This update was originally printed in the match day programme for Forest Green Rovers on 07.02.2026.

York City Supporters Trust (YCST) was formally launched at an event held at York Barbican on 1st February 2002, an event attended by around 900 City supporters.

The ups and downs of the years since have been well documented. On a number of occasions YCST had to step forward in order to ensure that York City Football Club survived. We all owe so much to supporters who over the years volunteered their time to ensure that this was the case.

Today few supporters would argue that both on and off the pitch YCFC is a club ‘on the up’. Our majority owners and their business partners have clearly signalled their intention to see City once again back in the Football League. On the pitch the team are well placed as we approach the final three months of the season.

Our supporters too are showing up in numbers with home attendances this season and last not seen in years, in fact last season’s average home attendance figure was the highest enjoyed by the club since 1974-75 when City competed in Football League Division 2, the equivalent of today’s Championship. Hard to believe for our younger supporters no doubt!

During that time Trust membership numbers have fluctuated as would be expected. But today membership remains stubbornly at about the 1050 number with c700 Life Members and c350 Annual Members.

Over the last year the Trust has worked hard to provide the bridge between fan base and club. Examples include:

  • Monthly Trust Socials at Brew York to give fans the chance to hear first-hand from club management, players and ambassadors;
  • A 70th Anniversary Celebration Dinner to mark City’s 54-55 FA Cup Semi Final appearance with 50 supporters at that famous match guests of the Trust for the day;
  • A 30th Anniversary Celebration Dinner to mark City’s famous 3-0 victory against Manchester United with 35 supporters in attendance;
  • Continued engagement with Local Authorities, National Bodies and Persimmon Homes PLC to ensure a lasting legacy of Bootham Crescent at the site of our former home;
  • Purchase of a club TIFO for our South Standers, first seen in the Play Off Semi Final back in May 2025;
  • Donation of £12k to YCFC for help towards purchase of a mini bus for the club’s youth team;
  • Creation of the YCST Charitable Fund to provide help and support to local charitable causes.

But we’d like to do more for our supporters, young and old, and we’d like to provide more to the club. To do so we need money, and in the main that means we need more members.

Hence the launch of Project 2000, a campaign to drive our membership numbers to a record high of 2000 this calendar year as a springboard to 2027 and our 25th anniversary.

We would urge all supporters yet to join the Trust to act now. With home gates of 6000 plus now becoming the norm – and long may that continue – then what an opportunity we have. If the 5000 or so non YCST members now coming through the gates joined YCST on just an annual basis then we’d have £50k per annum to contribute to the club and our members. That would make such a huge difference and would surely demonstrate to our majority owners and their business partners that we, the supporters, mean business just as they are clearly demonstrating they mean business in seeing City restored to the Football League.

Joining could not be simpler. Just visit the Trust website – www.ycst.org.uk – click on the membership tab and follow the instructions from there for either annual or lifetime membership.

Equally importantly, if all current YCST members could persuade friends and family members to join then that would help us enormously in achieving our target of 2000 members by the end of the year.

That would set us up nicely for our 25th anniversary in 2027.

Join the Trust. Have a voice. Shape our future.

Enjoy the match! And please don’t forget to sign up for Trust Membership. It really will make a huge difference.

About York City Supporters’ Trust

Established in 2002, York City Supporters Trust is a not-for-profit Community Benefit Society, regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. We were formed to protect the long-term future of the football club and represent the interests of the fans. We are also 25% shareholders in York City Football Club Ltd.