AFC Wimbledon offered £7.5m for 30 per cent stake in club but fans are still divided on issue

Fans split: The offer was revealed to members of the Dons Trust on Monday night
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AFC Wimbledon have received an offer from investors of £7.5million for 30 per cent of the club as they look to find a way of financing their move back to Plough Lane.

The offer was revealed to members of the Dons Trust — the fan group who own the club — at a special general meeting held at Kingsmeadow Stadium on Monday night.

Three items were on the agenda, but the majority of the three-hour meeting was spent deliberating the main issue of how the Dons are going to make up the £11m shortfall that is preventing them completing their move back to Plough Lane for the start of next season.

A possible solution has been ­suggested of bringing in outside ­investment and it was revealed last night that an offer of £7.5million for a 30 per cent stake is on the table. The investors are understood to be made up of three Wimbledon-based businessmen, all looking to invest £2.5m for a 10 per cent stake, which would value the League One club at £25m.

They would not make themselves known last night, but chair of the Dons Trust, Mark Davis, revealed they would be willing to do so at a later date and added supporters would be not be ­“particularly unperturbed by who they actually are”.

There is, however, a reluctance within elements of the Trust to let outside investors in, given the club’s history at the turn of the century, when they ­literally had the ground pulled from under their feet as the side was moved to Milton Keynes. Outside investors have prompted fears of that happening again, not least because last night it was stressed how, over time, they could become majority shareholders. At ­present, the Dons Trust own a minimum 75 per cent of Wimbledon, but that would be subject to change.

Crucially, however, the potential investors have agreed that the Trust could retain control of what have been dubbed ‘the Crown Jewels’. This means the Trust could block such actions as moving the stadium, selling or relocating the club, changing the name, badge or colours, as well as having a cap on the amount of money they can borrow.

Such vetos could sway some fans into agreeing to the idea of outside ­investment, but at present the Trust is split on the matter.

Ploughing on: work is ongoing at AFC Wimbledon’s new ground while the club’s Trust debate how to fund the project
AFC Wimbledon

The Trust is made up of more than 3,000 members — around 300 were in attendance last night — and a vote would need to take place to ultimately decide the matter, most likely next month. Other options are still being explored, such as borrowing the money and ­issuing more bonds or debentures in the club, but such a high debt could prove unsustainable in the future.

There had previously been a solution put forward of playing in a bare-bones Plough Lane, with just one stand, but that was moved off the table last night after it was revealed it would cost more than the additional £1m ­initially estimated.

That has led some to believe it is time to bring in outside investment, but there are those who have been part of building Wimbledon up from the ashes that are strongly against it.

One Trust member said last night: “I’d rather lose money because the club goes bust through our own efforts, rather than dilution from outside investment.” Another rued: “We’ve been left in the dark for months.”

They now wait to see if outside investment could be the light at the end of the tunnel.

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