Dear Roma supporters,

We would like to unveil the first concrete proposals for putting Giallorosso fans at the heart of the 'Roma' world, while offering an alternative solution (or a partial alternative) to the very complex and difficult situation of the club at present. The idea of collective shareholding has been frequently discussed in the past but always in the vaguest of terms, lacking any real understanding of the possibilities and consequently often creating more problems than solutions.

The idea of a Supporters' Trust to promote fan ownership for Roma was born in September 2009, with the aim of informing the public about the project and demolish the popular misconception that this type of fan participation is impossible in Italy. Our shared gaol is to create the necessary pre-requisites for genuine mass participation, in order t create a legal entity which can begin to offer supporters a voice within the club. We intend to offer constructive participation which includes working alongside other shareholders for the benefit of Roma.

Many of Europe's leading clubs are already wholly or partially owned by their supporters since it has been understood for some time that the chief resource of any club lies with its fans, the only constant element in any attempt to construct a long term project which can bring a stable and prosperous future. Important examples can be found in Spain (Barcelona, Real Madrid, Athletico Madrid, Osasuna, Espanyol), in Germany (Bayern Munich, Werder Bremen, Hamburg), in Portugal (Sporting Lisbon and Benfica) while in England over 160 Trusts have been created since 1997 (Arsenal Manchester United and many others). These Trusts work with Supporters Direct and UEFA in order to promote and develop this kind of 'democratic' system of football club management.

It has been clearly demonstrated that supporter ownership stabilizes clubs in economic, social and political terms, creating the basis for mutually beneficial cooperation between clubs and their fans.
It is hard to understand why this model has not yet been undertaken within Italy, but this backwardness is reflected in terms of the development and competitivity of the Italian game, as well as in terms of public enthusiasm - as the empty stadiums and plummeting gate receipts which seem to be a uniquely Italian problem seem to show. Over the years, Roma fans have been called upon only when the time has come to renew season tickets, pay for TV games, subscribe to magazines or buy the new replica kit. Romanisti are increasingly treated as mere "consumers" and not as the true heart of the side, the continuing supporters of our colours.

The AS ROMA Supporters' Trust project has begun to collaborate with SUPPORTERS DIRECT, the British organization which now works with clubs across Europe, backed by UEFA, to promote this economic and social model of club management. Recently SUPPORTERS DIRECT, at the request of UEFA, has carried out a feasibility study on the idea of Supporters' Trusts across Europe (http://www.supporters-direct.org/downloads/pdfs/SDEurope-Full-Report.PDF) and the report on Italy is disconcerting. According to this research, Italian fans are unaware of the possibility of taking part in the life of their club, and above all identify more with the team (the current group of players) than with the club itself. It's crazy to hope that we can be competitive in Italy and Europe without a process of modernization taking place along with a change in mentality.

On the basis of this study we are carrying out:

- a theoretical feasibility study

- a legal feasibility study

- an economic feasibility study

THEORETICAL FEASIBILITY: The Roma Trust is not yet in action from a financial point of view, but is collecting 'moral support' for the project through its official website (http://www.azionariatopopolareasroma.com). The objective is to create the right mentality and a solid consensus in order to create the legal entity which will be able to represent Roma supporters. Signing up does not cost anything at this stage but is understood to mean a statement of desire to participate in the project so that we can achieve genuine public consensus.

LEGAL FEASIBILITY: Our lawyers are currently working to identify the best possible path to take and the most suitable legal structure which will be able to represent the Giallorosso public in the pursuit of our goals. Our objective is to enable Roma supporters active participants in the life of the club, creating the economic and social conditions to make the team competitive in Italy and in Europe. Our aim includes making it possible to work alongside the current owners or any possible future majority shareholders who may arrive at the club. The legal body we create will be founded on the maximum popular participation and will be a not-for-profit body.

ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY: After completing our legal and theoretical feasibility studies we will proceed to examine economic feasibility based on the extent of public participation and the percentage of the shareholding which we intend to buy.

Based on what has already been done in other European countries, the idea is to create a kind of 'Constituent Assembly' within three or four months' time, which we hope will include all the various forms of organized support for AS Roma. This meeting will create a kind of 'Constitution' for the Supporters' Trust which will set out our essential shared commitments for the good of the club and create the basis for a union of interests from all sectors of the Giallorosso public.
The process may be long and difficult but we firmly believe that Roma Supporters can find the determination to complete what could be a decisive step forward.

YOUR REGISTRATION IS INTENDED AS A SIGN OF 'MORAL SUPPORT' AND A COMMITMENT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE PROJECT. CURRENTLY THE PROJECT IS NOT OPERATIVE FROM A FINANCIAL POINT OF VIEW AND SO YOU ARE NOT ASKED TO PAY ANY MONEY AT THIS MOMENT. IN THE FUTURE WE WILL PROGRESS TO THE NEXT LEVEL ONCE WE HAVE GATHERED SUFFICIENT SUPPORTERS TO ENABLE US TO SET UP OUR LEGAL STRUCTURE.

The personal data supplied will not be passed on to anybody. Your registration will be used exclusively for the AS ROMA SUPPORTERS' TRUST project.

After complementing the form you will receive a confirmation email to the address which you supplied. Follow the instructions to confirm your registration, and then you will be able to log-in.

Send an email if you have problem