available, based on responses from members to the advance notification of the meeting and our own observations from interacting with the wider supporter base. The Club then gives its position, which is discussed. These notes are therefore a statement of both points of view. The Trust continues to press both the Board’s and its members’ view at this meeting and in separate meetings.
Often members ask similar questions, and, in these cases, we try to summarise, provide the Club with feedback and gain as much useful information as possible in the time available. We also prioritise new and time-critical topics, whilst also seeking updates on longer running issues.
You can access notes of all previous meetings on our web site, including the most recent information on key topics not covered at this meeting.
TOPICS DISCUSSED
For the February meeting, it had been pre-agreed that the main topic of discussion would be the points raised in the recently sent open letters from the Trust to the Club, on the topic of ticketing issues and wider fan strategy.
The meeting was opened by SD thanking the club on behalf of a Nottingham Forest FC disabled supporter who had commended the away day experience and the stewarding in particular. AM was pleased to hear this and also noted the fine voice of Fulham supporters at the previous night’s away game against Wolves.
SD started by asking if the Club would be happy to share their thoughts and feedback, to which CM was happy to respond on behalf of those in attendance representing the Club.
The strategy of open letters had not been well received by the Club, and rather than the supposed intention of opening conversation, it instead felt that the Club was backed into a corner, and the letters felt aggressive and not conducive to a strong working relationship. It is understood that the Trust feels justified in sending these and that they have this option available to them; however, the Club doesn’t feel able to send a reply to these, however they are intended. Being in the public domain makes it difficult to have conversations, which has historically been the point of the monthly meetings that have been longstanding between the Trust and the Club under a Memorandum of Understanding. Now, the Club has even more supporter engagement meetings since the launch of the FAB, and more will be taking place specific to the working groups now created within the FAB, which the Trust Chair SD is a part of. CM explained that they want to keep all supporters and stakeholders on their side, but are faced with business decisions, and this is being called out by the Trust. Personal view of CM, but it doesn’t feel that backing into a corner with open letters feels helpful to future preserve this work.
SD replied that the Trust are here to represent our members first, and currently, the monthly meeting notes are not holding up enough for those being represented. Putting these into the public domain was to ensure that the right questions are asked and that members understand that these questions are being asked. If the Trust and its members felt that those questions were being answered, there would not be any use for open letters, but it was felt that action was required due to the lack of responses given.
CM replied by explaining that with the FAB now fully established, in a working system and the ability to speak with them directly, the Trust is no longer the only route the Club has to engage with fans. They fully intend to use these channels to ensure all supporter views are listened to. This ensures that people who may not feel like becoming Trust members still have an opportunity to engage with the Club, and even without the FAB, they can speak to the Club directly. Everyone is a valued supporter for the Club to engage with.
CM continued, saying that more meetings would be held with the FAB. This will be documented with an Engagement Report produced at the end of each season, where all stated objectives are measured. There will be various outlets to speak to fans that will be part of this – including meetings privately between the Club Nominated Board Level Official (DD) and the FAB Chair (David Claridge (DC), not present). As these points made within these open letters feel strategic, these are something to take up with the FAB, for which the FST are represented.
SD confirmed his understanding of the dual roles within both the FAB and the Trust and the importance of that role, and then went on to state that there has been public questioning of the current opacity of the FAB due to the inability for an extended period to be able to contact them [this is now operational, to contact the FAB see here], and how visible they have been able to be since being appointed. It is difficult for the FAB to reach out to themselves other than through the subsection of the website. From a Trust member’s point of view, members have felt that the FAB is not currently contactable, and the reason for contacting the Trust is the exact opposite – they have open means of communication with fans.
He continued by explaining that both he and DC communicate on such issues and have clarity regarding the role that each can play within fan communication and the responsibilities of each. But the problem, for now, is that there are not enough external comms coming directly from the FAB for fans to be able to speak to them to address these issues.
CM explained that the last formal meeting of the Club and FAB was at the end of January and that the minutes were now published on the Club website. One of the topics was improving communication with the club. With a portal now set up, the email address is live, an announcement in the matchday programme and LED board comms are incoming, and an email newsletter is sent to those opted-in for comms from the club. A lot more is coming, so that will improve over time.
SD continued by saying that it is understood that communication will improve in future. Still, the issue remains that if our members ask questions that haven’t been able to be answered by the FAB or within this meeting, we have to show that we are asking these questions on their behalf. The Trust want to find ways to get the answers to those questions to give members, and other means are welcomed, but it hasn’t been felt that there have been different ways of communication to be able to do this to date.
DD responded by saying that the open letters equally have not been giving the Trust the answers that they desire, so it was suggested to have a rethink about that strategy, too. It was asked by the Trust what means to use instead, as private and open communications have not yielded answers satisfactory to members. DD replied that it is a decision for the Trust to make itself, but it has those means within the monthly meeting, and if there are concerns from members, that is between the Trust board and its members.
SN responded to DD that the issue that the Trust have is the Club, within the meetings, are not giving answers, which leads to questions being repeated at future meets. The frustration from members currently is that the Club do not answer questions they receive on material issues which creates the impression they are not interested.
