Glasgow Rangers enter Administration

[Lee]

Think they're now officially called 'the Rangers'

Ah, right.

That's why I asked. I remember at the time the talk of the club winding down and doing a Wimbledon, they had to change their name which is why I wondered how Rangers can still be called Rangers.

The Rangers... that'd make sense.

[Yozza]

Rangers' final tax bill tops £94m, Duff and Phelps reveals

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-19786824

David Whitehouse and Paul Clark were appointed as joint administrators

The old Rangers Football Club owed more than £94m in unpaid tax and penalties, according to its administrators.

The final report to creditors from Duff and Phelps reveals that the size of HM Revenue and Customs claim against the club totalled £94,426,217.

It also shows that the administrators are claiming £3,121,683 in fees.

Creditors have until 12 October to vote on the report. When the administration period ends, the old Rangers FC will be placed in the hands of liquidators BDO.

Rangers was forced into administration by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) on 14 February over non-payment of tax totalling about £14m.

Craig Whyte, who bought the club from Sir David Murray last year, was successful in having his nominated firm, Duff and Phelps, appointed.

Rangers went into administration owing up to £134m to unsecured creditors.
As a result its registrations with the Scottish FA and Scottish Premier League were terminated.

Charles Green led a consortium which bought Rangers' assets for £5.5m.
The former Sheffield United chief executive reformed Rangers as a new company.
The 'newco' did not get the required votes for re-admittance to the SPL and started life in Scottish Division Three.

Following a hearing at the Court of Session, David Whitehouse and Paul Clark were appointed as joint administrators of the club.

After HMRC rejected proposals for a creditors agreement that would have allowed the old club to continue, Duff and Phelps negotiated a sale of assets to a consortium led by Charles Green for £5.5m.

He has since formed a new club which is playing in the Scottish Football League Third Division.

In its final report to creditors, Duff and Phelps states: "The joint administrators have continued to review the claims made by HMRC in the administration.

"The claims are largely made up of determinations issued by HMRC in accordance with Regulation 80, penalties and outstanding PAYE/NIC.

"The joint administrators have adjudicated on these claims and confirmed to HMRC that for voting purposes, their claim will be admitted for voting purposes at £94,426,217.22."

The majority of that figure relates to the old club's use of Employee Benefit Trusts (EBTs), on which HMRC claimed unpaid tax and penalties in excess of £49m.

A judgement on an appeal of this assessment, which was heard at a First Tier Tax Tribunal, is imminent.

The creditors report notes: "An outcome has yet to be determined by the tribunal and is currently expected in October 2012."

Among the resolutions which creditors are being asked to approve is Duff and Phelps' fees.

The report states: "That the creditors approve the remuneration, expenses and outlays of the joint administrators in respect of all accounting periods not previously approved, being, in respect of remuneration only, £2,930,644 for the period 14 February 2012 to 29 June 2012 and £191,039 for the period 10 August 2012 to 14 September 2012."

[Buzzo]

Charles Green is priceless.

History and Trophies - New Co.
Bad Tax debt - Old Co.
Name - New Co.
Legal procedings - Old Co.
Good stuff - New Co.
Bad stuff - Old Co.

I wonder if now that the old co. no longer exists HMRC will go after the actual individuals involved for unpaid taxes through money they recieved through the EBTS?

[ChesterDave]

Charles Green getting above his station

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/19924802

Rangers chief executive Charles Green predicts European overhaul

Chief executive Charles Green believes Rangers will be involved in the formation of a new European league.

Green's consortium relaunched the Ibrox club after the former incarnation could not be saved from liquidation.

Rangers currently play in Scottish Football League Division Three.

"There will be a European league because big teams can't keep subsidising small teams for the next 10 years because they will go stale," said Green.

"Arsenal don't want to play Southampton or Swansea, but ask them if they want to play Celtic or Rangers. It's what the fans want to see.

"Fans across the world want to see Manchester United play Barcelona, not just once every few years but every season.

"If there are two divisions of 18 clubs, how could Rangers not be a part of that?

"I'm convinced it will happen because otherwise where will the revenues for the top come from?

"These days Arsenal are struggling to sell out their game against West Ham."

Last month, BBC Scotland revealed Scottish clubs, including Rangers, were to discuss the possibility of being part of a new European regional league set-up.

Uefa is believed to be becoming increasingly concerned by the polarisation across the game between the top clubs and top leagues and is open to change.

And Green added: "How can Manchester United's revenues be £320m and Aston Villa, who are completely useless, get £250m?

"What Manchester United put into world football is massive, but what they take out of it is a joke and they won't put up with that for much longer."

Oh Charles, you got knocked out the cup by a small team, and you are currently 35th out of 42 Scottish teams. How do you propose you are worthy of being in the top 36 throughout Europe? I'd look closer to home before attacking other clubs for being useless.

