Club news
Written by: Joe
Dear Lewes FC owners, supporters and volunteers,
This last weekend of the season has given us the chance to celebrate our amazing Men’s and Women’s first teams, while also allowing us to reflect on an exhilarating, exhausting, and at times exasperating 2024/25 season.
Football doesn’t stand still and nor does Lewes FC. Our two first teams have achieved steady positions in their respective leagues following difficult pre-seasons, the Supporters Club has grown from strength to strength, and more kids (and adults!) are playing at the 3G than ever before.
We would like to thank every single fan, owner, volunteer, staff member, player, coach, partner and director for their tireless work in helping our community club thrive. Where would we be without you? Well, to understand that, we need to go back to the start of the 2024/25 season.
That’s because it’s important to recognise where the club was ‘at’ last summer. Our Men’s team had reached the Fenix Trophy finals in Italy but, after three seasons at the helm, the coaching staff moved on. As did the players.
Our Women’s team suffered the heartbreak of relegation and the shift from being a professional entity to semi-professional. New staff were required too. At board level, six new directors were still being brought up to speed on the complexities of running our community club, while we lost our CEO and had to make redundancies elsewhere. The club shrank but our determination to deliver on our values remained.
Remarkably, over the course of two months, a small group of staff, volunteers and directors recruited two entirely new first teams. Craig Nelson and his staff came up from two tiers below the Isthmian Premier League and delivered a five-match winning streak to kick off the season with huge positivity. Nat Lawrence and Tim Heal soon got the women competing in the FA Women’s National League South and have steered us to Tuesday’s Sussex Challenge Cup final. The progress the players have made over the course of the season has been a joy to behold.
Off the pitch, Lewes FC launched our financially generative pre-season kit sponsorship deal with Charlotte Colbert that stayed true to our equality ethos and showed that relegation doesn’t harm our values. SeeUsAsWeAre gained national media coverage and helped lay the runway for our viral partnership with Who Gives A Crap and, later, our hosting of StriveAid.
The benefits of these partnerships aren’t always obvious – but they all link. They financially fuel the club and help us deliver social change. They attract fans, sponsors, charities and partners to get behind our movement, and get behind our teams. But they also provide a platform for the next event, the next partnership, the next movement, the next playing squad. Roberto Carlos scoring at the Dripping Pan only happens because of our pre-season kit sponsorship. Brighton University chooses (and pays) us to host a Gender Based Violence art exhibition because of Equality FC. Olympian Chris Boardman only stops off at the Pan because of our community garden and commitment to sustainability.
Setting playing budgets for our Men’s and Women’s teams is only possible when we have a solid financial footing through ownerships, ticket sales, merchandise, hospitality, events and partnerships. Women’s football in particular needs supportive partners, fans and broadcasters who are willing to invest in the game now, so that it can flourish in the future. Equality FC is unique in this space, which is why our impact travels across the world. Who Gives A Crap joined Xero as our partners at a time when the club was responding from relegation but was still determined to keep its voice heard in football. It is through their financial support and expertise, alongside other partnerships and the fact our attendances have remained stable, that we have been able to field competitive squads that have entertained us each week, and upkeep the Pan and 3G.
Of course, no partner is more supportive than our amazing fans. Not only have you attended this season in near-record numbers but your positivity has seen us through dark times. From miserable streaks and early cup exits, to two of our players suffering horrific broken legs. Whether it’s dressing up in ball gowns for our season opener or traipsing to Dover on a bitter Tuesday night, you have been there for us.
The Lewes FC Supporters Club has donated around £30,000 to club facilities to improve fan experiences for everyone. Our toilet blocks were (finally!) completed despite many, many challenges. A new club shop is now up and running, while the coffee hatch has greatly relieved congestion in the Rook Inn and pie hatch. Even simple things like paying for a bar-standard dishwasher makes a staggering amount of difference on matchdays.
To this end, an enormous thank you is extended to every single staff member and volunteer who has worked so hard to keep the Dripping Pan and 3G running over the course of the season. Working and volunteering in football is hard work, time consuming, and not always rewarded with a win. From Damien and the St Nicholas Day Service, Bambi and her bar staff, to the Thursday Maintenance Crew, and Tony, Jan, Terry, Stu, Sinclair, Mamma Haff, Ethel, Paul, Chunky, Nick, Emily, James, Mike, Barbara – the list is too long! – you are the heartbeat of our club.
The 2024/25 season was also the beginning of a new relationship between Lewes FC and the newly-formed Lewes Football Foundation. The relationship continues to flourish and the Foundation have oversight of Lewes FC Juniors and Select teams, as well as the Vets, Football Therapy, and Walking Football. It is an enormous administrative task to oversee so many teams, players, groups of parents, etc. and the 3G is a hive of community activity thanks to their commitments.
With a joined-up approach, Lewes FC and Lewes Football Foundation can nurture our club and community, so more people can enjoy better football experiences – whether it’s on or off the pitch.
As we move into the summer and prepare for the 2025/26 season, we need to acknowledge how football is changing – in both the men’s and women’s games. Many owners and supporters will have witnessed the club’s efforts this spring to source investment in a manner that aligns with our club structure. Now the season is over and our staff and board aren’t working on matchday activities week-to-week, there is space and time to address our governance.
Lewes FC is in its 140th year and we all want to ensure it’s here for another 140. Only by working together can we achieve all our goals.
Enjoy the summer… and see you for pre-season!