The solution for a new Stadium in Hammersmith and Fulham borough

[swede]

A fan-based ownership scheme is the solution that Hammersmith & Fulham Council proposed to resolve the stadium deadlock with QPR’s owners.
Because the council refused to "gift" hundreds of millions of pounds worth of public land (like the Linford Christie Stadium site) to QPR’s wealthy multi-millionaire owners, they explicitly challenged the club to look into a community-led or FC Barcelona-style fan ownership scheme.
Under this framework, a fan-owned land scheme for a new QPR stadium would operate through several key mechanisms:
1. The Legal Structure: A Community Benefit Society (CBS)
To buy or lease the land legally, fans would establish a Community Benefit Society (CBS), often structured through an existing entity like the QPR 1st Supporters' Trust.

• One Member, One Vote: Unlike a standard corporation where the wealthiest person rules, a CBS gives every fan an equal vote regardless of how much money they contribute.
• Asset Lock: The most crucial element. A legal "asset lock" would be placed on the land. This ensures the stadium site can never be sold off by the club’s owners for private housing or property speculation. It stays dedicated to QPR and the community forever.

2. Funding the Land Purchase (Community Shares)
To get the money to secure the land, the fan trust would launch a Community Share Issue.

• Fans, local residents, and small businesses buy shares to pool millions of pounds. Unlike typical stock market shares, these do not pay out speculative dividends. Instead, they represent a social investment in the club's permanent future.
• Because the money comes from the community rather than commercial lenders, it avoids saddling the football club with toxic, high-interest stadium debt.

3. The Council’s "Community Partnership" Role
Once the fans form this entity, Hammersmith & Fulham Council's stance changes from roadblock to partner. The council can support a fan-owned scheme by:

• Granting a Community Asset Transfer (CAT): The council could legally transfer the Linford Christie Stadium land to the Fan Trust via a long-term, low-cost lease, knowing it cannot be exploited by private developers.
• Approving the Multi-Use Arena: The council and the fan trust can push forward with the proposed multi-purpose community hub (which includes innovative concepts like a retractable pitch that doubles as an event roof). The council supports this because the revenue surplus would flow back into public sports facilities (athletics, hockey, skate parks) rather than private pockets.

️ 4. The Club-Fan Lease Agreement
Once the Fan Trust holds the land, they lease the stadium footprint back to the club's corporate owners (such as the majority shareholders).

• The club gets its modern, revenue-generating stadium to help them push for the Premier League.
• The fans retain ultimate veto power over the club's physical identity. If the owners ever try to move QPR out of west London, the fans can simply refuse to transfer the stadium rights.

Why hasn’t this been an alternative for the owners? They could sell the land where we have our stadium today and get a nice sum (£ 50 -70 million according to Project Big Ben) who could be used as a starting sum to build a new stadium (£150-300 million).

[Romford Hoop]

So invest £25,000. what return do I get on my investment, the way I read that article it sounds like a gift with no return.
On that basis you would be lucky to get 5 quid donated.

Apologies if I have misunderstood the post.

[SheepRanger]

Like the council, I wont be financially helping our billionaire owners.

They have pitched the stadium development to US investors and nothing seems to have landed. If wealthy international investors aren't interested thats enough of an indicator for Mr Joe Average.