Wigan Athletic in business after double victory

The first award highlighted Latics and Stadimax’s commitment to Fan Engagement through their #BELIEVE FansFund campaign, creating a truly unique model in English football whereby supporters can directly influence the strength of the club’s football operations through an optional monthly subscription.

Over 1,600 FansFund Founders have signed up to be a part of the club’s exciting new initiative in the last 12 months, with their support aiding the academy, sports science and high-performance department, and the first-team operations.

Nominated alongside Aston Villa, Fulham, Leicester City, Norwich City and Pafos FC, the award recognises the way in which clubs engage with their supporters to help them feel more connected.

The award was presented at the Brewery in London to Latics CEO Malachy Brannigan, non-executive director Dr Tom Markham, Stadimax group chairman Ken Sharp, and commercial operations director David Chaplin among other club representatives.

Voted by a panel of over 25 judges who are experts in the football and business field, the Football Business Awards 2022 provided the following rationale behind their decision.

"The judges said they really liked this idea, combining fan engagement concepts and ideas with a commercial edge," a statement read. "It was great to see a smaller community-focused club that has witnessed the highs and lows of football, continuing to believe in what they do on and off the pitch, creating innovative ways to unify their fanbase and forge deeper connections with the club."

The Football Business Awards, which celebrated their 10th anniversary this year, rewards and recognises the important role that clubs and businesses play in enabling the game to be a success both on and off the pitch.

Brannigan was also crowned as the overall fcbusiness CEO of the Year for his efforts in helping Latics return to the Championship in the first full season under the Phoenix 2021 Group’s stewardship.

Football Business Awards judge and fcbusiness editor Aaron Gourley, said: "Mal Brannigan has shown, through great leadership and a strong commitment to the club by the new board, anything is possible.

“Wigan have picked themselves up from a pretty disastrous few years to achieve promotion and now look forward to challenging in one of football’s most competitive leagues.”