West Lothian Courier

A call to improve football

- Paul Goodwin, Co-founder SFSA.

We are writing to make your readers aware of what we believe will be the moment of truth for the future direction of Scottish football.

We firmly believe that everybody who loves our national sport should be united in looking to improve the wider game in Scotland.

At Holyrood, we launched the first ever benchmarki­ng and evaluation exercise into the Governance of Scottish Football https://www.surveymonk­ey. co.uk/r/sfsa-benchmark- 2017

We propose to do this annually at the end of each season to gather informatio­n for benchmarki­ng purposes. This is not just for fans. Players, former players, referees, managers, coaches and any other interested parties will be able to participat­e if you love football or used to love it help us change the landscape. Result evaluation will be supported by a team of highly respected academics who have been working on football analytics in Germany.

Why are we doing this because Scottish football currently has no external performanc­e evaluation process and regulation and governance is all conducted internally. Sadly key stakeholde­rs (e.g. players, managers, coaches, fans) are all currently excluded from decision making.

In 2017, we don’t think this is good enough from FIFA and UEFA all the way down to Hampden Park, football governing bodies have shown little interest in reforming to allow key stakeholde­rs a proper input to, and scrutiny of, the game.

We believe from talking to fans around the country that trust in Scottish football’s current management structures is at an all time low.

Your readers and followers now have the chance to help by sharing the survey details with their contacts and support the initiative on social media by using the hash tag# Give Us Our Ball Back Results will be revealed at an event in September/October.

SFSA Road Shows will go to various towns and cities in Scotland to explain the results and also help fans develop action plans for the way forward for football at all levels.

 ??  ?? Charity support Neil Findlay MSP was on hand to support Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (CHAS) and their new national campaign, Keep the Joy Alive. The campaign was launched to boost awareness of CHAS and the vital work it does supporting babies,...
Charity support Neil Findlay MSP was on hand to support Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (CHAS) and their new national campaign, Keep the Joy Alive. The campaign was launched to boost awareness of CHAS and the vital work it does supporting babies,...

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