Cambridge Fans United
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Cambridge Fans United (often
abbreviated An abbreviation () is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method including shortening, contraction, initialism (which includes acronym), or crasis. An abbreviation may be a shortened form of a word, usually ended with a trailing per ...
to CFU) is an organisation which represents the interests of fans of the
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
club
Cambridge United Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They currently compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed the U’s, the club h ...
. It was set up in 2000 to give a voice to the fans, and has since become a major
shareholder A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of corporate stock refers to an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the ...
in the football club using donations from supporters to finance share purchases. It is legally an
Industrial and Provident Society An industrial and provident society (IPS) is a body corporate registered for carrying on any industries, businesses, or trades specified in or authorised by its rules. The members of a society benefit from the protection of limited liability ...
although it is set up as a
not-for-profit A not-for-profit or non-for-profit organization (NFPO) is a Legal Entity, legal entity that does not distribute surplus funds to its members and is formed to fulfill specific objectives. While not-for-profit organizations and Nonprofit organ ...
organisation, with any surplus in revenue reinvested in either share purchases in the club, or in its various running costs and projects. In February 2011, CFU announced its plans to gain a
controlling interest A controlling interest is an ownership interest in a corporation with enough voting stock shares to prevail in any stockholders' motion. A majority of voting shares (over 50%) is always a controlling interest. When a party holds less than the maj ...
in Cambridge United and to turn it into a Community Trust Club. This followed the news that the club's owners had put the club up for sale, citing the need for new
investment Investment is traditionally defined as the "commitment of resources into something expected to gain value over time". If an investment involves money, then it can be defined as a "commitment of money to receive more money later". From a broade ...
to take the club forward.


Aims

CFU was initially formed as a
supporters group In heraldry, supporters, sometimes referred to as ''attendants'', are figures or objects usually placed on either side of the shield and depicted holding it up. Historically, supporters were left to an individual's free choice and were assu ...
to represent the views and interests of Cambridge United's
fanbase A fandom is a subculture composed of fans characterized by a feeling of camaraderie with others who share a common interest. Fans typically are interested in even minor details of the objects of their fandom and spend a significant portion of ...
, and to allow the club's continued operation. It also aimed to give fans a voice within the club through gaining a seat on the club's
board Board or Boards may refer to: Flat surface * Lumber, or other rigid material, milled or sawn flat ** Plank (wood) ** Cutting board ** Sounding board, of a musical instrument * Cardboard (paper product) * Paperboard * Fiberboard ** Hardboard, a ...
, which they achieved in 2004 with the election of Brian Attmore as the first Fans' Elected Director.


Vision

After celebrating its tenth anniversary in 2010, CFU refocussed its attention to develop its vision for the next decade. It developed a Vision Statement sub-categorised into the various projects in which it has an interest: * The club - ''Cambridge United Football Club is run as a sustainable business at whatever level of football, is central to the local community and with the fans fully represented at all levels.'' * The organisation - ''CFU is run on a prudent and sustainable basis, representing all members and all fans.'' * The community - ''CFU actively represents members and fans in the local community and with statutory, business and non-profit organisations.'' * The stadium - ''Cambridge United's stadium meets the needs of supporters on match days, is commercially sustainable for the club and provides a vibrant resource for the wider community.'' *
Values In ethics and social sciences, value denotes the degree of importance of some thing or action, with the aim of determining which actions are best to do or what way is best to live ( normative ethics), or to describe the significance of different a ...
- ''CFU is welcoming and inclusive, forward thinking, with a positive attitude to challenge.''


Achievements

Through CFU, fans of Cambridge United have a say in the running of the club. Since 2004 the Fans Elected Director, chosen by CFU members, has represented supporters' interests in the boardroom. We have provided assistance and support to many supporters and raised concerns when required. CFU has become one of the largest shareholders and we seek to grow our shareholding and influence at boardroom level. In November 2003, CFU helped save the club by raising £100,000 as part of the Bridge the Gap campaign. In the following years, the financial and practical assistance we provided was crucial to Cambridge United surviving Administration. Our support has paid players' wages in difficult times. CFU has provided financial and administrative support for the Smile Scheme, bringing many groups and individuals into contact with Cambridge United for the first time. The scheme is now sponsored and is increasingly important within the local community. CFU has financed and provided all administration for the Junior U's scheme during the past few years. This has welcomed many new young supporters and families to the club, with over 2000 children becoming Junior U's over the years. We have also run football tournaments involving hundreds of local youngsters. CFU has helped towards the launch of Supporters' Trusts at Peterborough United, Cambridge City and King's Lynn. We have provided both guidance and advice on a regular basis to a number of other clubs and trusts. Within the supporters' trust movement CFU are well respected and in 2004 we won 'Trust of the Year'. CFU introduced and developed the South Stand scheme, which has seen thousands of people come to matches and also raised awareness of the club to many thousands of others. CFU have provided finance and administrative support to ensure the schemes' success. For the past 10 years, CFU has supported Cambridge United Youth Development via finance, material items and practical assistance. We have sponsored CRC and the Youth Team as well as sponsoring individual players such as Michael Morrison. This season we will again be CRC's Match Day Sponsor and we are sponsoring goalkeeper Martin Trunca. CFU members have freely donated their services, skills and time throughout the past ten years, working hard in many roles within the club. For example, CFU helped carry out work to improve the office portacabins, the fans' bar and the gym at the R Costings Abbey. Over the years, CFU have also donated many items ranging from training goals, bicycles, computers, televisions and radios for the blind. CFU has instigated numerous projects to raise funds for our club. We have organised raffles, beer festivals, football tournaments, produced calendars, DVDs and fixture list posters in order to raise thousands of pounds for Cambridge United F.C. and Cambridge United Youth Development. Our support has also contributed significantly to the transfer funds available to the manager. In 2010 CFU launched the "Cambridge 'Til I Die" book project. This will be a collection of supporters' memories and stories, providing a unique record of Cambridge United's history from the fans' perspective.


References

{{Reflist, 2


External links


Cambridge Fans United official website

Cambridge United official website
Organisations based in Cambridge Cambridge United F.C.