The Sky Blue Trust - Fans Seeking The Best For Our Club
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It has become clear that certain Coventry City supporters and even some Sky Blue Trust members believe that our board as an agenda which favours Wasps Rugby Club.
Despite radio and newspaper interviews which have made our position clear, this misguided view persists.
The fact is that the only sporting club which is close to our hearts is Coventry City. To that end, we have been involved in conversations with stakeholders surrounding the future of our beloved club.
In recent months, we have had one meeting with Wasps, one with Coventry City Council; and one with The English Football League.
Our only motivation was to persuade all three parties to be more proactive to get the Sky Blues back to Coventry. Each of the parties demanded the meetings were confidential so no minutes could be published.
On each occasion, we made an emotional plea - stating that the people being hurt by Coventry City's absence were mainly the thousands of supporters, including the elderly and infirm, who cannot get to Birmingham.
All three stressed that they wanted the football club back in Coventry. We would be delighted to have a similar meeting with Coventry City and act as a glue if need be.
After the meeting with the council, we submitted formal Freedom of Information requests, particularly surrounding any planned new ground in Coventry. The answers were published.
In the EFL's case, an agreed statement was made and we published a press release accordingly.
After the Wasps' meeting, the rugby club reiterated the position it stated at the meeting with a press statement very shortly afterwards, so we, probably incorrectly, did not put out a release because it would have been saying the same thing.
At that meeting, we asked about the indemnity demand by Wasps and were told that it was 'commercially sensitive'.
Nevertheless, we have followed the meeting with a recent letter to Wasps, Chief Executive, Nick Eastwood, which is published below.
In a phone call response, he has told us again that it is commercially sensitive.
The Trust board continues to work, unstintingly, to get Coventry City back in Coventry. We are sorry to disappoint conspiracy theorists but that is all there is to it. We are volunteers who are all passionate fans of long-standing. If we can successfully bring people together to our common goal, we will be delighted.
The truth is that, while the team is playing brilliantly and will, hopefully, be promoted this season, many people are not getting to see them because of the exile in Birmingham.
Therefore we want all parties to get together to resolve this unhappy state of affairs.
Letter to Wasps.
Dear Mr Eastwood
Firstly I hope this e-mail finds you well and in good form.
You will recall that you met with a group of Sky Blue Trust Board Members on 16th October last for what was a very frank and wide-ranging meeting concerning Coventry City FC and the impasse concerning the Sky Blues returning to play at the Ricoh Arena. You ended that meeting by indicating that you would be more than willing to speak with or respond to us (or indeed any other Coventry City fans) if in the future, we had questions or views that we wished to put to you about this unfolding situation.
I am writing to you on behalf of the Trust in the spirit of your offer to ask two broad questions which are prompted by our deep concern over the current and future viability of CCFC in financial terms, and for the Club as part of the culture and tradition of our City, as a result of continuing to play in Birmingham rather than at the Ricoh.
First, as we raised back in October, there is a widely held feeling that Wasps could gain significantly from allowing CCFC to play at the Ricoh. Doing so would not affect the outcome or costs of any legal proceedings, would bring rental income to Wasps and could give a significant boost to Wasps’ reputation locally and regionally. Wasps have stressed their commitment to Coventry as a city and as a community yet CCFC’s continuing exile is disenfranchising a significant part of that community – those who support, value and care about our football club. We are asking you, therefore – Will you seriously and actively consider allowing the Sky Blues to play back at the Ricoh as soon as is possible and re-open negotiations?
In considering this you may have noted that the Trust has elicited positive responses from Coventry City Council in terms of their desire to see the Sky Blues back in the City and from the EFL who have indicate a willingness to engage with any of the parties to the dispute should those parties deem that to be helpful.
Second, we are of course aware of the action being taken by Coventry City’s owners under EU legislation which could have serious impacts on Wasps. We do realise the possible risks for Wasps as a business in the shorter and longer term should this action be pursued by SISU. We assume that the ‘indemnity’ requirement that has been discussed in the press is an attempt to mitigate these risks. However, while it appears to be the nature of this indemnity which is the immediate cause of the current Wasps-CCFC impasse, there is currently no information on the indemnity in the public domain. While we do understand the nature of business negotiations and confidentiality, can you please let us know what this indemnity is and what it is designed to ‘cover’ – is it in the form of a ‘deposit’ against future actions detrimental to Wasps, against future legal costs, against any future claim against Wasps arising from judicial decisions or simply a form of insurance? What do you see as the possibilities for the indemnity to be negotiated in terms of its size or nature, or even in terms of the very necessity for it?
In sum, the need for the Sky Blues to play in the city and the role that the indemnity issue is playing in the current situation are not only central to the very existence of the Club but are central to the lives of huge numbers of people in the City. We are at a critical juncture.
We look forward to hearing your response
Best Regards
Dave Eyles (Chair of the Sky Blue Trust)
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EFL RESPONDS OVER COVENTRY RETURN AFTER SKY BLUE TRUST MEETING
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The English Football League has said it would be willing to engage with key stakeholders to help a quicker return to Coventry for the Sky Blues.
The football club left Coventry to play in Birmingham during the summer of 2019 after a dispute with stadium owners, Wasps Rugby Club.
Since then, the Sky Blues Trust, which represents more than 2,700 members, has been encouraging stakeholders to find common ground to bring the club back to its home city.
