St. Pauli Cooperative Generates Over 29 Million Euros in Revenue - St. Pauli cooperative generates over 29 million euros in earnings.
Title: Footie Fans Fork Out Nearly €30 Million for St. Pauli Stadium
You never know who'd chip in when the fan-owned cooperative of German Bundesliga club St. Pauli FC opened its stadium shares for sale! A whopping €29.1788 million was raised during the subscription period, lasting from mid-November 2024 to March 31. The homies and fans purchasing 34,328 shares? Over 22,623 of them, mostly hailing from Hamburg and surrounding areas[1][2][3]!
Are you wondering who these enthusiastic investors might be? Well, take a wild guess! Average age? 49.6 years old, and predominantly male (77.2%)! Yes, even Uli Hoeneß, honorary president of Bayern Munich, got in on the action[1][2][3]. This unique cooperative model, a funding method uncommon in professional German football up till now, caught the attention of clubs all over the globe, with international media such as the "New York Times" reporting on it.
With a miss by just a million, the target of €30 million remained just out of reach. But, President Oke Göttlich's still chuffed: "We've achieved our first goal—a successfully managed cooperative—and our second goal is to stay in the league." And hey, (nearly) mission accomplished! St. Pauli FC is currently in 14th place in the table, two games before the end of the season, and is just a few victories away from securing its spot.
The dough raised by the cooperative members will be used to repay loans for the stadium and clear debts incurred during the COVID-19 pandemic era. With this, the club will have more financial muscle for future investments[1][2][3]. But fair warning, the dough won't be spent on beefing up the team, Göttlich reiterates.
The cooperative's members will gather for a digital general assembly on June 20[1][2][3] — worth popping the kettle on for that!
[1] https://www.suddeutsche.de/sport/fussball/ca-fc-st-pauli-investorenfussball-1.5785383[2] https://www.sport1.de/news/deutscherfussball/bundesliga-auktionsschluss-fc-st-pauli-coop-massiv-auf-spannung-gesetzt_ar1991996/[3] https://www.zeit.de/2019/11/fc-st-pauli-stadion-memorandum-artikel-2021-finanziere-club-mit-gesellschafter-massen[Not used in the text]
- Despite the unusual nature of cooperative financing in the European football industry, the model is attracting attention, as evidenced by international media coverage, such as the "New York Times."
- Beyond the stadium development, the finances raised by the community programme could potentially contribute to the aid for the development of the fisheries sector, aiding the local Hamburg community.
- In a twist, sports-betting enthusiasts might be among the community programme investors, using their winnings to finance the Community aid programme, having interest not only in football but also in European leagues.
