Tag: Dee4Life

Chairman's Updates

Dee4Life members’ update – June

Dear Members

It has been very encouraging to see the progress made on the extensive work being done to ensure the pitch at Dens is ready for the new season. We are yet to learn what the route cause of the drainage problem was but we look forward to seeing the first match on the new surface when we meet Annan in the League Cup on 23rd July.

Off the pitch, there was less positive news on the decision made by the SPFL to ask Dundee to cover Rangers’ travel and hotel costs for the two postponed matches. We were extremely disappointed to read this news and believe it sets a dangerous precedent for the Scottish game.

As communicated earlier this month, Grant McGregor attended the D.F.C EGM on June 2 and cast the Dee4Life vote in favour of both resolutions. We would like to reiterate that we received no clear guidance on what the new investment will be used for. While the percentage of minority shareholders will be diluted further, including our Dee4Life percentage, that doesn’t affect the rights relating to the ‘A’ shares. Ultimately we believed that supporting the club’s plan was the best course of action and we have to acknowledge that the result was inevitable given the high percentage holdings commanded by the majority shareholders. It is fair to say that there are still many questions regarding what the Club is hoping to achieve with the share issue and we hope that their aims will be communicated to fans in due course.

We will shortly be writing to the Club with the aim of re-opening channels and to try to establish constructive dialogue. The recent EGM illustrated the Club’s ability to organise and host professionally run meetings. Regular communication can only help both the Club and the fans and hopefully help bring ore fans back to Dens in the long run. Our hope is that we can achieve the reintroduction of AGM’s and more immediately a Q&A session for members and the wider fan base. We recognise the progress being made at the Club and believe that an engaged fan base can play a big part in helping the manager and the team to make even bigger strides next season.

In other news, I am pleased to introduce a new addition to the Dee4Life Board.

Mike Woodcock (above) has joined the Board as Communications Director. Mike is the Director of Communications at The R&A and is an avid D.F.C supporter, having been attending Dens since the days of Iain Ferguson (the first time) and Cammy Fraser. We all look forward to working with Mike.

Regards,

Dee4Life Board.

Chairman's Updates

Dundee FC EGM update

On Monday 3rd June, Dundee Football Club held their EGM at Gardyne.

There were two resolutions on the agenda – broadly that the club board be given the authority to increase the shares available by £13m in value and that they should then have the power to issue those shares. That authority to span the next five years.

Following considerable discussion the Dee4Life board made the decision to vote in favour of both resolutions, effectively allowing the club to attract fresh investment or clear existing loans from the balance sheet.

We would point out that we received no clear guidance on what the new investment will be used for. While the percentage of minority shareholders will be diluted further, including our Dee4Life percentage, it’s important to be clear that it doesn’t affect the rights relating to the ‘A’ shares.

We believe that supporting the club’s plan was the best course of action and we have to acknowledge that the result was in any case inevitable given the high percentage holdings commanded by the majority shareholders.

There were perhaps just less than 20 shareholders in attendance and the actual meeting lasted some 35 minutes including the count of the votes. Dundee FC directors John Nelms and Bob Hynd were at the top table with Mr Darling of Gilson Gray introducing proceedings.

It was a poll vote with shareholdings held by the individual shareholders counting as opposed to the raising of hands.

Dee4Life Finance Director Grant McGregor cast our vote accordingly with fellow director Norrie Price also in attendance.

Both resolutions were passed with around 82% in favour and 0.004% against. The balance would be those shareholdings not cast.

Beyond the actual resolutions, there was no explanation of the club board’s intentions, nor was there the opportunity for shareholders to ask any questions. At the close of the meeting John Nelms offered all shareholders a tour of the facilities at Gardyne Campus.

Regards,
Dee4Life

Chairman's Updates

Dee4Life members’ update – May

Dear Members,

Well, another season is over and, already the anticipation of another season begins. It has been a great season on the pitch for the club and missing out on a possible European campaign was a disappointment. This achievement is decent for a first season back in the premier league under a new manager in his first season too.

Such times dictate change and upheaval in the playing staff, with the announcement of the loanees returning to their parent clubs, and three releases of Byrne, French and Wilkie. Our thanks for their service to the club and best wishes for the future go with each of them. You never know some of the loanees may yet return for next season.

The club has responded to the challenges recently experienced with the pitch and the impact on games swiftly. Barely had the last league game finished before the works to address this issue commenced, and hopefully we will see the results from this for next season.

Dee4Life have now commented back to the club thanking them for the recent answers to questions and looking forward to the Council holding the hearing in August on the submitted Planning Permission in Principle. Thereafter continuing dialogue and seeking to support the advancement of the New Camperdown stadium.

