It is 2 to 12 for football club RKSV Cito from Oss. In fact, if money does not come in soon, the club is in danger of going under. And that just before the 80th anniversary. An absolute doomsday scenario and therefore crowdfunding must provide help now. “It’s going to be very exciting.”
For a long time there was a pot of reserves, says chairman Wendy van den Berk. Until – you guessed it – corona. Or actually, the period afterward. “Then gas prices exploded and we went from 10,000 to 35,000 a month. We will never recover that.” And so that same jar is now empty. “While our building, for example, needs a major renovation.”
In order to generate the necessary extra income, the club has recently organized several activities. “Think of a Wild Winter Festival, with a spinning wheel and raffle ticket sales. Or a large darts tournament.” Events that appeal to approximately 250 members, but cannot close the financial gaps.
And so the question is whether the association will reach its 80th anniversary next year. “It would be terrible if that didn’t work out,” Wendy muses. “We are a very traditional club, in the middle of an old working-class district. It is here that we know ourselves, the conviviality is rampant and the canteen radiates the old-fashionedness. We have very elderly members who once came here as a 5-year-old child. And want to stay here until they die.”
To achieve this, larger solutions have also been investigated. “A merger with another association, for example. But that did not work out for various reasons. And when the scouting on our site was going to move to another location, we even looked at a complete renovation of our complex together with the municipality. including community center and gymnasium for the school nearby.” But the scouting continued and so the feasibility study was also for nothing. “We could have really used the money that was invested in this now.”
“Damn… Everyone who puts their shoulders to the wheel. That feels so nice.”
The board thought it was high time to also inform the members about the dire situation a few weeks ago. And that’s where the idea for a last resort really came about. “Someone wondered if we couldn’t all raise money together. Then the boys from our Saturday 2 said that they wanted to find out immediately. Earlier this week they presented all their findings and Thursday afternoon the crowdfunding already gone online. Damn… Anyone who puts their shoulders to the wheel. That feels so nice.”
The main goal of the collection campaign? “We are now going for 50,000 euros,” says Wendy. “Then we can move forward a few years and we can make plans again. After more than a day, the counter has now passed the 2,000 euro mark. Still a considerable amount to go, but a good start, according to the chairman. “We We are already very happy with what is coming in now.”
Oh, and for those who almost forget that in addition to financial worries in the boardroom, you also have to perform on the field: things are going really well there. “The cracker is on the program this weekend. We are fighting hard to win the first period and become winter champions.” It would be a nice boost.
By the way, Cito is not the only Osse association with problems. This also applies to SV Ruwaard, for example. That club initially even played in the competition at Cito this season, but had to withdraw after a number of matches due to problems within the team. In 2023, a merger between SV Ruwaard and city rivals FC Schadewijk failed because the Ruwaard board said no at the last minute.