[Buzzo]

Hearts about to go bust. It's been coming... Unless they can find any lunatic supporters willing to pump some funds into the club.

Hearts on the brink: George Foulkes says it’s up to Vladimir Romanov now
Published on Thursday 8 November 2012 12:01

THE future of Hearts is hanging by a thread after bosses have been left with just eight days to save the club.

The club faces being wound up after being served with a court order over an unpaid £450,000 tax bill.

Worried fans were today faced with the devastating prospect that unless the cash is found by next Friday, the Tynecastle club’s proud 138-year history could end in liquidation.

The Hearts board is trying to negotiate with the tax authorities to pay the demand in instalments, but appealed to anxious supporters to buy shares in the club or purchase tickets in advance for upcoming games to 
generate extra revenue.

A statement on the club’s official website said: “This isn’t a bluff, this isn’t scaremongering – this is reality.”

And there were signs that at least some fans were 
responding. A message on Twitter claimed more than 2000 tickets had been sold in just over an hour for the match against St Mirren on November 17. And one fan tweeted: “Unemployed. Redundancy money gone. Going to buy match ticket now. Will worry about eating later. Won’t let my club die.”

The Scottish Government said it stood ready to assist in any way it could, including making contact with HMRC if necessary. A spokesman said: “It is in everyone’s interests to find a solution which ensures that Hearts can continue in business while also meeting their obligations to the tax 
authorities.”

A spokesman for Alex Salmond, himself a Hearts fan, said: “Like any Hearts supporter, the First Minister is concerned at the current situation at the club. All clubs facing financial difficulty must be treated even-handedly.”

Independent Lothians MSP Margo MacDonald was hoping to raise the issue at First Minister’s Questions today. She said: “I’m going to ask him to do all he can by getting hold of the SFA and the League and trying to have some sort of plan for clubs that find themselves in this sort of difficulty.

“I feel particularly sorry for Hearts. We can’t all be Hibbies, we’ve got to keep them going. They are a business, but they are part of the fabric and culture of the city. We need two football teams.”

Former Hearts chairman George Foulkes said it was up to Hearts owner Vladimir 
Romanov, Lithuania-based 
director Sergejus Fedotovas and Mr Romanov’s banking business Ukio Bankas Investment Group (UBIG) to 
produce the money to save the club. The Labour peer and former Lothians MSP said: “We have been in this situation before, but that does not mean we should underestimate the problem that would be created if the money was not paid. Having spoken to the club, my understanding is if the money is not paid, we would go into liquidation. That would be a disaster – dreadful for 
Romanov, dreadful for the Revenue and dreadful for the fans. It’s not the way forward.

“UBIG said they would take responsibility for all the 
expenditure and it was on that basis the SFA registered the club for the current season.

“Romanov has been quoted saying he will keep the club going until the summer. They have to come up with the money by next week. If Romanov stands by his word and keeps it going until the summer, that gives us time to explore other owners.

“I understand people are working on the future ownership, but it needs time for the work to be done. I don’t want to raise hopes unduly because eight years ago the only person around was Romanov.

“But one of the things 
Romanov has done is show the potential in terms of the numbers who turn up for matches; we’ve won two cups; and in the last year he has reduced expenditure, stopping spending silly money on players.”

Romanov first took a stake in Hearts in 2004, with an 
increased share-holding giving him effective control of the club the following year and he gradually increased his stake to 82 per cent. His wealth has been variously estimated at between £200m and £300m.

Mr Fedotovas today said Hearts were in a “really serious situation”. He added: “It’s important people understand that before it’s too late. The truth is that we need supporters to help the club out of this situation. There is no bank, there is no institution that will lend to the club in Scotland or the UK.” He hinted, however, that UBIG could help Hearts out of the hole. He said: “We hope we will be able to find some solution and one of the possibilities may be UBIG. We are speaking to UBIG and they have a good understanding of what is going on.”

In a statement, the board said the club had been served with an order to wind up Heart of Midlothian plc by the Court of Session on 
behalf of HMRC. But it said it was “hopeful” of agreeing a suitable payment plan for the £449,692.04 of unpaid tax. The demand is separate from another tax bill for £1.75m which the club is contesting.

Hearts fan and Lothians Conservative MSP David McLetchie, said: “This is a tragedy which will do nothing to save the club. The key is how we are going to salvage something. Those who put their faith in Mr Romanov are going to have to explain themselves but most importantly what is their alternative.”





ANALYSIS

By Neil Patey, Football finance expert at Ernst & Young and former adviser to Roman Abramovich

This is not the first time this has happened to Hearts. Previously, HMRC has issued a winding-up order and in that situation Hearts paid in time to avoid the appointment of a liquidator.