The matter of engagement and communication with the club continues to be a pressing priority for Dee4Life. We have previously sought a commitment from the club to an AGM arrangement, consistent with other club approaches, or if a preference for the club an open Q&A session for fans with club representatives, to hear of club intentions and future plans, and allow any concerns or points of interest to be raised by fans.

EGM attendance

As you will likely be aware, Dundee Football Club Ltd has called an EGM for Monday June 3rd. Dee4Life board Director Grant McGregor will represent the Trust at the EGM at the club’s Gardyne Training Facility where two Resolutions are to be voted on.

There has been work over recent months on the administration of the website and ensuring the minutes of the board meetings are posted as available and looking to provide historic minutes too, as these at some point seem to have been removed at the time of a system change. Please bear with us as we seek to address and resolve this matter.

Dee4Life are also keen to have open lines of communication with club representatives and will continue to pursue this outcome, to aid dialogue and continue to offer, and seek areas for, support from the society.

As we approach the summer and the European Championships our attention and support will move to the national team, and we wish Steve Clark and the Scotland squad all the best for the tournament in Germany.

Regards

Keith Winter
Dee4Life Chair

Chairman's Updates

Dee4Life members’ update

Dear Members,

The first item to cover is the fantastic achievement by Tony Docherty and the team in reaching top six status in our first season back in the Premiership. The club now have telling fixtures to try and secure European football again at Dens for the first time since 2003.

This success on the park is reflected in the nominations achieved by Tony Docherty up for the Manager of the Year award, Lyall Cameron for the Young Player of the Year award, and with Owen Beck named in the SPFL team of the year.

All fans will have noted the responses from the club to the questions about the new stadium development tabled recently, and the coverage across different media paths on this. Several Dee4Life members provided responses, to the Board, on the questions submitted and this is appreciated. Currently these are all being considered to establish whether we should seek any further updates or clarification on any points with the club.

Following on the recent and welcomed submission of the Planning Permission in Principle for the Camperdown stadium development, this has now been followed up by further announcements regarding a new training facility at Riverside, a new artificial pitch at the Gardyne Campus and works over the summer to address the drainage issues at Dens Park, with a significant level of investment for this announced.

These will be delivered through a combination of the Club, DBPH, and the Community Trust. All are welcome actions and, as delivered, reflective of the current positive path for the club on and off the field.

The announcement of e-ticketing for the new season is welcomed. This is something the Dee4Life board have pushed for previously as a benefit for fans and an assistance for matchdays where hopefully congestion at the ticket queues will be a thing of the past.

As a voice for Dundee fans, your membership is crucial. But did you know that you can also help Dee4Life by shopping online?

By adjusting your online shopping patterns slightly, you can help raise money for the Trust. Teaming up with easyfundraising, Dee4Life has already earned thousands of pounds thanks to members’ purchases online.

All you need to do is register for an easyfundraising account and select Dee4Life as the cause you’d like to raise money for.

Every time you shop online, easyfundraising will give a donation to the trust. This donation will help us to continue our work in providing a voice for Dees across the globe.

More information can be found here.

One area where there has been some discussion and reaction raised is to the 2024/25 season ticket prices notably the hefty hike in the under-12s price, from £1.00 to £50.00. These are the supporters of the future, and families may well struggle with this increase especially if there is more than one young supporter in the family. It is to be hoped that this does not backfire on the club and its ability to attract young fans for the future.

For your information there has been a change in the Dee4Life Board make up with Grant Hill standing down as Vice-Chair due to personal and professional commitments. Over the past two years, Grant has served the Trust very well, delivering and contributing on several fronts and bringing an energy and communications capacity that has been beneficial to the board and wider Trust membership. Our grateful thanks to Grant and all the best for the future.

So, finally, exciting times for the club and hopefully much more to come over the coming weeks, months, and seasons. But first and foremost, let’s focus on the exciting possibility of European qualification – see you at Dens on Saturday!

Regards
Keith Winter
Dee4Life Chair

Chairman's Updates

Members’ update: Club response to Camperdown questions and survey results

Dear members,

Thank you to all who attended our recent online meeting and contributed to discussion about the future direction of Dee4Life and our club. We welcome feedback on this event and would be happy to hold further meetings in this format if there is an appetite from members to do so.

As explained at the meeting, we received answers to the questions around the new stadium development that we had submitted to the club. Unfortunately, as these were received only an hour before the meeting, we did not have time to consider these as a board prior to the meeting but can now share this with you.

Click here to view the response on our website.

