Fans of FC St. Pauli bald co-owners of the stadium?

The plans of the Bundesliga football club FC St. Pauli for the planned cooperative for its members are becoming more concrete. With the unusual model in football, the club will reduce debt and invest in infrastructure. “Our top priority is that we can quickly pay off the club’s debts completely,” said commercial director Wilken Engelbracht to the “Hamburger Abendblatt”. Supporters of the club can buy a share for 850 euros. All members of the cooperative have one vote, regardless of the number of shares purchased. There will be a savings model for low-income people. The shareholders will also share in the profits. At the beginning, the cooperative will buy a share in the stadium, and every paying fan involved will become a co-owner.

Engelbracht: “We are breaking new ground here”

A market research survey had previously gauged the fans’ willingness. The Millerntor Stadium in particular is to benefit from the planned 25 to 35 million euros. “We want to repay the loan for the stadium early. This has a volume of around 15 million euros. We want to use the remaining funds to pay back the Corona loans,” said Engelbracht. “We are breaking new ground here because we don’t just complain about the forms of football financing driven by traditional investors, but want to show an alternative,” said Engelbracht. The cooperative “Fußballgenossenschaft St. Pauli eG” was founded on April 1. The club will soon actively approach the fans and push the project forward.

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