Bromley Chairman, Robin Stanton-Gleaves has confirmed plans for new partners at the club.
Recent media speculation has linked Bromley to new investors and raised questions surrounding Stanton-Gleaves’ future as owner and Chairman but in an interview on BFC TV, he has confirmed that the new partners are close to coming fully on board subject to the EFL and Independent Football Regulator (IFR) checks.
Whilst the new investment is currently “governed by regulations and red tape,” Stanton-Gleaves explained that he had began exploring new investment last autumn as he reflected on the club’s progress since he arrived from portacabins and players changing kits in the Ravens’ Bar to now.
“When I came here, I think the manager was in a portacabin. The club shop was in a portacabin. The players got changed in Ravens.
“And I took that journey on to say I’m going to try and build the club properly. I didn’t throw money straight on the pitch. The manager always complained about that. But I built an infrastructure and when we built the South stands and the facilities that the clubs runs out of today together with Broomfields, we built a training ground.
“We obviously recently built the East Stands and the facilities there. So I very much look back and see we were there at that point and where we are now. And I know the cost of that and the investment in that.
“And as the football club’s progresses under Andy’s leadership and he now has us in League One. I recognise that I need some help. And I saw that about nine or ten months ago.”
With Bromley initially not anticipated to achieve promotion as League Two champions last season when he commenced his search for new investors, Stanton Gleaves confirmed that the new investors will not displace him as majority owner and Chairman.
“They’re exciting people. And I can’t say too much about them because although we’ve agreed upon the terms of how we would like to proceed, there is a process through the EFL and IFR.
“And what does that mean? Well that means that with means I’ll still be at the helm. I’ll still be in charge of the football club. Some people might like that. Some may not. But the continuity of how we run this organisation will continue and we’ll be able to set a new plan in place.”
Stanton-Gleaves proceeded to explain that full details will be revealed once the checks are completed but hinted that promotion remains a long-term ambition.
“And once that happens, I’ll be able to talk about that. I’ll be able to speak about the people involved. And the new journey. You know we’ve created two promotions in three years. I’m not sure how many people have done that. I suspect I can think of one. And there’s an ambition to go again.
“There’s an ambition to go again . But with that comes further investment, comes further work to be done. And that’s what the new partners will help me with.”
In 2021, Stanton-Gleaves was asked at a supporter forum about his vision for the club in 2028 and he said that League One was the target, which was ultimately achieved two years ahead of time and has left him pleased to beat his own target.
“It’s nice to hit the target and then obviously be ahead of it. Look, I’m chuffed. I’m absolutely chuffed to be in League One and I think we’re eight games in. I think we have realised that there’s a level, there’s a level but whatever that level is, wherever that challenge is, I’m over the moon at Bromley Football Club sitting in League One.”
Stanton-Gleaves also spoke of his belief that the gap from National League to League Two is much smaller than the latter’s jump into League One as he addressed the difficulties of the third tier.
“Yeah, I think it is. I think the National League which is where the football club was when I got first involved, was a level. There was a step into League Two but we saw every National League team that went into League Two do well. And we followed that.
“So I think the gap is quite small. The jump into League One, we’ve all had the experience of seeing it over the last eight games. There’s a jump. There’s no two ways about it and when you look at the league table today, three of the clubs that are sitting in the bottom four – and we are one of them, are the other two that got promoted with us.
“Both established league football clubs that have played at high levels, MK Dons and Notts County. And Cambridge who came up with us are doing well. But of course, they’d just come down from League One. So they knew the jump and they had that experience.
“And what we have to remember, you know, this is our third season in the EFL as a professional football club. We have nine teams that have played in the Premier League. You know, we played a couple of them, Blackpool, Huddersfield and Barnsley, all of which we’ve got points from amazingly.
“We’ve played them already but there’s nine that sit in our league. And they’ve got Premier League experience, EFL experience. And here we are in our third season in the EFL.
“We should be really chuffed with where we’re at. But we mustn’t underestimate. You know there is a jump and there’s a challenge ahead of us.”
This summer also saw several squad changes as Byron Webster retired as captain whilst Jude Arthurs and Idris Odutayo were amongst regular who opted against renewing their contracts, with Stanton-Gleaves confident that a new unity amongst the players can be built.
“We had a change period in the summer. No two ways about it. Certain people’s legs had gone and we talk about Byron Webster the captain retired and I think that was significant. We had some senior players whose contracts came to an end and they got better offers elsewhere and we wish them well.
“But it meant we had to go on a recruiting process. And we also recognised that we needed more players than we previously had. And I think we recruited something like 14 to 15 first team players which is a significant amount. And that was an investment in itself.
“But the personnel is a change and I think the power of Bromley Football Club up to now has been the unit, the togetherness. And now we’ve got some new bodies in the building, the manager and the coaches have got to create that new togetherness, which was the power of who we are.
“And I can see that happening. I can see we’re on the journey of creating that.”
Stanton-Gleaves also addressed the club’s impact on the community through their education academy which has grown over the last seven years, as he spoke of their bond with London South-East Colleges and Ravensbourne School.
“The football club has such a statement in the town, in the borough, that we can do so much more beyond playing the game of football. And the first step of that of course, you know, the education academy. And when I came here, I think there was 35 to 40 students.
“As we finished term last summer, I think we finished on something like just under 300 people involved throughout the academy. And that’s quite a testatement to what we’ve done there. Yes I had to build the classrooms and yes we built the facility, but we’ve been able to serve an enrichment programme in partnership with the school and the college.
“And having done that now for five years, it’s almost like anniversary time to say, right, it’s time to take that to the next level. And what can that next level be? Well we need to, we have an opportunity now to widen the syllabus, the work with London South-East Colleges and the work with Ravensbourne School.”
Such is the Colleges and school’s confidence in the club, there are plans to widen the syllabus which Stanton-Gleaves has welcomed in terms of where the club wants to go in terms of providing career opportunities for young people in the borough.
“Because of the confidence they have in us, they’re widening the syllabus, which means we can attract more personnel to come in and look at football and education together.
“And when I say football, it might not just be playing football. It could be coaching. It could be digital marketing. It could be analysis. It could be physiotherapy. It’s a wider subject matter. And that opens the door to a bigger opportunity for more children to take part in what we do here.
“Added to that, I think we have an opportunity across the summer with attracting international students to come and study for a short period of time.
“And once we get that going, we have an opportunity to extend that beyond just the summer period and take the coverage internationally with the facilities and the way that we operate here.”
Stanton-Gleaves has also confirmed the return of Mark Hammond who will lead the education expansion project to ensure that young people get the proper education and development to thrive in the world.
“So with all of that in place, I was really pleased in recent weeks to be able to grab Mark Hammond. And it’s no secret that Mark is back in the football club. And he’s got the immediate project of taking on all of those challenges and taking on the growth and the ambition we have around that education piece.
“Because I think it’s absolutely vital as part of what we do here as a football club, that the young people that are associated with us are educated properly, are developed properly, and we give them as much opportunity as we can as they go into the wide world under the banner of what we are, a football club.”
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