The Sweeper: Leeds United Ban The Guardian For Telling Truth
Big Story
The Guardian, and particularly Football Supporters’ Federation writer of the year David Conn, have provided Britain’s best newspaper coverage of the ugly underbelly of the finances at British football clubs across England for quite some time. Leeds United have been the subject of considerable coverage by Conn recently, as he has uncovered the club’s ownership mystery via public court records, embarrassing Leeds chairman Ken Bates.
Leeds’ response? To ban the Guardian and Conn from reporting at Elland Road at their game against Norwich in League One. As Conn explains, “the Guardian will not be reporting from the game because, we were informed this afternoon, we have been “banned” from Elland Road. The reason given was that this is the club’s reaction to the articles I have written recently, which have reported that there is a mystery about who owns Leeds United. That is a matter of public record, because it emerged in a court case Leeds United as a club has itself brought against a company in Jersey.”
This is a terribly childish response by Leeds. I’ve led with this piece and hope others link to Conn’s article to put Leeds in the ugly spotlight they deserve, and to give even more attention to Conn’s original reporting, which was nothing but quality, fair-minded journalism. Ken Bates and Leeds should be ashamed of themselves, though sadly, they won’t be.
Worldwide News
- He’s not going away. Sepp Blatter, FIFA president, subject of numerous serious corruption allegations, and former president of the World Society of Friends of Suspenders, announced today he will stand for reelection in 2011. Blatter told the Gazzetta dello Sport “I’ve not finished my mission in football yet. I need more time. I hope that in 2011 the Fifa congress once more has faith in me, otherwise I’ll go back to my village. Football is my life.” Great.
- Didn’t I tell you yesterday the Sweden job would be too dull for Sven? (or, really, not lucrative enough…)
- The Offside traces back the origin of the recent Henry-to-MLS-rumour — and finds it had the basis in, well, nothing. While this isn’t too surprising, it’s an interesting look at how these rumours gain credence as they’re passed from site to site with no basis whatsoever.
- This year’s nominee’s for the U.S.’s Soccer Hall of Fame have been released, including MLS Commissioner Don Garber. Sadly, the Hall itself is itself in serious trouble. Let’s hope a way to preserve the history of the game here is found.
- Much of the British press focuses today on Liverpool’s match against Lyon, seen as a crunch game for Rafa Benitez, while Soccernet continues yesterday’s theme by warning that Champions League failure could mean financial meltdown for the club.
The Sweeper appears daily. For more rambling and links throughout the day every day, follow your editor Tom Dunmore @pitchinvasion on Twitter.
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Tom Dunmore is the founder and editor of Pitch Invasion. Follow him @pitchinvasion on Twitter.
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fair enough have a go at Bates but don’t tar the club with the same brush, we all know its true and we all know that Bates is as bent as a 12 bob note but its not really the clubs fault and do you not think Leeds fans have to put up with enough rubbish? BATES IS NOT LEEDS UNITED
Adam hit the nail on the head. You’ve allowed your anti Leeds sentiment to link the club with Bates. Bates banned the Guardian, nobody else.
If you want to do some good check why a frugal Bates allowed a club asset to be stripped this week. The owners of the Thorpe Arch training facility (TA) were granted a lottery win by Bates when he didn’t take up the option to buy back TA before the deadline. The club will now pay more in rent for the facility than they would have had to pay to buy it back from it’s faceless owners. Maybe Bates is faceless……
On what are you basing some spurious accusation of “anti-Leeds” sentiment? Everything in this piece is entirely factual. Bates is the Chairman of Leeds United, and Leeds have banned the Guardian from Elland Road — that obviously reflects on Leeds United as a club. It’s a terrible shame for Leeds fans, but that’s simply the state of your club.
To agree with the other two fellas.
Bates is not Leeds – he is proud of the fact that he hasn’t put a penny of his own money in to the club. He claims that he isn’t an “owner” of the club. He attends a limited number of matches due to his overseas home.
Leeds is not Bates – there is a large anti-Bates group and many of those who believe that he did actually save our clubs are now getting fed up with the ridiculous lengths that the man will go to to promote his own ends and defend his reputation.
It’s a shame that David Conn will not be at Elland Road to hear the growing anti-Bates chants.
Tom, Do you really not understand how fans feel THEY are the club and not peopl like Ken Bates? You must be a fan to right a football blog surely? If your article had the words Ken bates when it says Leeds then no one would have a problem but by saying Leeds you are, by implication, taring all Leeds fans.
Not a nice thing to do IMHO.
I understand the sentiment entirely. Unfortunately, the world doesn’t work that way. You don’t control your club, and hence what the club does reflects on the club regardless.
I’ve called out my own club many times for the actions they’ve taken, including protests against racism at the stadium. This unfortunately tars the club’s reputation, but you can’t entirely separate the actions of people who run the club from the club’s reputation itself. It just doesn’t work that way — I wish it did.
I wish all Leeds fans the best in any protest against Bates — he sure deserves it. Unfortunately, it took a lot of Leeds fans a long time to start to mobilise against him.
Ever been to Oneonta?
Yeah, I thought so.
bud — true enough. Oneonta is an odd location for the hall in many ways. But where to put it? I saw St. Louis suggested elsewhere, and I think that would make some geographic and historic sense. The problem is who is going to pay for it.
