CHESHAM UNITED are excelling on and off the pitch this season thanks to a sprinkling of stardust.
Comedian Alex Horne joined his local club’s board in 2022, bringing extra publicity to the seventh-tier side.
The Taskmaster star was offered the opportunity to get involved by chairman Peter Brown, and jumped at the chance.
And non-league defences have subsequently been taken to task, with Chesham sitting pretty at the top of Southern League Premier South.
“I didn’t really know what it meant,” Channel 4 star Horne told The Athletic.
“But I had to be declared a fit and proper person. I’ve never really had a job where you have to be serious, but I quite enjoy it.”
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While The Generals have excelled on the pitch this season, Horne’s largest contributions have come in matters off it.
Chesham sold just 30 replica shirts last season, but with their increased exposure have so far managed to flog 1,200 this time around.
Horne, 45, explained: “We sell the shirts in the club shop and website but also on Taskmaster’s site.
“The club takes all the profits. We don’t take anything from it. The production company Avalon have been great and understanding.
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“It’s not a bad thing to be involved in a non-league side.”
The Generals have averaged crowds of 557 for their home league games this season.
Boosting attendances have been Taskmaster fans from overseas, with the show watched in over 100 countries.
On the extent of Horne’s commercial impact, chairman Brown revealed: “He’s publicised the club to a level that we’ve never seen before.
“This is the States, Europe, Australia, New Zealand. Everyone’s buying Chesham United shirts because of Taskmaster, because it’s Alex Horne.
“He’s such a likeable chap. He gets on and does things so quietly.”
Chesham enjoyed a run to the FA Cup first round proper this term, attracting a near-3,000 sell-out for their match against Maidstone – pocketing £45,000 in the process.
Horne has also raised funds by performing in the club’s Chess Suite, but is keen to stress that despite his involvement, Chesham are definitely not another Wrexham.
On comparisons with the Welsh side, owned by Hollywood superstars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, Horne adds: “It comes up quite a lot.
“It’s quite annoying, though. I’m a big fan of the programme and find what they’re doing really good — but they put in millions of pounds. This is not that. Also, they are a sleeping giant.”
On how he does make a difference, Horne added: “Instead of just saying, ‘Here’s a million pounds’ — which I couldn’t afford to do — it’s more about contributing to things where all the money goes to the club, so that’s suddenly thousands of pounds.
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“The aim isn’t really to get into the Football League, it’s about making Chesham a more fun place, which it is at the moment.
“It’s about being a fully functioning football club that’s part of the community. That’s the positive thing.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
