Tamworth's American owner unveils his plans

Three words dominate the mind of Abdullah Ashraf: English Football League.   To be more specific, it is the EFL’s League Two, the fourth tier of English football, that preoccupies the daily thoughts of this 24-year-old American businessman.

Currently, 20 of the EFL’s 72 clubs, from the second tier through to the fourth tier, either have Americans as owners or prominent investors. Oklahoma real estate investor Ashraf plans to add to that number after taking over at Tamworth FC, a club in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football pyramid.

Ashraf, the founder and chief executive of Dawn Group International (DGI) and owner of Oklahoma United FC in his home city, made some bold pledges after being unveiled as Tamworth’s new owner earlier this summer.

He vowed to turn the club fully professional, buy and redevelop the Lamb Ground, Tamworth’s home since their foundation in 1933, and build a new training facility once the premises were purchased from the local council. Ultimately, though, the ambition is promotion to the EFL for the first time in the club’s history. Speaking to The Athletic ahead of the start of the season, he accepted these were big ambitions.

Tamworth are already punching above their weight in the National League, the highest level of non-league football in England. They remain one of the few part-time clubs in the division, which features a number of professional former EFL teams.

Several members of last season’s squad worked day jobs, including vice-captain Jas Singh, a quantity surveyor. Midfielder Tom Tonks sold sandwiches on industrial estates and was known as the ‘Bap Man’ because he drove around playing the Batman theme from his van.

“What’s incredible about Tamworth Football Club is that people all over the world know it. So you can walk into Oklahoma, you can walk into Texas, you can walk into Dubai and say Tamworth versus Tottenham, and many people remember it,” says Ashraf.

Ashraf was previously a minority shareholder of Truro City of the National League South, the division below the National League, and first visited the Lamb Ground with the Cornish club.

“I walked into the boardroom and they cooked the best lasagna I’d ever eaten in my entire life,” says Ashraf. “Once I had that, I was like, man, there’s something about this place, and I was always talking about it.

“What ended up happening was that opportunity (at Truro) didn’t work out for a multitude of reasons. From there, once we found out that Tamworth was available, I was like, we have to go after it.”

“The National League is equivalent to many European leagues’ second divisions, so the competitiveness is unmatched, the quality is unmatched, and really there’s just nothing like English football. So when you’re looking to acquire a team there really is nowhere you should look other than English football.”

Some fans remain sceptical and growing a fanbase will be key to whether Ashraf can achieve his goals. Last season, the average gate at the Lamb was just over 1,000 and they have sold just over 200 season tickets for this season.

Last season, they were competing against Carlisle United, who averaged over 8,300 per home game, Hartlepool United (5,830), Scunthorpe United (5,111) and Woking (2,680). This season, former EFL club Southend United have announced season ticket sales of 5,315, the highest in the club’s history.

To that end, one of Ashraf’s key priorities is to improve the matchday experience for both the fans and players.

Some early progress has been made. The club is close to agreeing to buy the Lamb Ground’s land and have identified a training base, with an agreement on that also close. New full-time staff have been hired and development work on the ground has begun for this season.

Manager Andy Peaks has seen his budget grow by around 15 percent and he has made eight key signings this summer as the team start to move towards full-time status. New arrivals include experienced attacking midfielder Morgan Roberts from Brackley Town and centre-back Tom Parkes from Hartlepool United.  Compared to their rivals, Tamworth’s budget is still extremely modest.

Tamworth have told the world of their ambitions. Now we must wait to see if they can be among the growing number of American-led clubs competing in the EFL.