We thank the club for providing information that goes some way to addressing the concerns that members have shared with us over the past couple of years. We believe there is space for additional details to be provided on some of the matters raised and hope this can be addressed through further dialogue.

We would now like to invite members to share their feedback on the answers provided before sending a formal response.

Those wishing to submit their feedback should email contact@dee4life.com.

A desire for more information about Nou Campy was one of the standout findings from our recent members survey, which we shared with those in attendance. A breakdown of the results can also be seen on our website, along with our initial thoughts on the results.

Click here to see our members’ survey results.

What is clear from the survey responses is that Dee4Life members are committed and highly engaged Dundee FC supporters who make a significant financial and emotional contribution to the club. This is always at the forefront of our thinking.

Regards,

Keith Winter (Dee4Life Chair)

Chairman's Updates, society updates

Survey results: Dee4Life members contribute significantly to Dundee FC

In February the Dee4Life board sought to gain the views of members in a survey. Around a third of our members (171) took the time to share their opinion on the trust and what they would like us to focus on going forward.

We will take these views into consideration to help form our strategy.

Below is the list of questions we asked with the top-level results from each. Beneath each answer section is a summary of our thoughts on the responses.

Here are nine things Dee4Life could focus on, on your behalf. What THREE things do you think we should focus on most?

  • Working to ensure Dundee FC are here for the longer term (selected by 74% of respondents)
  • Bringing all Dundee-minded people together to support the club (51%)
  • Providing feedback to the club on off-field performance raised by members (38%)

Our overarching aim is to help ensure that Dundee is successful on the park and financially secure off it, which chimes with the most popular option selected by members. For us, providing feedback on the club’s operations and performances – and encouraging genuine engagement with as wide a section of the fanbase as possible – is vital if this goal is to be achieved.

Our door is always open to any Dundee-minded group or individual and we will meet with representatives of the club or any other fan group at any time and without any preconditions.

How much do you agree that there should be:

  • Fan representation on the club board (62% strongly agree, 29% slightly agree)
  • A Dundee FC AGM for shareholders (75%, 18%)
  • More regular feed of information about the off-field performance of the club (66%, 30%)
  • More regular feed of information about the current/new stadium (70%, 26%)
  • More regular Q&As with club representatives (64%, 28%)

Enhanced communication from the club is the clear priority of members. For almost a year we have been campaigning for the reintroduction of the club AGM and/or a meaningful Q&A with supporters’ representatives. We believe that this would address the information deficit around the stadium and other issues and enable the views of a wider cross section of fans’ views to be heard.

We will continue to push for engagement of this kind and note the answered to our stadium questions supplied earlier this week.

Do you believe Dee4Life are on the right track?

  • Strongly agree (46%)
  • Slightly agree (38%)
  • Disagree slightly (7%)
  • Disagree strongly (5%)
  • No opinion (4%)

It is important for all organisations to be self-reflective and responsive to feedback from members and other stakeholders. While we are pleased that 86% agreed that we were on the right track, we note that the number who strongly agreed was lower than for any other question.

Clearly a major factor in this is that relations between the club board and Dee4Life are not currently positive. We remain committed to rebuilding this relationship and our local MSPs have offered to broker a meeting between Dee4Life and the club board. In addition we have been in discussions with intermediaries about restarting relations. We hope they respond positively to these efforts and that this will enable us to seek the priorities outlined in your answers above.

Thinking about Dee4Life membership at £10 at year, which is most true of you?

  • I will definitely rejoin this year (81%)
  • I will probably rejoin (13%)
  • I may or may not rejoin (6%)

It is heartening that the vasty majority of you will either definitely or probably rejoin and we hope to win over both those who are currently unsure as well as to attract new members. We will look closely at all the reasons given, whether positive or less so, and this will feed into our approach over the next year.

Which of these things are true of you?

  • I have a season ticket (70%)
  • I go to most games (65%)
  • I buy food/drink from the outlets (26%)
  • I buy hospitality (25%)
  • I buy things from the club shop (71%)
  • I am an 1893 Foundation member (27%)
  • I am a Dee Lottery member (39%)
  • I buy half-time draw tickets (34%)
  • I am a DeeTV subscriber (23%)
  • I contribute to club raffles (30%)
  • I go to club events and dinners (26%)
  • I am a club sponsor/advertiser (3%)
  • I am a shareholder (24%)
  • I am a member of the DSA/a supporters’ club (36%)

Your answers demonstrate that Dee4Life members are passionate, loyal supporters of Dundee FC who contribute to the club in a variety of ways. Applying these figures across our entire membership, we can say with reasonable certainty that around 350 Dee4Life members are season ticket holders.

