Just days remain for Inverness Caledonian Thistle to reach their £200,000 crowdfunding target.
The Caley Jags said they needed to raise that sum by October 16, or else it would be inevitable that the club would go into administration.
Administration would not necessarily spell the end for the club, as a buyer could still be found to return the club to sound financial footing.
As D-Day approaches, then, where does the effort stand – and what happens if they do not reach the target?
Why is Caley Thistle fundraising?
When Alan Savage was brought in as an advisor to the board of directors, one of the first things he did was set about assessing the bank balance, and he estimated that between £1.4 million and £1.6 million would need to be raised to see the club to the end of the current season.
As a result, ICT vowed to explore all avenues of potential income, and one of those was asking supporters and the general public to donate.
How does a crowdfunder work?
Different sites vary in how they operate, but Inverness elected to run a GoFundMe, which allows anyone to donate as much or as little as they want.
At the time of writing, more than 1500 people have contributed to the cause, making donations ranging between £5 and £20,000.
Together, that has raised around £75,000 that will go to Caley Thistle.
What will the money be spent on?
The obvious expense at the Caledonian Stadium is wages of the staff – both playing and non-playing – who work at the club.
However, there are also other running costs that need to be met. Travel to away matches, bills at the stadium and hospitality contracts would be just some of the expenses that still need to be made.
If the target isn’t reached, what happens to the money?
This is where it matters which crowdfunding platform Caley Thistle chose to go with, as some require the full target to be hit for the money to go towards the project.
With GoFundMe, however, all donations made will be received by the club regardless of whether they hit £200,000 or not, and the fundraiser will remain open as long as ICT choose to keep it open – even if their October 16 deadline has passed.
The website’s terms and conditions state that: “Reaching your goal is not required. With GoFundMe, you keep each and every donation you receive. Your fundraiser will be able to accept donations even after your goal is reached.”
How can I contribute?
Put simply, you can donate to the crowdfunder and help rally those who are potentially on the fence about contributing to give to the football club.
Donate to Inverness Caledonian Thistle’s crowdfunder here
