Reaching consensus at national level Gelsenkirchen 16 18

Reaching consensus at national level Gelsenkirchen, 16 -18 June 2017

Sin. C : an umbrella organisation 22 local «groups» A. P. S. Fondazione Taras 706 a. C. Noi. Samb Verona col Cuore Noi siamo il Derthona Mia. Terracina Az. Pop. Modena Ideale Bari Sosteniamolancona Lucca United L’Aquila me’ Solo per l’Ascoli I Nocerini Amici del Rimini Orgoglio Amaranto Venezia United Sogno Cavese Passione Lecce Cosenza nel Cuore Tifosi per il Brescia Per Brindisi Il Fasano siamo noi Orgoglio Pratese

Sin. C : past, present and future In 2009, Italian supporters’ groups started debating on: o usual “tyrannic” ownership of most Italian clubs o governance model: football is not (only) business o fundamental items belong to the fans 2009 -2013: fans started the path towards fans’ ownership and fans’ representation. 2009 2011 2010 2013 2012 2015 2014 2017 2016

Sin. C : past, present and future 2013: with the occasion of the first European project leaded by SDE, those initial groups of fans discussed pros and cons of setting up a National umbrella organisation April – June 2013: Supporters in Campo is incorporated o partnership o one member one vote o consensus principle o lean organisation Advice to members and fans Lobbying the institutions 2016 -2017 : Erasmus + / Supporters Direct Europe

Sin. C : fans’ ownership and representation In Italy o professional Clubs (first three tiers) have to be set up in the form of commercial companies o amateur Clubs do not have to Members heterogeneity o with no shares no board representation o involved in the running of the Club without shares and without formal representation o controlling the company o with veto rights, shares and board representation o owned Club

Sin. C challanges Funding o National level o Members level Sharing of practices Role of Sin. C o increasing in the number of group o strenghtening the voice o involving members Professional football Amateur football

Sin. C AGMs 3 AGMs until now: Ancona 2014 Taranto 2015 Verona 2016 4 th planned: september 2017

Sin. C AGMs Generally 2 half-days Saturday afternoon o focus on selected topics o guests participate to discussion o members share experiences Sunday morning: general assembly o report of the board and discussion on last-year activities and future plans o budget documents approval o board renewal o room for additional sharing of locale experiences In preparation of the AGM, local groups are invited to propose topics for discussion No predefined schedule of intervention -> members are free to debate Consensus method is strongly preferred over voting

Consensus method: definition “Consensus decision-making is a group decision-making process in which group members develop, and agree to support a decision in the best interest of the whole. Consensus may be defined professionally as an acceptable resolution, one that can be supported, even if not the "favourite" of each individual. ” (from Wikipedia)

Consensus method: approach In other words, a group using consensus is committed to finding solutions that everyone actively supports, or at least “can live with” All opinions, ideas and concerns are taken into account Consensus does not necessarily involve compromise nor unanimity. The aim is to go further by weaving together everyone's best ideas and key concerns

Voting downside Voting creates a majority and a minority If most people support an idea which is voted in, the concerns of the minority could be ignored This situation can foster conflict and distrust

Why consensus method is suited for Sin. C is a relatively young organization Italian supporters’ trust movement is still at a early stage Very heterogeneous situations in local contexts Limited funding , no need to discuss national initiatives No law framework for supporters’ trust and similar organizations Local groups and national organization are built on volunteers, with limited time and resources The only formal document to be approved is the annual budget, limited in value

Sin. C consensus method - Pros Few preparation documents (100% of the partecipants are volunteers) Plenty of space for discussion Focus on sharing experiences Extreme topics flexibility Overcome disagreement through discussion in

An example of consensus application Consensus method is also widely used by local supporters’ group In 2015, the owner of Taranto F. C. 1927 at the time decided he wanted to get rid of the club He proposed the trust, who already owned 5%, to buy his 92% at the symbolic price of 1 € The board members of the trust decided it was not up to them to take such an historical decision They decided to call an assembly with all the Taranto fans, in which they discussed for hours

An historic decision … through consensus Eventually, this is how the assembly decided that the trust had to “buy” the remaining 92% of the club

Consensus method in general - Caveat Possible confusion and disagreement Little documentation may imply limited details Often limited written material Final conclusion depend on the ability of the board to get the “spirit” of the discussion and to recap

Conclusion In Sin. C experience, consensus method is a suitable way to run AGMs in less structured organizations, especially when: there is a high heterogeneity in local situations comparing local experiences and their evolution through time is therefore crucial there is a need to harmonize heterogeneity of needs and positions resources, in terms of money and time, are somewhat limited there is no or limited need for operative decisions and relevant expenditure approval

Thank you and…. let’s discuss!