Helsinki Jokerit is building a new beginning in the domestic Mestis bowls. After a misguided trip to the KHL, the supporters, who now also own a part of the club, are involved in the reconstruction.
During the summer, the share issue aimed at supporters raised more than 420,000 euros. In addition to the share capital, the supporters also get a seat on the board of the Jokers. The arrangement is exceptional in Finnish sports.
– I don’t think that the voice of the supporters has come out this well anywhere in Finland, says the chairman of the board of Jokerikannattajat Oy Roope Räty.
In addition to the presence of supporters, the roots have also been returned to inside the sides of the rink. The team relies heavily on its own junior production and players with wildcard backgrounds. 11 of the players in the Mestis team are the club’s own juniors. In terms of players, the club’s self-sufficiency goal in 2025 is 50 percent.
The former credit defender of the club, who was appointed CEO of the Jokerites in early summer Antti-Jussi Niemen according to the team, the team has been formed with the future and SM league bowls in mind, even though the next two seasons the Jokers will play for Mest.
– Let’s hope and assume that after that it would be possible to get into the League, Niemi says.
During the fall, the club intends to have discussions with the SM league and its clubs.
– The most important thing is that there is an open and honest dialogue in all directions.
At the intersection of the past and the new beginning, the key role is the openness of the operation.
– After all, actions are decisive in that. I believe that openness and honesty are the key to doing everything, as well as, of course, community spirit, Niemi says.
In their KHL era, the Jokerit distanced themselves from their supporters, but at the moment the situation is different. Niemi says that the Jokerit has gotten rid of all its Russian connections, but the Helsinki club is still looking for its permanent home, because the Helsinki Hall, which used to be the team’s home arena, is still owned by Russian businessmen.
– Of course, one would hope that the situation at the Helsinki Hall would be triggered, but that is outside of our sphere of influence.
In the starting Mestis season, Jokerit will play 13 home games in Kerava and 11 in the Helsinki ice hall. The spectator capacity of around 1,300 people in Kerava’s ice hall places limits on the profitability of match events.
– Yes, we are counted a lot on the 11 matches of the Nordenskiöld hall.
On the club’s income side, match events together with partnership sales are a significant source of income. In its first season back, the club’s goal is to get a positive result despite the player budget of 300,000 euros.
Supporters finance the club’s junior development
The main owner of the renewed Jokerites is an entrepreneur and hockey influencer Mikko Saarni. In addition to Saarni, the other owners are a film producer Markus Selinformer NHL hockey player and captain of the Jokers Ossi Väänänena writer Max Seecka former bank manager Antti Mantila and NHL hockey players Teuvo Teräväinen and Esa Lindell.
In addition to them, in the future the supporters will also be owners of the club through the supporters’ limited company, Jokerikannattajat Oy. The B shares owned by the supporters do not have the right to vote at the club’s general meeting, but the supporters get one member on the club’s board.
The share issue aimed at supporters collected more than 420,000 euros, and the funds collected with the shares are used by the club directly for junior activities. In the future, the supporters’ joint-stock company will also receive money back from the grower’s compensations paid from the NHL contracts of the club’s grown-ups. In the share offering, the value of one share was 50 euros.
The supporters are also on the advisory board, where they are discussing the club’s future with former Jokeri players and partners. With these actions, the Helsinki club wants to show that it is building its future together with its supporters.
The idea of a joint-stock company for the supporters and an ownership stake in the club already started during the Jokeriter KHL campaign.
According to Rädy, chairman of the board of the Kannattajien limited company, there was concern among the fans about the continuity of the club. If the fans could decide, the team would never have played in the KHL. This is why Räty considers it important that the supporters who are part of the club have power in the decision-making of the club they support, or that they are at least listened to.
Now, the Helsinki club’s symbiosis with its supporters is exceptional on a Finnish scale. According to Urheilu’s information, for example, Tampere Ilves supporters centrally own the club’s shares through supporters’ associations, but board responsibility has not been assigned to Tampere supporters.
– In Finland, the fans have probably never had more power than this within the club.
According to Rädy, the most important milestone of the Jokers’ starting season in the eyes of the fans has already been reached.
– The biggest goal has been achieved, that is, that the club is back and playing hockey in a Finnish hockey rink.
The voice of the fans in the stands and in the cabinet
A media researcher familiar with sports Sami Kolamon according to the supporters’ possibilities of influence are affected by how popular the sport is and how many people attend the matches.
– Often in those sports where there are large numbers of supporters, the club managers have to listen to the fans’ points of view. Shares owned by supporters reinforce this even more. The stands belong to the supporters, and there they can freely support and present their own points of view within the framework of good taste.
According to Kolamo’s views, the interest in sports is partly related to the atmosphere in the stands. In the case of the Jokers, the interest is increased by the return from the KHL, questioned by the supporters, to the other extreme, i.e. the Mestis club, which relies on the supporters and its own juniors.
– It is very nice that the supporters have one person in the board who can pass information between the fans and the club. Another thing is how the club management listens to their supporters and their criticism.
According to Kolamo, in the case of the Jokers, it is also about what kind of trust there is between the fans and the club management after the KHL period.
– Now the club probably wants to strengthen confidence in the new Jokerit team, which plays in Finland, even more strongly.