Joe Gorman, CEO of Exeter City, leads a fan-owned football club competing in League One with over 4,700 owners. He discusses the unique challenges of this model in an era of wealthy club owners, emphasizing how they competently blend finance with performance. Gorman reveals the success of turning a £5m academy investment into a £20m return and highlights the importance of transparency and trust with fans. The conversation covers sustainability strategies, community involvement, and the need for inclusivity in developing women's football.
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insights INSIGHT
Exeter's Unique Fan Ownership Model
Exeter City is owned by 4,700 fan members paying £24 annually, who elect trustees to represent them on the club board.
This governance creates a unique, participatory business model but requires careful communication and balancing stakeholders' interests.
insights INSIGHT
Smart Financial Management Practices
Exeter builds financial forecasts including cash runway to manage operational losses around £1.5 million a year.
They invest wisely with a growth mindset, balancing risk and spending money ahead of returns.
insights INSIGHT
Fan Ownership Boosts Fiscal Discipline
Exeter's fan ownership creates heightened fiscal discipline and acceptance of higher ticket prices.
Fans understand funds directly support club sustainability rather than enriching individuals.
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Today we welcome Exeter City CEO Joe Gorman. This show is long in the making. One of the most requested guests we have had. Why? Well Exeter are one of football’s biggest rarities; a fan owned club. This means they cannot rely on the wealth and exuberance enjoyed by many to succeed on and off the pitch. They actually have to try and make the business make sense.
Punching above their weight for many years, the club sits in League One alongside mega rich teams like Birmingham and Wrexham, and are more than competitive. So how does a club owned by 4700 fans paying £24 a year compete at the top level? How have they turned a £5m investment into the academy to a return of £20m. And why is Joe adamant this is a club here to be the best football team, not just to pat on the head and applaud for doing things unusually well.
A truly unique model. A truly unique conversation. This is the other side of the ‘Business of Football’.
On today’s show we discuss:
Exeter: A Fan-Owned Club:
What does it mean to be owned by the fans and how does it actually work when you have over 4700 ‘owners’ involved in the club?
Is Joe’s job made easier or harder without having the pressures exerted on management by demanding multi-millionaire owners chasing the glories of Premier League football?
How does the business of the club actually work in the context of making decisions to spend money. Is it consensus driven?
The importance of building trust: “the fans need to know I have the best interests of the club at heart”
Why this is more than a club to patronise for doing well off the field and how Joe, along with manager Gary Caldwell, is installing a winning culture from top to bottom.
Would the club ever look for investment away from the fanbase?
A Unique Playing Model:
When you can’t go out and spend millions on a star player, how do Exeter uncover talent who fit their model?
The importance of creating value for top teams by nurturing talent and being a home that clubs want to send their brightest young players to.
Buying players for 5-figures and selling them for 7-figures; winning for Exeter is more than just 3 points on the pitch.
The value of the sell-on clause: why having a percentage sale on players sold is such a valuable cash flow addition.
The fanbase needs to understand and get behind this business model for it to work. How do they relate to a team with pure ideals that may have a ‘success ceiling’?
Competing in the EFL:
The financial disparity between clubs even in League One is becoming more apparent than ever. How do Exeter leverage their unique model to compete with big spenders?
Are clubs like Wrexham and Birmingham good for the Football League?
Whose responsibility is it to capitalise on the increased exposure afforded to the football league with big investors and TV deals now a common occurrence?
Why does Joe fear wage inflation will be the thing that makes competing on a manageable playing field too hard to navigate?
Business of Sport