Hearts had eight days from Tuesday

November 6 to either pay up in full or convince HMRC to

allow them to pay through an instalment plan.

It’s difficult to

imagine how amiable HMRC might be.

HMRC have a separate ongoing dispute case so there is a risk that they may insist on the full amount. It would be very difficult to pay that off in one go. The club could stop paying all their bills, wages, creditors, so they can generate as much cash as possible in time. If they can’t raise the cash and if HMRC do not agree to an instalment plan a provisional liquidator would be appointed by the court.

Within 28 days the provisional liquidator would call a meeting of creditors and the meeting has to be held within 42 days of that. At the meeting, creditors, confirm by simple majority the appointment of a liquidator.

Then, as with Rangers, the liquidators would seek to run the club and start to try and break even.

This may mean cost cuts and selling players to stop further cash losses and then the eventual sale of the club. Ultimately, it may mean the liquidation of the club.

The big unknown in all this is will Vladimir Romanov have the ability – or the willingness – to supply cash to make up any shortfall before that process.

The Hearts fans – who the club has

appealed to buy

future tickets – could have an important say here and might well be the deciding factor.


Council can step in says Cardownie




COUNCIL chiefs could offer help to keep Hearts alive.

Depute city council leader and Hearts fan Steve Cardownie said the news of the club’s predicament had come as a shock. He said: “This is a very grave development and one that will have to be addressed immediately by the club. As yet there has been no approach to the council and I understand Hearts are seeking staged payments to HMRC.”

He said when Hibs were on the brink of financial ruin in 1990 the council had offered the team the use of Meadowbank for its games. And he did not rule out some kind of council assistance for Hearts.

“It’s an Edinburgh institution,” he said. “All sorts of factors would have to be taken into consideration. But there has been no approach from the club. It’s hard to see how we could step in because they are a private company owned by a bank. It’s difficult to see where we would have a locus. But there are other ways the council may be able to help.

“Although it does not exactly mirror the Hibs situation, the council did play an active part in Hands off Hibs.”

[Daniel 7]

Ouch. They'll just go to the bottom tier and then come up again though.

There's something brewing with all of this though, there has to be. No way some of the players that have joined Rangers would have joined to waste a year of their careers coming slowly back up through the lowe divisions Scotland.

I reckon there's a behind the scenes reorganisation in place, 2 main divisions SPL 1 + 2, and the "bigger" scottish teams protected in their position. Hearts might have one year out or down, but they'll just be accepted back in to SPL2 at the end of it.

I take it Romanov is fed up of paying the bills he helped mount up then Buzzo?

[Fernandinho]

I wouldnt be suprised. That lad from Hearts, Templeton, who had a field day against us, went to Rangers, and he is 24 and at his peak. No way he went there to waste 3 years of his career unless something was brewing.

[dww]

A conciliatory attempt to win favour with the SFA from the club:

Remember Sporting Integrity?
TUESDAY, 08 JANUARY 2013 17:30
WRITTEN BY JAMES TRAYNOR

http://rangers.co.uk/news/opinion/item/3085-remember-sporting-integrity

THE shape of things to come, three divisions of 12-12-18, has been agreed in principle.

