Tor Anders Petteroe Company

For most fans, there are only a handful of ways to support a football club. You can buy tickets or a season ticket, pick up merchandise emblazoned with the club’s crest, and sing your heart out from the terraces both home and away.

Supporters are often referred to as the twelfth man and while this is certainly a nice way to make them feel included in their clubs’ trials and tribulations, there are other ways to support a football club: through financial investment.

This isn’t the financial investment that you give to the club by buying a new shirt every season, this is investing in a company that then goes on to invest in certain aspects of the club.

The Norwegian Model

In Norway, clubs like Sarpsborg 08 FF and Fredrikstad FK have their own investment companies. These companies raise money by issuing shares in the company and then get involved with player logistics.

In Fredrikstad, for example, local businessmen and companies like Tor Anders Petterøe and Golden Touch Media can invest in the company. They’re issued shares from Fredrikstad Fotball Invest (FFI), the company investing in the local club, and the company goes on to use this money to give the team more clout, particularly in the transfer market and youth system.

Leaving the Football to the Club

In the case of FFI and Fredrikstad FK, the relationship is purely financial. While there is a dialogue between the company and the club, the company strongly believes in the club’s current management, was set up around the time they took charge, and has little to no interest in meddling in their affairs.

FFI does have an agreement with the club to be responsible for 30% of player logistics. When a player is bought, FFI is responsible for 30% of the fees. When a player is sold, FFI receives 30% of the money. This extra money also means the club will have more clout in the transfer market as they can go for more expensive players and be able to worry less about the club’s internal finances as they aren’t responsible for 100% of the transfer fees.

FFI also supports the youth system. For smaller clubs, promising youth players are unlikely to stick around when a bigger and better offer comes in from a wealthier club, especially if the offer includes a professional contract. FFI provides cash to offer professional contracts to desirable players from the youth system, which allows Fredrikstad FK to prepare for the future as well as strengthen the squad right now.

For those that love the club, like Petterøe and the other investors, this is an excellent way to support it. FFI’s focus is on the club first and foremost and wants to become football-rich before becoming money-rich, but with the company becoming profitable by its third year, there’s no reason it can’t be both.

For the investors, success on the pitch is what they want most, but they’ll also likely want to see some return on their investment off it.

Photo by Eivind Hauger on Flickr