It’s a shame that you have to continue taking such opportunities to have a swipe at Leeds fans and give free rein to the obvious bitterness and spite you have against us for (no doubt media-based) reasons known to yourself. We all hate Bates. You won’t find a Leeds fan that doesn’t. We hated him before he came here, so imagine now.
If the guy was deliberately trying to ruin Leeds and keep us ruined he has made a damn good job of it. He’s obviously totally crooked and that is why no-one will invest in our club – no-one wants to deal with him apart from Russian oligarchs as they don’t want to get their records blemished by dealing with such a dishonest, tax-evading man.
Don’t get me wrong though – as like most fans if he was crooked but a great chairman who brought success then I wouldn’t really care. That’s the thing about Bates – he just ain’t very good at what he is supposed to do. I’m not sure if I’ll ever see our club get over the damage he has done – and I’m only 37!
Give us a break Tom. I know we’ve got some tosser minority bandwagon jumpers who come out to cause havoc for the high-profile fighting matches. I live in Spain and go back to watch Leeds often. Believe me, the 3,500 at Wycombe were up there with the very best fans any team in the world could produce. It’s time for people like you to recognise that. You’re right that Leeds fans should have come out ages ago against Bates. I was there the day we went down against Ipswich at home. The idiots who invaded the pitch were more bothered about taunting families and small children in the away end than protesting against Bates. It was shameful. Newcastle wasted no time in organising mass protests against Ashley – but look where that got them: in the same mess.
Nothing personal by the way. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and nice site by the way.
I really don’t have anything against Leeds fans, Mike. I’m not sure what you’re referring to by saying I have “obvious bitterness and spite” towards them. But obviously I know emotions are running high right now, so I understand the passion from Leeds fans expressed here against perceived slights to their club.
I do have plenty of sympathy for Leeds fans, as you’ve been through a torrid time the past five plus years now. Bates is, I’m sure, the final straw. I do think a larger movement against Bates could have swelled earlier, but few fans mobilise early enough in these situations, and Leeds haven’t been too different from most.
I also apologise if it seemed like I was tarring Leeds fans with the original post. They obviously don’t control what Bates does. If that’s what it seemed like I was saying, I’m sorry — I did not mean it that way.
In general, I just want more people to realise what a bastard Bates is and perhaps we can all agree on that. I’d be happy to publish anything from a Leeds fan who wants to express their discontent against him, drop me a line anytime.
No worries Tom. No offence intended so none taken. Maybe the heated reaction is an indication of how cheesed off with him we really are! The guy is a horrible boil on your backside that just won’t go away – just ask any Chelsea fan who followed them through the 80s.
I agree more should have been done, and find it frustrating that it hasn’t. But I think deep down hatred, protest, stubbornness and having a hyper-thick skin are things that Bates prides himself on – and he would have ignored or even thrived on any protest. When he sent us bust, he told creditors that they should and we should all back him, or he would send our club out of business. That says it all. It’s sickening mate. The only real thing we can do is stick with the club.
Tom, “Unfortunately, it took a lot of Leeds fans a long time to start to mobilise against him.”
I’m sorry, but how exactly how are we supposed to mobilise against him? he’s in charge and there’s nothing we can do about it. look at what happened at newcastle with all their protests and what good it did them. every match since bates arrived at leeds, leeds fans have sung “que sara sara…shoot the chelsea scum”. and trust me, as much as i’m pleased he’s got us out of the debt we were in, the methods he’s gone about this, are totally disagreeable, least of all the extortionate ticket prices.
Anon (your comment was really so controversial you couldn’t use a real name?) — that passive attitude seems weak to me. Cherrypicking Newcastle as an example of an unsuccessful protest isn’t very fair, as there also many counter-examples of successful protest.
Look, I grew up a Brighton fan and I’m sure you’ll remember the trouble we had with our owners in the 1990s, with the sale of the Goldstone Ground. It took a couple of years of solid, creative, at times over-intense protest, but we forced out our owners — even though many said they’d never leave.
Would that necessarily have worked at Leeds? I don’t know, maybe not. But it’s better to try and find out then just say you can do nothing — even though I understand, as Mike points out, that Bates is a particularly recalcitrant and repellent arsehole.
You’ve been put in a shitty situation and the frustration’s immense, but there’s a way forward somewhere, sometime. Don’t give up and just accept Bates’ bullshit.
Tom, were you too modest to link to this?
http://www.suntimes.com/sports/soccer/fire/1834253,CST-SPT-fire20.article
Heh. I hope you enjoy the new game.
COYI,
nssf
nssf — not so much modesty, as shame at my first round defeat in the FIFA tournament!
Why do you hate Leeds, Tom? You have not explained yourself enough. Why do you loathe Leeds? Bless it all…these fine Leedsians need answers!
You’re doing great Tom!
God help us all. Sepp blatter is a piece of ****. He is a neanderthal stuck in the 1800’s of football. He continues to stick his head in the sand and refuse to make changes to improve officiating accuracy. “Mistakes are part of the game” according to Sepp.
God, you Leeds fans are a piece of work. No wonder everyone hates you (except the author of this blog). A simple comment about the shameful behaviour of your club, and you start with the personal attacks.
Fact: Ken Bates rescued your club from oblivion. You didn’t like it when the previous management squandered cash on ill-advised gambles, and now you criticise Ken Bates for running the club sensibly and prudently.
Thank f*ck you lot and the Toon Army are out of the Premier League and we don’t have to listen to your self-obsessed whining very often any more.