British Basketball League club, Guildford Heat are officially looking for new sponsors and are putting the club up for just £1, in a bid to save the club from closure.
A shortfall of funding and investments into the club to keep it running since Guildford’s venture into the ULEB Cup (now EuroCup) as now left the Surrey-based side struggling to pump funds and needs a headline sponsor or new owners to survive.
Guildford have four main revenue streams, which include: coaching in schools, government grants, game attendance and corporate sponsorship. All of which, are under pressure, according to a press release issued by Guildford Heat’s current backer, Alan McClafferty.
The BBL club reduced costs and were in a good position to withstand a downturn in one of the areas mentioned. But in a cruel turn, all four came up short – leaving the Guildford Heat with a massive funding gap.
It comes as a surprise to many basketball fans in Britain. Eventhough it was well documented that Guildford Heat were a little light on funds, since their ULEB Cup appearance, no BBL fan, or Guildford Heat fan, for-that-matter, knew that this day would be upon them so quickly.
The Heat, who play at the newly-developed and impressive Surrey Sports Park hope to forfill their fixtures, going into the New Year, and by then, all Heat and BBL fans pray that new sponsors or owners will be in place by the time Guildford Heat face bottom-side, Essex Pirates – a game that will be shown on British television on the 11th January.
Despite all the off-court problems, the Heat currently lie in joint-third place in the BBL table, heading into the Christmas break, trying to improve their poor outing last season, where they failed to reach the playoffs for the first time in their short history.
Coach, Creon Raftopoulos has injected new life into the Heat on the court, as players like David Schneider, Mike Martin and Martelle McLamore are amongst the BBL’s top players. Mike Martin was recently named into the BBL’s weekly team-of-the-week, after his 30-points helped Guildford secure a vital away win against the Sheffield Sharks last week.
Guildford Heat travel to Plymouth, to face the Raiders, in the first game after the Christmas break.
John Hobbs for TalkBasket.net
