Tuesday 30th June 2020
SONS Chairman, John Steele, has welcomed recent charitable investments in Scottish football. But he has warned that this should not be thought of as ‘free money’ or as solving the financial challenges faced by a club like Dumbarton.
The comments came after news that, in addition to James Anderson, another donor will be giving the game in Scotland a vital £1.25 million cash boost.
The new investment will reportedly take the form of two £625,000 payments, one to be received shortly and another in June 2021.
Money from this benefaction will be made available to club community trusts from the Premiership to League Two, with the donor wishing to remain anonymous.
John Steele said: “As with the James Anderson grant, which we are in the process of applying for, this new cash will be really important for strengthening football’s community engagement at a difficult time.
“We at Dumbarton are keen to strengthen our community links, and we have just published details of those we have in hand or are looking to develop.
“The importance of this charitable funding through the SPFL Trust is that it will enable clubs to continue with work that COVID has otherwise stopped.
“However, we need to caution against some of the descriptions of this as ‘a windfall’. This is money prescribed for community initiatives which will have to be properly accounted for.
“It is not to be thought of as ‘free money’. Nor does it address the ongoing challenges a club like Dumbarton faces in staying afloat in the absence of regular income streams, or the additional costs we will face in re-starting again – hopefully at some time in the foreseeable future.
“Our board, staff and volunteers continue to work flat-out to keep things moving forward here at the Rock, and we are as grateful as ever to our supporters and well-wishers for their donations and help with vital fundraising efforts – like the current signed strip sale and a second online auction, which we hope to launch soon.
“Please keep up the good work, everyone!”
Simon Barrow