Glasgow United face losing ground if they sign David Goodwillie
City council are threatening to rip up agreement for football facility
Last updated 25th Jul 2023
THE ninth-tier football club that fielded David Goodwillie as a trialist could be kicked out of their publicly owned ground and training centre.
Glasgow United have been warned that Glasgow City Council are ready to rip up the agreement for the team to play at the Greenfield hub in the city’s Shettleston area.
They revealed they are exploring options to terminate the free licence granted to the side to use the base after it fielded the disgraced former Dundee United, Aberdeen, Blackburn Rovers and Crystal Place player in a friendly match.
Goodwillie was ruled to be a rapist in a civil court case in 2017. A move to Raith Rovers last year was cancelled after a backlash and the same happened with lower league Australian side Sorrento FC earlier this year.
READ MORE: Goodwillie hits back after Sorrento exit
Susan Aitken statement
Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken says she is ready to sever ties if the team continues to pursue the former Scotland cap.
She said: “David Goodwillie has been found, in court, to be a rapist. However, in more than 12 years, he has never once shown any kind of contrition or remorse.
“Any club that signs him is making a very clear statement about its attitude to the safety of women and girls – both in sport and in its community.
“It would be an outrageous decision, wholly at odds with how community facilities like Greenfield should be run.
“I’ve asked officers to look at the council’s agreement with Glasgow United and made it clear that I’m ready for the city to walk away.”
READ MORE: Raith manager apologises for Goodwillie signing
Shettleston Community Sports Trust — the body behind the club — was granted permission to use the sports complex in January 2022.
Glasgow United backlash
Glasgow United received a backlash from fans and its own amateur side folded hours later in protest.
Goodwillie and fellow footballer David Robertson were deemed by a judge at a civil court to have raped a 30-year-old woman at a property in Armadale, West Lothian, after a night out in nearby Bathgate in January 2011.
Criminal charges against Goodwillie were dropped in 2011 due to a lack of evidence.