Takeover - Club Statement

Blyth Spartans AFC are delighted to announce that we are now a community owned football club. A new not-for-profit community interest company (CIC) has taken over the majority ownership of Blyth Spartans thereby securing the future of the club for the benefit of the Spartans fans, the community in Blyth and the wider Northumberland Area.

Blyth Spartans 2024 CIC has been established by a group of local businessmen, all of whom are longstanding club sponsors, together with the Spartans fan group, Green Army, and with the support of the Football Supporters Association.

All members of the CIC have a long association with the club and the town, and a demonstrable long-term commitment to both. With the club sponsors involved committed to financial support of the football club, the CIC will be asset-locked, meaning that none of the members can profit from their involvement and the club's future is protected.

Martin Trinder, a club sponsor, one of the local businessmen involved in the CIC, and interim club chairman, said:

“The famous Blyth Spartans club is a hugely important asset for its fans and the whole community, and as supporters ourselves we want to secure its future as part of the community. This is a case of existing sponsors with a proven track record of commitment to the club stepping up and taking responsibility for building its future”.

Kevin Miles, chief executive of the Football Supporters' Association, added:

“Community ownership of a football club through a CIC, with the involvement of fans and the local community, is the best guarantee of a permanent future for a club. Even club owners, like players and managers, come and go, but the fans and the community are with a club for life. Having grown up in Blyth myself, I know just how important the Spartans are, and I am delighted a new era of community and supporter ownership of the club has begun.”

We extend our thanks to outgoing chairman Irfan Liaquat for his constructive assistance in transferring ownership of the club to the community. We can also announce that former Blyth Spartans manager Tom Wade will take charge of the team for this weekend's away fixture at Ilkeston Town, pending the appointment of a new management team.

In addition, the club's excellent volunteer team led by Colin Blackett, who ensure that Croft Park can host games, have also agreed to return to their roles with immediate effect.

The club will make further announcements on future plans next week. Howay Blyth!