Sutton football club Sportsco wins licence to sell alcohol from clubhouse

A struggling local football club in Sutton Coldfield has been given permission to sell alcohol from its clubhouse.

The survival of Sportsco in Minworth was at risk after the club lost almost £10,000 during the Covid-19 pandemic, but it now has an alternative source of income.

Founded in 1999, Sportsco was faced with charging parents higher subscription fees after falling on hard times during the pandemic. The club also pays the fees for some children who are on free school meals. The not-for-profit organisation has a total of 25 teams under its name and applied to Birmingham City Council for a licence to sell alcohol from the clubhouse, which has been granted despite some local residents’ objections.

Under the new licence, the clubhouse will be monitored by CCTV at all times and staff will go through refresher training every six months. Furthermore, no children will be allowed in the clubhouse without an adult after 8pm.

One resident who lives close to the team’s home playing fields on Wishaw Lane was worried about the litter, saying she’d found an ‘obscene’ amount of rubbish on the ground. Another requirement of the licence is that no open containers are to leave the boundaries on the sports ground.

Chairman of Sportsco Football Club David Cronin told city chiefs last week there is a litter team in place and that any alcohol would be served in plastic cups.

Mr Cronin added the licence would primarily be for major footballing occasions such as the upcoming FIFA World Cup. This was taken on board by councillors, who have requested that the police be sent a risk assessment 28 days before any event.

West Midlands Police said they found the application ‘entirely satisfactory’.

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