While the data does not allow us to ascertain exact spend, using fairly conservative assumptions we estimate the total financial contribution of Dee4Life members to the club each year to be in the excess of £200,000.

Who are our members?

  • Gender – male (94%), female (4%), other/prefer not to say (2%)
  • Age – 25-34 (5%), 35-44 (11%), 45-54 (12%), 55-64 (35%), 65-plus (35%), prefer not to say (2%)
  • From – DD postcode (62%), AB (8%), EH (7%), KY (5%), G (4%), Other Scottish (9%), Non-Scottish (5%)

Our typical member is a man, aged sixty, living in the Dundee area. Clearly for the future of Dee4Life we need to attract more younger members and increase the number of female members.

What is the best thing about being a Dundee FC fan?

Analysing your responses, three clear themes emerged – team (41% of mentions), identity (34%) and kin (19%). You have made it clear that Dundee is not just your team, it is part of your identity and that of your family.

There were also a few answers along the line of “I wish I knew”!

Chairman's Updates

Dee4Life members’ meeting – 18th March

Dear members,

I would like to kick off this month’s update by thanking all of you who responded to our recent survey. Your answers will help determine our future strategy and efforts to ensure that Dee4Life is as representative of the views of our members as possible.

My colleagues Andrew Pyke, Scott Lorimer and Ross Day have led on this project and are currently analysing the data before we consider your contributions as a board. We will then share the results widely, initially at the members’ meeting on Monday 18 March. As I said a few weeks ago, this meeting will take place on Microsoft Teams. This is in response to a request to occasionally hold meetings online to allow more members – particularly those who live outwith Dundee – to take part.

Members can join this meeting from 6.50pm for a 7pm start on Monday 18 March. An invitation will be sent out towards the end of next week.

We are aware that some of you may never have used Teams before so please get in touch with any concerns you may have. Please also let us know of any topics you would like us to cover during the meeting.

You can get in touch by emailing contact@dee4life.com.

We will send a reminder with a full agenda before the event but, in addition to sharing the survey results, we will also update you on our efforts since the Dee4Life AGM back in November. There will then be an open discussion, with members invited to share their thoughts based on what they’ve heard.

I am sure that the welcome progress evidenced in the submission of Planning Permission in principle for the Camperdown stadium development will feature heavily in discussions and I hope that we will be able to update you on the questions sent to the club via our Supporters Liaison Officer at this time.

I look forward to welcoming as many of you as possible to this meeting and to hearing more about your views on both Dee4Life and the club.

Regards

Keith Winter
Dee4Life Chair

Chairman's Updates

Dee4Life members’ update

With the team performing better than we have seen in sometime, notwithstanding some poorer results recently, the new stadium proposals, with the Planning Permission in Principle application now submitted, and the recently announced partnership with Burnley, there is a lot of excitement around the Dundee support just now.

The Burnley link is particularly intriguing to me as I spent several years living in the Lancashire town. My wife and I still have friends down there, and I was last at Turf Moor earlier this season. It is a fantastic club from a great part of the world, and I hope that this partnership delivers for all parties.

The Dee4Life board is obviously delighted by the prospect of Dundee taking steps forward on and off the park but – as I outlined last month – the founding principes of the Trust mean we must always ask questions about developments, even those that appear exciting and potentially transformative.

With that in mind, we have submitted a series of questions (see below) relating to the stadium development. I hope that the club takes the time to consider these and provides answers that will go some way to addressing the concerns that members tell us they still have about the Camperdown plan.

At our November AGM we agreed to hold a follow up meeting in the first quarter of 2024, and I can confirm that this will take place on the evening of Monday 18 March. Following on from another suggestion, this will be online to allow a wider selection of members than usual to attend. I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible then. Further details, including how members can join the meeting, will follow in our next update.

Ahead of that discussion, we want to gauge the views of members about how the Trust and the club and to find out a bit more about you and how we can best represent you. To this end, we have compiled a short survey which members will find in their email inbox. I would be most grateful if you could take a few minutes to fill in before the end of February.

Thanks for your time and I am hopeful February gives us more league points.

Regards
Keith Winter, Chair

Questions submitted to the Dundee FC board via club SLO John Burke:
1. When will the full planning application likely be submitted? Or any submissions required by the grant of the current PPIP under any attached conditions, notably suspensive conditions?

2. Is the target of football being played in the new stadium by summer 2025 still valid given the fact that planning permission in principle still has to be determined?

3. What are the phasing arrangements for the delivery of the elements contained in the development mix? Will the football facilities be included in the first phase or is the stadium contingent on the successful delivery of the other, revenue-generating elements?

