Venky’s & Waggott Out Protest Ideas

[DuffsLeftPeg]

Hello all,

I’ve started this thread to discuss protest ideas so those in support can start taking positive action against the current state of the club and owners Venky’s & CEO Steve Waggott. Their short sighted and non-sensical business decisions are slowly killing BRFC from the inside out and it cannot be allowed to go on.

As fans we’re the only ones with the best interests of Blackburn Rovers Football Club at heart 💙🤍🌹

Aims of the Protest Movement 

1. The ultimate aim is for Venky’s to sell the club to new owners who are present, communicate with the fans and have the best interests of the club & fans at heart AND the community it is part of.

2. The initial aim is to voice the growing frustration of the fan base & for the current CEO Steve Waggott to start communicating with us and to be open & transparent about the ongoing financial issues and resultant inability to recruit the quality & number of players we need to progress as a club. 

3. If there is no response from the club to the initial aims, the protest will enter its next stage, ideas below:
 

Ideas

Further ideas would be welcomed on how to take this forward. There were the first rumblings in the Blackburn End v Huddersfield with the “Venky’s Out” chant but we need more co-ordinated action for the owners & CEO to really sit up and listen. They’ve had a far too easy ride up until now.

Some ideas I’ve had already:

1. Protest with banners/sign reveal and singing on 18 & 75 minutes during a league game. This could be as simple as downloading the below image onto your phone or iPad & holding it up as well as home made banners, signs and the like for those who want to.

2. A Reading style pitch invasion and sit down protest during a game. This would be a last resort currently.

3. Printing of t-shirts and a full on march style protest ending up at the Jack Walker statue before a League home game

Any further and even more innovative ideas would be welcomed….

Venky’s & Waggott…were comin’ for you!

 

 

 

 

Edited January 29, 2024 by DuffsLeftPeg

[B16Rover]

My personal view only but needs to be more done to target under 25 year olds who have Stockholm syndrome.  X threads, tiktok accounts etc. Need to explain the accounting to people who haven't worked in business.  Really clear messaging, challenging with simple numbers some of the claims.  

 

I would view it as 'whatsapp shareable' infographics that look good (maybe the accounts from pre Venkys to post Venkys on a timeline etc - simple round numbers tied to delcine).  And then on the Tiktok reels a mixture of general 'old rovers' clips with some PR spin videos now and again challenging ownership in a easy way.  Comparisons to other clubs (who would buy Blackburn? Look at Bolton etc)

 

Not that I don't think any of the above is good - but we've a generation now who a) don't know any different, absorb shorter length content and c) haven't the life experience to challenge some of the oddities. 

[tomphil]

Doesn't help when the redtops in their match reports mention the financial issues but then in typical lazy arsed journo fashion don't tell the real story.

'Due to Indian tax rules'

What about the actual truth of the Investigation into misuse of company funds sent for the football club and the freezing of assets and money transfer ?

Point A gets them the sympathy vote yet again, not their fault badly advised and now it's the Indian govts fault !!!

Truth is it is ALWAYS their fault.

[Ghost7]

Are other Indian businesses suffering, there must be thousands with a location overseas?? I haven't heard of it. 

This seems unique to our "owners". Venky's have been a burden since the minute they joined.

[Ghost7]

Yellow and black scarves would do for me

 

[DuffsLeftPeg]

7 minutes ago, Ghost7 said:

Yellow and black scarves would do for me

 

Great shout. Simple is usually best, where can you get these?

[BarryMaguire]

What about trying to make this an animal rights protest against the Venkys. PETA have always given the Venkys terrible press and some of which has spread to India there was pushback on Venkys buying the club by these activists. Maybe this would get more coverage?

[davulsukur]

33 minutes ago, Ghost7 said:

Yellow and black scarves would do for me

 

Was just about to post similar. Although it's a copy of what Man Utd did/are doing, different coloured scarves are a great idea as they:

Are affordable to most

Require minimal effort

Visual

Encourages attendance to display

Doesn't impact on anyone else (banners that block views etc)

Can be worn/brought in any weather (t-shirts are hidden under coats/jumpers etc.

Definitely a good way forward I'd say, coupled with a big push on social media to get the message out. Should be a great idea. (Love the yellow and black colours too)

Edited January 23, 2024 by davulsukur

[Ghost7]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/RESULT-SCARF-FOOTBALL-RUGBY-SPORT/dp/B005G4ZUIC/ref=sr_1_6?crid=22MXXNG9ECOHN&keywords=yellow+and+black+scarf&qid=1706010602&sprefix=yellow+and+black+sc%2Caps%2C89&sr=8-6

£6 on Amazon albeit slow delivery

[Riversider28]

3 hours ago, DuffsLeftPeg said:

Hello all,

I’ve started this thread to discuss protest ideas so those in support can start taking positive action against the current state of the club and owners Venky’s & CEO Steve Waggott. Their short sighted and non-sensical business decisions are slowly killing BRFC from the inside out and it cannot be allowed to go on.

