Burnley owner Alan Pace opens up on facing criticism and online abuse

Burnley owner Alan Pace opens up on facing criticism and online abuse, appearing on the ‘For All The Saints’ podcast with Ben Hancock.

Pace, who is also chairman of and RCD Espanyol, spoke on a variety of topics, from finance and sports, to leadership and faith.

He and his Burnley side faced the pressure, and took aim at fans’ concerns, the club going on to get relegated from the Premier League, with 22 points from 38 games played.

Burnley have since parted with Scott Parker and look to be on the verge of appointing Craig Bellamy.

Timestamps:
00:00 Alan Pace
00:27 World Cup predictions
01:01 Hyde Park chapel
02:03 Community gathering places
04:57 The American sports community
07:16 The importance of stewardship
09:00 A vocation?
11:42 Family ties to Burnley
15:21 ‘Mission to Burnley’ documentary
17:09 Integrating faith into work
20:21 The role of prayer
21:33 Facing criticism
27:57 Working with Vincent Kompany
33:32 Leadership examples
35:04 Manager leadership styles
38:04 Surprises vs expectation
40:12 Don’t be afraid of your faith!

Interviewer: How has that experience [intense criticism] been for you and your family and has his faith helped you to process that in a different way, especially when you feel like it’s…

Pace: “Yeah. So, there’s been different things. So, I don’t think people will really ever understand and I’m not sure that I do either, you know, the when the first few episodes of threats of violence or anger to the extreme that you felt uncomfortable were really really super hard to to take, and it’s really hard to understand that people think they have a right to be able to threaten you or to be able to think that whatever makes them okay, no matter what it does to you, is fine. That is hard.

“So I’ve become more understanding and realistic as to there is a percentage of the population that is unfortunately exceptionally negative. I can’t see the positive side of a lot of things and I’m sure that they will always find a reason that they can’t, whether it’s me or somebody else or anything else to be in that cast in that light as being the reason for their unhappiness is hard. Really, really hard.

“Because from where I sit, we think we’re trying to do a good job. And I just, it just really doesn’t resonate that somebody would try to hurt somebody or try to make it bad for somebody else.

“That just doesn’t, I just don’t, I don’t see or understand that, but there are certainly people that feel that is something that I’m trying to do or that I’m putting them to feel that way.

“And when it turns to, like I said, you know, ultra negativity, cursing, threats of violence, things like that, it makes it very very hard to say, well, why do I why why do I want to let that near me? Okay.

“And sometimes I don’t. And sometimes for a whole lot of reasons, it’s just easier to just shut the door and not let it in.

“So, I try to stay away a lot from social media um because when it gets negative, it gets really ugly. My daughter is a lot better at handling the positivity and actually turning negativity into positivity.

“She keeps trying to teach me to do the same and I could probably learn from her better. I just tend to shut down and just try to avoid it. It’s just something I don’t understand.

“So it was crazy that when we first went to Spain, I was getting mobbed by literally thousands of people in a positive way that I just had never experienced, never experienced in anything that I ever done.

“And I didn’t know how to handle that. But that was scary, too, because it was like am I going to let these people down, you know, like what why are they so happy and excited and what is it that I’ve done?

“Because at that point nothing, and I’m a big believer that, you know, don’t focus on what I say focus on what I actually do and then if I do the things that I think are positive and responsible and you should be happy over time but it’s not because you’re happy with me you’re happy with what we’re doing and that should be back to that collective community thing we’re doing it all together.

“So negativity is hard and the criticism is hard and it’s hard to understand why people feel that that’s okay. And I get it all the time is, you know, you just don’t understand English football or you just don’t understand football. It’s our right. It’s this. It’s that.

“It’s like, well, coming back to the community side. Pretty sure you wouldn’t stand up in church and yell at people or scream at people. And I’ve even tried to explain to even some of our, you know, fans is like would you really do that to your own children?

“Like it’s just not normal in the world I come from. But I’m supposed to believe that that is normal and that I just don’t understand.”

Interviewer: “Yeah, it’s certainly a dark side of English football the world.”

Pace: “I think it’s not just English football. I think it’s football period.

“But I just don’t again I’m not really sure why that that is this empowerment that I’ve got to let go and actually channel my anger, my frustration, my meanness towards somebody. And maybe it’s just an outlet.

“And listen, if that’s if that’s what you do so that you don’t channel it towards one of your family members or yourself and you don’t take it out, you know, and that’s what you have to do to let it out, I guess. Okay.

“But I’d love to find other ways for people to be able to express those frustrations without the negativity.”

Interviewer: “There seems to be a a thing with when Americans come to English football. I’ve seen like I remember when Jesse Marsch came. And that as well just some quite strong I don’t know what it was.”

Pace: I’m not sure if it’s just Americans though. It’s pretty much we just think as as people that you know we’re right, other people are wrong and we should tell them.”

Burnley owner compares fans unhappy with 16 game winless run to a ‘3 year old’s tantrum’