Foundation of Hearts pledges hit £10m despite coronavirus impact at Tynecastle

Fans continue to back Hearts with hard cash
The Foundation of Hearts Plaza outside Tyncecastle Park.The Foundation of Hearts Plaza outside Tyncecastle Park.
The Foundation of Hearts Plaza outside Tyncecastle Park.

Hearts supporters have now pledged £10million in total to their club through Foundation of Hearts, the Evening News can reveal.

The fan-led group, which began collecting direct debit donations in 2013, have passed on a stunning eight-figure sum to Hearts over the intervening seven years.

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They even recorded a slight increase in subscribers since the coronavirus forced football into shutdown, as Tynecastle followers move to help their club offset a lack of income.

Reaching the £10m point is seen as a significant landmark with the Foundation due to assume ownership of Hearts from current majority shareholder Ann Budge later this year.

FoH membership numbers remain around the 7,500 mark, ensuring it remains the biggest fan-driven movement in Scottish football history. The will own the club on behalf of supporters in future.

Of the £10m donated to date, £3m has gone towards the cost of Tynecastle's £22m redevelopment project which includes the new main stand.

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Another £2.5m was used to repay Budge's initial investment to gain control of the Edinburgh club, and the remaining £4.5m has been used as working capital by Hearts.

Budge took action last week by asking players and staff to accept a 50 per cent wage cut after football was indefinitely postponed. Captain Steven Naismith has accepted, whilst defender Clevid Dikamona agreed to terminate his contract.

Most other players would prefer wages to be deferred rather than dropped until August. That issue is still being discussed with senior officials at Tynecastle.

Visit www.foundationofhearts.org to pledge to FoH.

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