{"id":489842,"date":"2026-02-19T09:42:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T09:42:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/489842\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T09:42:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T09:42:10","slug":"collingwood-sorry-for-sending-members-letters-about-adding-magpies-to-their-will-bequeathment-service-latest-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/489842\/","title":{"rendered":"Collingwood sorry for sending members letters about adding Magpies to their will, bequeathment service, latest news"},"content":{"rendered":"

Collingwood has apologised after a letter sent to older members about the club\u2019s bequeathment service drew ire on social media.<\/p>\n

WWOS reported<\/a> the Magpies had sent the letters to members over the age of 50, alerting them to the program which involves the football club being added to a person\u2019s will.<\/p>\n

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All 18 clubs have bequest societies with those willing to posthumously donate to their footy teams given rewards such as memberships and special access to events.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy joining Side by Side Forever with a gift in your will, you can leave a lasting mark on the club you love,\u201d the letter posted by Twitter user Wes read.<\/p>\n

He wrote: \u201cMy mum got this today.<\/p>\n

\u201cAre they serious? How much money do they need?\u201d<\/p>\n

The letter included instructions on how to amend existing wills to add the Magpies as a benefactor.<\/p>\n

A photo of a letter shared on X. Photo: X and @wesy_b.Source: Supplied<\/p>\n

According to the Pies\u2019 website, users of the Side By Side Forever program receive invitations to exclusive recognition events with guest speakers including past and present players, a commemorative lapel pin and commemorative apron, and access to certain game day specials and experiences when available. <\/p>\n

While it\u2019s relatively common for groups like charities to reach out, or for schools to contact alumni, Magpies CEO Craig Kelly apologised amid the backlash on Thursday evening.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe sincerely apologise to anyone who felt upset or uncomfortable receiving this communication \u2013 particularly supporters currently navigating difficult circumstances,\u201d he said in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur intention was to offer members the option to consider a legacy gift if they wish \u2013 something that is commonplace across many AFL clubs and organisations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Craig McRae, Senior Coach of the Magpies and captain Darcy Moore after losing their 2025 preliminary final against the Lions. Photo by Robert Cianflone\/Getty Images.Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n

Hawthorn has previously listed bequestor funding in its annual report, with 87 having chosen to donate to the club in their wills as of 2022.<\/p>\n

Melbourne launched its Ron Barassi Bequest Society in 2012 and lists 124 members including Barassi himself.<\/p>\n

Many clubs use these donations to support community programs while the Hawks\u2019 donations go towards their public ancillary fund which helped fund their new Dingley training base.<\/p>\n

\u201cA number of our members and their families are often in contact with the club wanting to make a financial contribution via a bequest,\u201d the Hawks told The Age in 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny request that is made to make a bequest to the club is treated with respect, care and follows a clear process within the club.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Collingwood has apologised after a letter sent to older members about the club\u2019s bequeathment service drew ire on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":489843,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,44,85,41,39,42,40],"class_list":{"0":"post-489842","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-headlines","9":"tag-news","10":"tag-sports","11":"tag-top-news","12":"tag-top-stories","13":"tag-topnews","14":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/489842","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=489842"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/489842\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/489843"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=489842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=489842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=489842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}