Wetherby Park BCFC

Greetings from the Front Office

Wetherby Park BCFC is a working class football cooperative located in Tacoma, Washington.

Owner tobinov moved the Cooperative on July 1, 2007 to Tacoma, Washington from Ann Arbor, Michigan.

The Black Cats strive to be a competitive and successful football team on the pitch, and because Wetherby Park is owned by and operated for the benefit of our supporters, our work continues off the pitch.

The Cooperative is proud of its aim to promote the beautiful game and work for social-economic justice.

Wetherby Park Cooperative

Wetherby Park BCFC is a (albeit, fictional) cooperative trust, owned and controlled by its membership, with each member being an equal co-owner. Members consist of two groups: supporters or sponsors. Each member is given one vote in the administration of the Wetherby Park BCFC, regardless of the amount invested in the cooperative. An elected representative is appointed as the General Manager (aka "Alias") to oversee the inner workings of the football cooperative on behalf of all members. The current GM is tobinov.

All funds recieved from supporters and sponsors are invested back into the cooperative with a percentage going back into the community in the form of season tickets to any individual or family unable to afford admission as well as sponsorship of Youth and Adult recreational leagues in Tacoma, with an emphasis on recruiting underserved people in the community.

No supporter or sponsor is allowed to purchase naming rights or a controlling share of the collective.

Sponsors investiment must adhere to the ethical guidelines set forth by the cooperative trust. Advertising space within Tatlin Field, in match programs, and on the team kits of the Wetherby Park recreational leagues are given in exchange for the sponsors investment.

Kit Factory

Wetherby Park maintains its own Kit Factory at Tatlin Field. This allows the organization to control kit sale earnings into the cooperative, employs local seamsters, and avoids investment in companies which manufacture kits offshore. There is no direct kit sponsorship. Rather, the cooperative promotes awareness of an organization working for positive change.

In addition to the kit factory, the cooperative operates its own in-house printing facilities. All tickets, match programs, posters and announcements are printed at Tatlin Field. A percentage of ticket and program sales cover basic printing costs and staff while a majority is reinvested into the community.