Licence 'levy' could send our boys to the World Champs

THE COUNTRY’S top anglers face the prospect of missing out altogether on this year’s World Championships unless a solution can be found to the ongoing funding crisis. 

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Twelve months on from the furore that saw former sponsor Drennan cut ties with the national set-up, England’s Men’s Float Team are still without financial support and will have to dig into their own pockets and find around £2,000 each if they are to make it to the event, which is being held on Italy’s River Mincio in September.

However, one possible answer could lie in the adoption of a funding model that is common in the rest of Europe, as England regular Des Shipp revealed: 

“In France and Italy, anglers pay a small premium on top of their licence to support international match fishing. It’s a simple solution yet in England we don’t do this. 

“Imagine what we could do with an added 50p on the rod licence fee. All of our teams would be sorted – not just the Men’s Float Team, but the Ladies, the Disables, Veterans and Youth Teams as well – with money to spare!” he said.

And it’s not just the England team who are struggling for cash, as Welsh ace Lee Edwards explained:

“To be honest, we’re in a dire situation. Not only are we short of sponsorship, but our manager also stepped down a year ago and hasn’t been replaced yet.”

“Fishing in the UK has gone down a commercial route, and individual events are far more popular than team ones. I just can’t see anglers donating as it doesn’t suit their personal fishing, unlike in Europe where team fishing is the focus.”