As fans we’re the only ones with the best interests of Blackburn Rovers Football Club at heart 💙🤍🌹

Aims of the Protest Movement 

1. The ultimate aim is for Venky’s to sell the club to new owners who are present, communicate with the fans and have the best interests of the club & fans at heart AND the community it is part of.

2. The initial aim is to voice the growing frustration of the fan base & for the current CEO Steve Waggott to start communicating with us and to be open & transparent about the ongoing financial issues and resultant inability to recruit the quality & number of players we need to progress as a club. 

3. If there is no response from the club to the initial aims, the protest will enter its next stage, ideas below:
 

Ideas

I have bought a 6ft banner of the below image & intend to display it before and after the FA Cup 4th Round Tie against Wrexham from 7.30pm onwards until kick off & at the end of the game regardless of outcome. This is to ensure maximum TV coverage and to not affect the players during the game. For those who would like to join I’ll be sitting in W03 in Jack Walker Lower.

Further ideas would be welcomed on how to take this forward. There were the first rumblings in the Blackburn End v Huddersfield with the “Venky’s Out” chant but we need more co-ordinated action for the owners & CEO to really sit up and listen. They’ve had a far too easy ride up until now.

Some ideas I’ve had already:

1. Protest with banners/sign reveal and singing on 18 & 75 minutes during a league game. This could be as simple as downloading the below image onto your phone or iPad & holding it up as well as home made banners, signs and the like for those who want to.

2. A Reading style pitch invasion and sit down protest during a game. This would be a last resort currently.

3. Printing of t-shirts and a full on march style protest ending up at the Jack Walker statue before a League home game

Any further and even more innovative ideas would be welcomed….

Venky’s & Waggott…were comin’ for you!

 

 

 

 

Don’t forget it’s a 7-30pm ko. 

[Upside Down]

8 hours ago, BarryMaguire said:

What about trying to make this an animal rights protest against the Venkys. PETA have always given the Venkys terrible press and some of which has spread to India there was pushback on Venkys buying the club by these activists. Maybe this would get more coverage?

This is an excellent idea and a great avenue to go down.

The only way we can really have an effect against them is by constantly keeping the spotlight on them.

They don't want the attention so let's give it to them. Highlight their ineptitude, their dodgy dealings, their lies, their reprehensible treatment of animals and the planet.

We just need to make as much noise as we possibly can and keep it up.

There's a real story there, if we make enough noise real journalists will start digging, reporting and shining a light on the situation.

Let's keep up the pressure and make their position as owners of this great club completely untenable. Use all the tools we have. Protests, boycotts, sit ins, anything we can to draw attention to them and the plight of our club.

 

[simongarnerisgod]

charlton fans threw plastic pigs on their pitch in protest at their terrible owner,rubber chickens will get max attention on t.v🙂

[martonrover]

9 hours ago, BarryMaguire said:

What about trying to make this an animal rights protest against the Venkys. PETA have always given the Venkys terrible press and some of which has spread to India there was pushback on Venkys buying the club by these activists. Maybe this would get more coverage?

Personally, I think it’s too late to go down that avenue. 

It would look like an afterthought.

We would’ve needed to highlight that during the initial protests.

I abhor the ill treatment of animals, but, let’s be honest, our beef with Venky’s is how they have run our football club.

[Mattyblue]

11 hours ago, B16Rover said:

My personal view only but needs to be more done to target under 25 year olds who have Stockholm syndrome.  X threads, tiktok accounts etc. Need to explain the accounting to people who haven't worked in business.  Really clear messaging, challenging with simple numbers some of the claims.  

 

I would view it as 'whatsapp shareable' infographics that look good (maybe the accounts from pre Venkys to post Venkys on a timeline etc - simple round numbers tied to delcine).  And then on the Tiktok reels a mixture of general 'old rovers' clips with some PR spin videos now and again challenging ownership in a easy way.  Comparisons to other clubs (who would buy Blackburn? Look at Bolton etc)

 

Not that I don't think any of the above is good - but we've a generation now who a) don't know any different, absorb shorter length content and c) haven't the life experience to challenge some of the oddities. 

Excellent ideas.

We did the marches, sit-ins and all that a decade ago, well a few hundred folk did, and those small numbers were when the fanbase as a whole was anti-Venky and there were 20k+ in the ground every week.

Now the match going fanbase is far smaller and far more accepting of them so getting physical protests off the ground will be difficult.

So a big education piece is the way to go for me.

[B16Rover]

14 minutes ago, Mattyblue said:

Excellent ideas.

We did the marches, sit-ins and all that a decade ago, well a few hundred folk did, and those small numbers were when the fanbase as a whole was anti-Venky and there were 20k+ in the ground every week.

Now the match going fanbase is far smaller and far more accepting of them so getting physical protests off the ground will be difficult.

