Dan Stamp, who owns the food stalls at Glanford Park Stadium, said the purpose of this act was “to help out the financially troubled club”.
The North Lincolnshire club, who were in the Championship in 2011, have endured an awful few years, spiraling all the way down to National League North, the sixth tier of English football.
The club was taken over by local businesswoman Michelle Harness last month after the previous owner David Hilton withdrew his funding from the club.
Stamp said the idea to give away tickets came after a chat with the new owner about boosting attendances. This led to Stamp buying 1,000 tickets for Scunthorpe’s game against Gloucester City on 11 November.
He said: “It gives the club a financial boost for an extra 1,000 tickets and then hopefully we can get a few more supporters consistently coming through the gates that way.”
Mr Stamp said it had cost him a “considerable amount” to buy the tickets, which typically cost between £16 and £33.
He added that although the tickets were free, he hoped this kind gesture would make a donation to help the club out.
“There are a lot of people who want the club to survive and we are just trying to make it as sustainable as possible at the minute,” he said. With David Hilton’s poor ownership, the club was on the brink of bankruptcy.
“If you take away the steelworks and the football club from Scunthorpe you’ve not really got a lot left.”
“It’s massive for the community that we keep the club going.”
Glanford Park was expected to be completely rebuilt under David Hilton’s ownership, but this plan was abandoned as Scunthorpe plummeted down through the football league.
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