Born: 16 July, 1940, in Glasgow.
Died: 15 October, 2008, in Dundee, aged 68.
FOOTBALL club chairmen frequently tread a fine line between mistrust and contempt with supporters. So thoroughly did Eddie Thompson overcome the knee-jerk prejudices a
nd suspicions of fans in his six years at the helm of Dundee United that when the team reached the CIS Cup final at Hampden Park last March, the face of the sick man was printed on T-shirts and worn by thousands as a mark of gratitude.
Thompson's death yesterday prompted tributes from across the football world and the entire civil and political order of Dundee, the city he called home for two-thirds of a diverse and triumphant life.
A successful accountant and, in monetary terms, an even more successful grocer, Thompson will nevertheless be remembered primarily for his role in rebuilding a famous club whose future had been in serious jeopardy when he won control in 2002. His taking over followed a long battle to buy out Jim McLean, another Tannadice legend, who was incredibly protective of the institution and wary of handing it over to any suitor who didn't stand up to scrutiny.
Thompson subsequently passed every test of loyalty, selflessness and prudence during his reign. While he ploughed into United many millions of his personal fortune, gained from the sale in 2004 of his Morning Noon & Night convenience store chain, he brought balance to a club that had been a major loss-maker, and even restored credibility to the football brand while refusing to bow to inevitable requests to spend money on celebrated players.
Thompson rebuilt Dundee United with almost as much acclaim as he earned for constructing a powerhouse business.
Born in Glasgow in 1940, Thompson moved to Dundee in 1964 to work as an accountant for the firm Watson & Philip. During his leisure time he discovered Dundee United, whose fortunes would rise to their apex in the 1980s, when, with McLean at the helm, they challenged for honours at home and in Europe.
In 1991, he left Watson & Philip to put his vision of a grocery chain into being, and within 13 years there were 50 Morning, Noon & Night stores, employing 800 people and turning over £53 million a year.
The antithesis of a millionaire recluse, Thompson was as well-known in business as he would later become in football. He was first chairman of the Scottish Retail Consortium in 1999, became president of the Scottish Grocers' Federation and sat on the CBI Council for Scotland. He also won the Scottish Grocery Lifetime Achievement award in 2003 and received an OBE in 2005.
By then he was fully immersed in the day-to-day management of his sporting infatuation. He had already founded the Dundee United Business Club while battling to win support for a takeover bid at the turn of the century. Like so many Scottish Premier League teams, United, having invested millions buying players on the promise of satellite TV income growing (instead, it plummeted) were on the brink of ruin.
After buying McLean's shares and becoming chairman and owner in September 2002, Thompson encouraged supporters to play an active role, allowing them to buy shares and setting up a trust for collective share ownership.
ArabTRUST, the Dundee United Supporters' Trust, is now the second largest shareholder after the Thompson family.
In June 2003, the club had been in debt to the tune of £2.7 million, but by June of this year it recorded an operating profit.
As it became clear Thompson's health was failing, he made arrangements to secure the club's long-term future, handing day-to-day duties of the chief executive to his son, Stephen.
While Thompson dismissed a string of managers in his relentless quest for success – admitting, on each occasion, that his judgment in recruitment had been flawed – his relationship with current manager Craig Levein blossomed and he appointed him to the club board on the day last year when he outlined how his family would maintain his legacy after his inevitable passing.
Thompson had been battling prostate cancer for several years and received specialist treatment at Ninewells Hospital, Dundee.
He is survived by his wife, Cath, children Justine and Stephen and four grandchildren.
The full article contains 715 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