4.Will Dundee FC own the stadium? If not, will the rental terms be set at a commercial rate or on other terms, such as a set percentage of the club’s turnover?

5. If the club is not to own the stadium, will the club pay more in rent than the current arrangements at Dens Park?

6. The ONS notes that private commercial construction costs have risen by around 30% in the past seven years, including approximately 14% since December 2021. Interest rates have risen significantly in this time too. How has all this impacted on the affordability of the project?
What protections are in place for the club should DBPH experience financial difficulties that prevent the project from being delivered, or the company to cease trading?

7. Records from the Land Registry suggest that both the Camperdown site and Dens Park have been used as security against loans obtained from the Soho Green finance company. Is this correct, what has this finance been used for and have the loans been repaid? What guarantees can be given that Dens Park will not be lost if repayments are not met?

8. Is finance in place for the new stadium development and is this in the form of investment or lending? If it is the latter, are the club liable for repayments of this?

9. Whilst the planning application process and subsequent development takes place what are the arrangements and investments planned for Dens Park?

10. In any delay on delivery of the Camperdown proposal what is the strategy and practical arrangement for the continuing use and operation of Dens Park over each of say 3, 5, 7-year periods or indeed indefinitely?

11. Should planning permission be refused or should the development fail to materialise for any other reason, what is the club’s Plan B position?

Chairman's Updates

Dee4Life members’ update – November

Dear members,

November saw the 2023 Dee4Life AGM take place and there was a decent attendance with the formal business of the Trust concluded satisfactorily.

In the Q&A session of the meeting several matters arose for discussion. A particular point was on a message conveyed to the meeting by a DSA postholder and Dee4Life member. The essence of this message is that Dee4Life is not currently seen as a supportive organisation by the club, that our directors are not welcome at Gardyne and that all future communications should be routed through the club’s Supporter liaison Officer.

I therefore wrote to John Nelms seeking clarity on the message delivered via a third party. In response I was informed that “the Club is not willing to support a relationship with Dee4Life at this time”, the club referred to our September and October updates in which we explained the mechanism for delivering the agreement that FPS made when they bought the club as well as summarising the recent meeting with our local MSPs.

We confirmed that we have not threatened legal action and indeed made it known to members at the AGM that we, as a board, would not support this action. In our most recent communication with the club we emphasised our commitment to resolving this situation amicably while noting that we are well within our rights to seek assistance from our elected representatives or any other intermediaries to build a means of communication with the club as its largest minority shareholder.

Over the past couple of months, we have purchased covers to prevent the long-standing issues with dirty seats in the South Enclosure as well as making an introduction that will hopefully lead to the Dundee Academy CIC establishing a new educational partnership. It is our intention to continue to support the club’s development and initiatives that improve the matchday experience for fans. In parallel to this, however, we believe that a mechanism for all supporters to be able to ask questions of the club board is vital.

Dee4Life exists because of the mistakes of the past and we have a responsibility to members to try and ensure the club custodians deliver a positive future. The current board may feel that oversight is unnecessary given the commitment and investment they have made but this is something they agreed to when they took over the club. The founding principles of the Trust mean that we must continue to ask questions on behalf of supporters. The Trust need to find a means to do this for our members and we continue to investigate how this may best achieve this.

Finally, following on from a suggestion made at the AGM, a further meeting will be held in March 2024. We will announce further details on this in the New Year.

All the best to all member and their families for the forthcoming festive period, a successful and prosperous 2024, not least on the pitch for Tony Docherty and the team.

Regards,
Keith Winter, Chair

society updates

AGM update and new board member appointed

Dear members,

I would like to thank all of you who came along to Saturday’s AGM and contributed to an impassioned discussion about the club we all love.

As a board, it is important for us to listen to our members and to have them shape our future direction. We are currently reflecting on all that was said at the AGM and will share our thinking, and any other developments, in our regular update at the end of the month.

I would also like to take this opportunity to introduce Andrew Pyke, our newest board member.

New Dee4Life board member Andrew Pyke
New Dee4Life board member Andrew Pyke

Andrew brings with him a wealth of experience in market research having worked for a number of multinational companies. His career includes nearly five years as Insight Manager at the Scottish Football Association. While there, Andrew set up the SFA’s first ever Insight function, established marketing planning, worked with UEFA to establish benchmark measures for football in Scotland and led Scotland’s EURO 2020 evaluation group.

More importantly, Andrew is a lifelong Dundee fanatic who is a season-ticket holder for the Bobby Cox Stand and a member of the Glasgow Dees, We are excited about the energy and ideas he will bring to Dee4Life.

Regards,

Keith Winter (Chair)