So a big education piece is the way to go for me.

Currently if I'm 17 years old and go on every away day, I hear the Venkys keep us afloat with 20m a year.  I know 'uncle jack' in the same way I know god in church.  What will get me to wear a scarf or go to a march.  

 

I saw a twitter/x post of Newport away and it was a bus full of 14-19 year olds.  I don't think necessarily the older generation need convincing because they've got the anecdotal experience. 

But to have a successful protest (in my view, having never had one) I think you need 

 

A clear message 

A bought in base 

An emotive pull 

 

And if the Facebook groups are anything to go by the consensus of rovers is below 

 

Venkys keep the club afloat 

Without them we go bust 

We all love rovers 

[Waggy76]

An empty ground speaks volumes !!

[Mattyblue]

Why would Venky’s, half way round the world be arsed about that? They’ve thrown away 10,000 ST holders, they couldn’t care less.

[Upside Down]

59 minutes ago, B16Rover said:

Currently if I'm 17 years old and go on every away day, I hear the Venkys keep us afloat with 20m a year.  I know 'uncle jack' in the same way I know god in church.  What will get me to wear a scarf or go to a march.  

 

I saw a twitter/x post of Newport away and it was a bus full of 14-19 year olds.  I don't think necessarily the older generation need convincing because they've got the anecdotal experience. 

But to have a successful protest (in my view, having never had one) I think you need 

 

A clear message 

A bought in base 

An emotive pull 

 

And if the Facebook groups are anything to go by the consensus of rovers is below 

 

Venkys keep the club afloat 

Without them we go bust 

We all love rovers 

NO THEY FUCKING DON'T!

[simongarnerisgod]

has anyone thought that venkys have

cut the wage bill massively over the years

downsized the commercial dept

cut back on site maintence

don`t spend much money on players

are they really putting 20 million a year in when they have reduced the cost of running the club,i don`t they are,it`s just a figure put out by swag and the rest of the detritus

[glen9mullan]

Some interesting footage of the fall under these cretins, but also interesting points like the LET for example backing the supporters. 

Keep the good fight , just listening to the likes of Tony Parkes and others, brings back the memories of the past.

We cannot allow any of the story under V's be lost 

It was only a few months back we had interviews claiming its the best it's ever been under V's and articles claiming they were one of the leagues best owners.

The only people who will tell our story , is our fans. The personnel may have changed, but the decline remains.

 

https://ewoodpark.jimdofree.com/the-venky-s-reign-of-error-the-protest-movement-video-s-key-players-media-articles-chronology-of-events-and-photo-s/

[jim mk2]

4 hours ago, Waggy76 said:

An empty ground speaks volumes !!

To me, it says fans have given up and don't care any more. 

Reading fans showed they cared when they sat down on the pitch and halted the recent match against Port Vale. The publicity has given their campaign to remove their owners a huge boost

It might get us a points deduction but we look like we could be going down anyway. At least football might understand our plight

 

[speedies gonna get ya.]

I wouldn't display the banner until shortly after KO. If it goes up before the stewards will remove it before KO and it won't be seen. If it can be seen being unfurled during match will get lots of attention and likely even more when stewards attempt to remove it once they see the message.

It's also likely the Rovers KGB are monitoring the site so I wouldn't give too much away regarding exact spot in ground etc.

[Upside Down]

30 minutes ago, jim mk2 said:

To me, it says fans have given up and don't care any more. 

Reading fans showed they cared when they sat down on the pitch and halted the recent match against Port Vale. The publicity has given their campaign to remove their owners a huge boost

It might get us a points deduction but we look like we could be going down anyway. At least football might understand our plight

 

When we had an attendance of 3000 or whatever it was a few years ago that raised some eyebrows and was reported on by some.

The more and more anti venkys banners, t shirts and scarves etc, the more vocal the fans become against the owners, it's all good.

There might not be much appetite from many at the moment but when we go down to league one, when JDT leaves and they appoint another dolloper, when they sell every last player and send out an academy squad for league games, it will grow. Everyone has a breaking point.

[true bluee 66]

I agree with a poster above why is it always circa 20 mill we lose a season,until we are going to break ffp then it reduces, as said wage bill reduced massivley. Not much spent on transfers player sales yet the magic 20 mill loss there at end of season,why it stinks, they are using club to offset against tax but indian govt got wise to them is my theory,may be wrong but why else would succesfull buisness people keep putting in money.

[47er]

9 hours ago, speedies gonna get ya. said:

I wouldn't display the banner until shortly after KO. If it goes up before the stewards will remove it before KO and it won't be seen. If it can be seen being unfurled during match will get lots of attention and likely even more when stewards attempt to remove it once they see the message.

It's also likely the Rovers KGB are monitoring the site so I wouldn't give too much away regarding exact spot in ground etc.

Back to the admin fighting its own supporters again. Club eating itself.