Following meetings with Coventry City Council and Wasps, Trust representatives met with the EFL in London.
A league spokesman reiterated that the EFL wished to see the club playing its matches in the Coventry area.
He stated that the League was in regular dialogue with the football club about a return to the city, which included the club’s plans for a new stadium.
Following updates from the Trust, the EFL indicated a willingness to engage further with any of the other main parties if it was felt that this would help achieve a quicker return to Coventry.
The city council, Wasps and the EFL demanded confidentiality as a pre-requisite before all meetings but agreed to go public on certain issues.
Consequently, it has emerged that Wasps would welcome further dialogue with Coventry City about a return to the Ricoh Arena - meanwhile, the city council has discussed three specific sites with the football club’s agents with regard to a potential new stadium.
The Trust is the only fan group which has engaged with all stakeholders with the intent of opening the doors to bring CCFC back to Coventry and informing supporters of the reality of new stadium discussions.
The only stakeholders refusing to speak to the Trust are Coventry City Football Club and its owners.
They believe that a supporters’ forum is the best way of passing on information. However, that forum has met only twice this season and is not meeting again until April.
Meanwhile, the future of Coventry City remains unclear.
It is the Trust’s conviction that bringing the club back to Coventry, particularly while it is so successful on the pitch, would engage thousands of supporters who are not attending matches in Birmingham.
This could only be good for the club’s current finances and, just as importantly, entice more young fans to go along to games and have Coventry City in their blood.
Bizarrely, it has been suggested by the club and some supporters, that the Trust is trying to damage the club.
Nothing could be further from the truth. Every member of our board has supported Coventry City for more than 20 years and some have been fans for more than 50.
We want our club to be back where we belong – in the Coventry and the higher echelons of English football.
However, we believe that supporter involvement is essential to the future of the club going forward and lack of transparency is detrimental to that.
Consequently, we would be delighted if the club offered a clear plan forward.
However, while that is not emerging, we will continue to work, as volunteers, to try to assist in finding a solution to the current impasse.
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THE NUMBER ONE PRIORITY – GET CCFC BACK TO COVENTRY
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Following the exile of our beloved Coventry City to Birmingham, The Sky Blue Trust has been forced to focus on one priority – bringing the club back home.
To that end, we have requested meetings with key stakeholders to hear, on the fans’ behalf, the answers directly from those involved.
Following our meeting with Wasps’ Nick Eastwood, we were grateful that the rugby club made public its stance on relations with CCFC, insisting it wanted football to return to the Ricoh.
Meanwhile, an equally frank conversation was held with Coventry City Council and, as a result, we are able to publish unedited questions and answers surrounding a potential return for CCFC and potential impediments.
The Sky Blue Trust will be meeting senior representatives from the English Football League in December.
We have renewed our requests for a meeting are Coventry City Football Club and its owners, Sisu so we can understand their position. We would hope they, like us and the EFL, they would be committed to bringing the Sky Blues back home.
Let nobody pretend that being in Birmingham is anything but incredibly damaging to the future of the Sky Blues.
That is why we are leaving no stone unturned in our attempt to bring people together with the goal of City returning to Coventry. In the meantime, it is important that fans understand any progress or otherwise.
So, these are the answers from Coventry City Council to specific questions.
Could you tell us if you have had meetings with representatives of Coventry City or their owners over future stadium plans in and around Coventry?
City Council officers have had meetings with land agents of the football club/SISU to provide pre-application advice in respect of one site that had been identified.
Have you spoken to them about specific sites?
The City Council has consistently advised the football club/SISU and their land agents about the need to undertake a comprehensive site selection exercise to look at alternative sites given some of the challenges with the site they had identified as being of potential interest. At a recent meeting, City Council officers, to try and assist, provided a couple of examples of sites that CCFC may wish to explore further as part of any site selection exercise.
How many sites have been part of those conversations?
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What are the locations of those sites?
The discussions have been very preliminary about possible options that a developer may want to explore and are not at a stage when any indication of where they are would be appropriate to share.
Have you selected specific members of staff to handle their inquiries? If so, do they have a history of dealing with the owners or the club previously?
Senior City Council officers with expertise in planning and development have been liaising with the football clubs agents. These officers have had no involvement in the ongoing litigation.
What is the state of the litigation in the European court?
The City Council responded to the Government request for information in May 2019 and has received no further correspondence to date.
What would happen to that litigation in the event of Brexit?
This is unclear and would be speculation at this stage
Is it your belief that there is an opportunity for CCFC to return to the Ricoh?
Yes, it is our belief that CCFC could and should return to the Ricoh and whilst we can advocate for that solution we have no ability in influencing any action of CCFC and their owners.
If so, what is the basis of that belief?
There is a stadium that can accommodate them and they should be playing in the city. The only barrier we can see is the willingness of the owners to accept and negotiate an agreement to do so.
Are you prepared to have further discussions with the key stakeholders to enable CCFC to return to Coventry?
Yes
Are you taking any proactive steps to attempt to bring CCFC back to Coventry?
We are open to any suggestion as to how we can help and facilitate a return. CCFC owners have had an explicit aim for some time now to build and occupy their own stadium in Coventry. As you can see from our previous answers, the City Council has been supportive and indeed proactive in this search whilst of course still preferring for CCFC to return to the Ricoh Arena.
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