Bill Bell (businessman)
| Bill Bell | |
|---|---|
| Born |
William Thomas Bell 21 January 1932 Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England |
| Died | 12 February 2013 (aged 81) Brown Edge, England |
| Occupation | Car dealer |
| Title | Port Vale F.C. Chairman |
| Term | 1987–2002 |
| Predecessor | Jim Lloyd |
| Successor | Bill Bratt |
William Thomas Bell (21 January 1932 – 12 February 2013) was the chairman of Port Vale Football Club, who served the club in this post from 1987 to 2002. He spent the first twelve years at the club in partnership with manager John Rudge, until he controversially sacked Rudge in January 1999. During his time as chairman he concentrated his efforts on renovating and modernising Vale Park, at great financial cost. However the money for his ambitious projects dried up with his decision to axe Rudge, and he left the club in December 2002 when Port Vale entered administration.
Bell was born in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent on 21 January 1932, and became a supporter of Port Vale in 1948. He worked on the construction of Vale Park as a maintenance mechanic, and later opened a car dealership called 'WT Bell'.
Bell became a board member at Port Vale in May 1984, and became the club's second highest shareholder in April 1986, when he purchased 23,000 shares from former chairman Don Radcliffe. Bell then battled with chairman Jim Lloyd for control of the club, and won this battle on 14 May 1987. He stated: "There can be no room for sentiment in football and if there are people here who do not do their jobs, they will have to go." He inherited as team manager John Rudge, who had formed a stable and successful Third Division side. However attendances were low and the club was losing around £50,000 a year, and had an overdraft of £216,453. He further purchased Lloyd's shares in November 1987, giving himself 60% of the total holding.
Vale were bottom of the table on 28 December 1987, and Bell sacked coach Alan Oakes, and promoted 'hard taskmaster' Mike Pejic in his stead. As the team improved to reach safety, Bell then focused his work on improving Vale Park, and announced the start of a 'five-year plan' for the stadium after decades of neglect. He purchased an electronic scoreboard for £20,000 at the Hamil Road end of the ground, and installed executive boxes bought cheaply from Newcastle United. On 20 October 1989, he sold the club's training ground for £164,800; the ground had been bought for only £13,500 eight years previously. In December, the club announced plans for a 48-seater £80,000 disabled stand, the first such construction in the Football League. In February 1989, the new family enclosure was opened, with 600 seats. On the pitch, Rudge led the "Valiants" into the Second Division in 1989.
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