Hibs owner calls for an end to booze ban
Hibernian owner ron Gordon has called for Scottish football to trial the reintroduction of selling alcohol at stadiums, while hitting out at the SPFL for ‘underselling’ the game in this country.
The US-based businessman, who completed his takeover of the easter road club last summer, insists the trial move would be ‘phenomenal’.
Speaking ahead of Hibs’ AGM last night, Gordon believes clubs must be able to police the issue, but wants to see an end to the ban on booze, which has been in place following a riot at the 1980 Scottish Cup final between Celtic and rangers.
asked if clubs were being held back by the ban on alcohol, Gordon replied: ‘i think so, yes. They’re allowed to in england, the United States and pretty much everywhere else. it’s essentially a penalty on football.
‘i don’t know what the best way to approach it is, but it’s on my list to see how we can move that. The clubs have a responsibility to see how they can police that themselves, but they should be given a chance to get back to that.
‘but the last thing we want is trouble and bad behaviour, which unfortunately happens with alcohol. england had the ban before but have been able to grow out of it and i don’t see any reason why we can’t get the opportunity to grow out of it in Scotland. i’d love it to be trialled.
‘it’s a big revenue stream. if we could do more, that would be phenomenal. but we’d have to get the league behind it and the Government to give us a shot. i don’t know the mechanics but that would be good. in a healthy way, it can be part of the experience.’
Gordon, previously branded the ‘invisible Man’ for his lack of communication since arriving in edinburgh last summer, also outlined his ambition to see Hibs double their player budget by 2023 — and criticised the SPFL for undervaluing the game, labelling his annoyance with the governing body ‘one of my biggest beefs’.
William Hill recently announced their decision to end sponsorship of the Scottish Cup, while Ladbrokes’ five-year deal as SPFL backers concludes after this season.
‘Sponsorships is an area that has been difficult but we’ve put together a new team in sales,’ said Gordon. ‘Hopefully, they can deliver.
‘it’s one of the areas where we can be better. We need to be better with sponsorships in Scottish football. Other than Celtic, who probably have a massive portfolio of partners at a substantial price, the rest of the clubs, i think, are all struggling.
‘i find it amazing, although maybe i’m being naive or foolish, but is there a more emotional connector in Scottish life than football?
‘i think football has a level of emotional connection in Scotland that is amazing, it’s one of the things that attracted me to this club. i think we undersell that because we need to have more money in the game.
‘One of my biggest beefs with the SPFL is that we don’t do enough to promote the game, to grow the game — to give it value.
‘We’ve got a lot of people who come to the games. We’ve had this conversation with Hearts — we need more money in the game, so our clubs can be healthier and stronger and we can put a better product on the field, we can compete in europe.
‘The fact that rangers and Celtic are in europe is fantastic and i want them to go all the way. This is good for Scotland.’
Gordon’s arrival saw Hibs’ £2.25million mortgage paid off, which was costing £500,000 a year, and left them debt-free with a cash balance of £5.5m.
Figures were boosted by John McGinn’s £2.75m transfer to aston Villa in august 2018.
accounts show wages and salaries at £5,560,552, taking in players, management and all other employees, which amounts to 110 people and an increase from £4,712,884 last year.
reflecting on the aim to double the player budget in three years and increase turnover 100 per cent by 2025, Gordon admits success is not a guarantee, despite his hopes to see Hibs regularly compete in the top four, have success in cup competitions and qualify for europe.
‘i think our goal over the next three years is to double our budget,’ he said. ‘There are no guarantees in football — just because you have the most money does not mean you’re going to win.
‘it does give us the possibility that we can be more competitive on a consistent basis. it goes back to the whole idea of growing the business side, if we can increase our revenues. if you look at Scottish football right now, we’re fifth from a turnover perspective and i’d like us to be fourth, third.
‘We have a long way to go because aberdeen has a substantially higher budget and turnover, the same thing with Hearts. We need to move up that ladder. a lot of the funds that are going to be generated are going to go into the football programme.
‘Turnover this year will probably be at £10m, £10.8m was last year with european income.’
One of my biggest beefs with the SPFL is that we don’t promote the game