SN noted that as the Trust board member who deals with the email correspondence, there is enough coming into the inbox – which is undoubtedly shared by those who speak to the Club directly and speak to AM – that for all the vocal support for those on the pitch, there is noticeable concern, which has now been visibly heard within the stands, too. They feel concerned about the feelings that the Club have for those fans that go week-in, week-out, to Newcastle, or Wolves on a Tuesday night, travel on coaches or book hotels. The Trust is asked daily about that discontent, and the Trust is attempting to seek answers to those questions as best they can. The aim is not to create trouble but to get a common understanding.
DD responded by saying that the open letters aren’t working and that the message to the Trust is to stop sending them. They will not get a response, and it is not a strategy that will change anything within the current setup.
SN explained that the role of the Trust is to ask those questions on behalf of members and reiterated that currently, there has not been another option. It was understood that, in time, the FAB may become a working format for some of this, but neither the FAB nor the monthly meetings between the Trust and Club have yielded any demonstrable success to date.
CM continued to say that the FAB setup requires time to work. It is new for all involved, and they are being given the ability to do this, but the results will not be immediate. It has always been the intention to have a fair representation, and the Club are committed to making that relationship work, as it is seen as an essential part of fan engagement.
SN agreed that getting the FAB engagement channel to work is crucial, as it is not an elected board of representatives, so fans do not see this necessarily as positive engagement with the club.
CM reiterated that although not democratically elected, the role of the Trust as part of the FAB is thoroughly believed to be a fair representation of the Fulham fan base, as is the DSA. The Trust is a part of that group, but the FAB gives the Club a greater opportunity to speak to a broader part of the Fulham fan base.
It was also explained that there is a framework in place that the Club are adhering to and have had dialogue with the Premier League to ensure that the club are doing the right thing by all fans within the rules of the Fan Engagement Standard. It was also explained that with the meetings outside of those three formal ones held annually (the discussions within the focus groups and working groups), the Club are now actively engaging in far more meetings with fans than the previous amount of solely meeting with the Trust monthly. SD queried if the meeting notes from the last meeting had been published yet, to which CM and JN confirmed that they had been and were public within the FAB section of the website. SD asked if there had been any further sharing of the notes – either on the main club website or via social media – and CM confirmed they hadn’t; they were live only within the FAB sub-section of the website.
SD asked if there was capacity to share the meeting notes on the website within the news section, and it was explained by CM and JN that the notes were publicly available to anyone who wished to read them and that the notes were agreed between the Club and relevant members of the FAB. SD expressed some surprise that the meeting notes had not been more widely publicised, given the FAB opacity referred to earlier.
SD finished the discussion on the letters by asking if there was anything further to add, and both CM and DD stated that open letters were not the way forward for these discussions.
SD raised the question of the ticketing suggestions that the Trust had provided at the request of the Club. With Katy Brecht not present at the meeting, it was felt it would not be a meaningful conversation. Both Trust and Club instead agreed that a meeting outside of the monthly meeting would be arranged.
CM added that all points had been read and considered, and feedback was to be given. Still, it takes time and consideration for the Club to understand what positives can be taken and how to use this information constructively and test these, more for compatibility, against the current ticketing systems and processes. This point, and the suggestion of a meeting, was positively agreed by the Trust.
SN asked if it was possible to get some views on the Guiding Principles around ticketing to understand if they were considerations that could be discussed at some point. AM stated it is not just his (or one person’s) responsibility to deal with these issues, so it is impossible to respond directly or view them. He reiterated that an open letter is not how the Club wishes to respond to views from fans.
SD asked about the upcoming Manchester United away game (which was forthcoming on Sunday after the meeting). With inconvenient timing, non-capped away matchday pricing and poor train options for fans, were there ways for the Club to help fans make their way to support the team in an important upcoming fixture. AM said the Club decided not to send a cheque to support Manchester United’s funds from the Fulham Chairman.
Finally, Loyalty Points were explicitly mentioned, as it was explained that both the Club and the FAB are engaging in work to understand how to distribute points better, how to improve the system, and the difficulties with making any changes to this. This project is ongoing, as explained in the latest FAB meeting notes. SD will make sure Trust views are taken into consideration.
AOB
Segregation in the hospitality area – away fans in recent games. It was confirmed by John D’Arcy that there are complications when corporate hospitality is purchased as those in charge of hosting can, in theory, give the tickets to a person of their choice – and this includes away fans. The Club does everything within its means to ensure purchasers of hospitality are aware of the desire not to have away fans in these seats and to ensure their guests are mindful of those rules.
Showing the Manchester United game – is it possible to have on show in the Riverside stand for fans who cannot make it to Manchester on Sunday? JB will look into it as there are currently works in the stand.
Concessions in Riverside – still only open on matchdays for now.
Survey for season ticket holders – The Club confirmed the results summary will go into the fan engagement report. Results will also help inform other areas of the business for next season.
Wifi and phone signal in the Johnny Haynes stand – it was noted that some upgrading was happening. The issue would be taken up separately with DP not present for the meeting.
Ream & Cairney testimonials – no solutions have been found yet. CM said this was challenging because of fixtures and planning with opponents. Possible works planned at Craven Cottage straight after the end of this current season are also a consideration. An alternative event may be considered in the spring/summer. DD added that with Tim Ream still playing professional football, getting him to the Cottage ahead of the 2026 World Cup would be difficult. Still, he is fully aware of plans to mark his achievements and potentially return to be honoured with Forever Fulham.
Green Football Weekend – HD will speak outside the meeting about possible plans for the event, which will run from March 11 to April 2.