This abomination will now be pulled and stretched by selected members of the SPL and SFL in a desperate attempt to make it more presentable.
Good luck with that.
It would be easier trying to iron out the lines on the face of the old broad, Madge, in Benidorm.
12-12-18. It’s ridiculous, especially when you remember the two 12s will fragment into three eights.
Yet this time supporters will just have to buy into it. Whatever happened to that new and bold notion that fans were all important?
It isn’t that long ago clubs, particularly those in the top flight, were solemnly insisting that ignoring the views of fans would be akin to financial suicide.
Remember? It was when the game was wrestling with the problem of what to do with Rangers.
All the clubs were squealing that the wishes of fans had to be granted. If you swallowed any of that bilge you probably also believed in sporting integrity.
Of course it was all nonsense. Sporting Integrity was a cloak of convenience, albeit a rather thin, practically transparent one, behind which club leaders huddled together to come up with sanctions.
Rangers had to be punished, they deserved to be punished but it seemed as if additional penalties were being randomly introduced depending on who was in which meeting.
Many Rangers fans like to think the frenzy to cause the club as much additional pain as possible was driven by one club but that wasn’t strictly the case. Many fans of many clubs waded in but this is not to say Celtic fans or their club didn’t attempt to influence the outcome of debates on Rangers and possible sanctions.
Of course they did. And they are still at it on social media sites and on blogs clattered out by individuals who are no better than semi-literate.
The sheer hypocrisy of what is happening within Hampden’s corridors of power right now will be lost on them but let’s not pretend sporting integrity or the wishes of supporters really are important to all those clubs pushing for this change.
If they were listening to fans they wouldn’t be sticking with a top division of 12 , and if there was any integrity there would be no rush to bring in changes for the start of next season.
If, as seems likely, the structure is altered for 2013-14 supporters won’t get what they’ve already paid for, especially those following teams striving for promotion. Actually this entire season will be rendered meaningless.
Sporting integrity won’t merely be compromised, it’ll be crushed but this is what happens when desperation slips in and throttles reason.
This belief won’t sit well with the few who are more or less running the SPL and influencing thinking within that desperate organisation but they can’t complain. After all, they’ve dismissed Rangers’ views completely.
This club, the biggest one in the country, were not invited to take part in talks which will shape the game’s future.
We are then entitled to conclude that this club are not important, which is strange indeed when so many fans of other clubs continue to be obsessed by Rangers, who are simply getting on with their own affairs asking no favour from anyone.
We do, however, expect commonsense to be applied, along with fair play.
Look, Rangers will return to the top flight, which will of course have to be rebranded. Rangers will take a seat at the head of the table where, despite the latest insult of being shut out of reconstruction talks, we will act with the good of Scottish football in mind.
We’ll work through the divisions and we will return stronger and better than ever before.
This club accepted their sanctions and moved on but too many others have been unable to do the same. They continue their assaults and while the deranged, who are using social media sites as conduits for their twisted agendas, should be ignored there are more than a few in the mainstream still maligning the club at every opportunity.
In a BBC radio debate last Saturday night one pundit, in a matter-of-fact manner, said Charles Green speaks with ‘forked tongue.’ No attempt to explain or justify the statement, just as no explanation was offered when another radio voice claimed there was a dishonesty about Walter Smith when he went public with a late bid for the club.
Word of advice gentlemen. From now on be very careful when talking or writing about this club.
To paraphrase something said about another club, Rangers will not be treated less than others. And although there is no desire to pick fights, be assured that no one will attack Rangers with impunity.
Better, however, to quote Bill Struth: ‘Never fear, inevitably we shall have our years of failure and when they arrive, we must reveal tolerance and sanity. You do that, you will emerge stronger than before.’
Tolerance and sanity. That’s what Rangers will demonstrate and maintain, especially when back at the summit.
After all, someone has to. 12-12-18. Dear God.

[ChesterDave]

This Scottish FA obsession with splitting the league is ludicrous.

As unlikely as it is it is technically possible for the team with the most points to not win the league. Madness

[Fivex]

Haha - I glanced at the link and read that whole article as an official club statement.

Thought Charles Green had gone all Romanov on us.

[Chazza]

Rangers chief executive Charles Green believes that the club should attempt to quit Scottish football if league reconstruction plans are approved.

He says the new set-up will render the remainder of the season meaningless and he insists it is only cash that is driving the adoption of the plan.

He told Rangers TV: "If this does happen what is the point of us finishing the season? We might as well have a winter break now until next August. I can't see any point in carrying on with meaningless matches."

[Assassin]

" I can't see any point in carrying on with meaningless matches."

Nicely sums up Scottish football

[spud_gun]

Haha - I glanced at the link and read that whole article as an official club statement.

Thought Charles Green had gone all Romanov on us.

It IS an offical club statement.

James Traynor is head of PR for Rangers.

[Fivex]

Wow.

[RichC]

Horrible news

Scottish Football - Rangers legend Ricksen: I have Motor Neurone Disease
Former Rangers captain Fernando Ricksen has vowed to fight on after revealing on live TV that he has been diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease

The Dutch defender told interviewers in his homeland: "I am very sick. I am fighting for my life."

The 37-year-old received the news he was suffering from the incurable illness only two weeks ago.

But declaring his determination to fight for his health for the sake of his wife Veronica and their daughter Isabella, he told the Scottish Sun: "I have feared for a couple of months I was in trouble - it is very hard to take.

"Inside me there is a fighting spirit, there always has been. I will fight this - I know it will be difficult but I will battle all the way. I have Veronica and Isabella - they are my second life and I have to try."

Ricksen is understood to have amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a form of the rare degenerative condition that attacks the central nervous system.

As the illness progresses, sufferers find it increasingly difficult to walk, speak, swallow and breathe.

Ricksen signed for Rangers in a deal worth around £4million in 2006 but left to sign for Russian side Zenit St Petersburg later that year after falling out with then Ibrox boss Paul Le Guen.

He won two Scottish Premier League titles, two Scottish Cups and three League Cups during his six-year spell with the Light Blues and was also named joint SPFA Player of the Year in 2004-05 alongside Celtic striker John Hartson.

ABOUT AMYOTROPHIC LATERAL SCLEROSIS

ALS is one type of motor neurone disease a rapidly progressive and fatal disease. It can affect any adult at any time and attacks the motor neurones that send messages from the brain to the muscles, leaving people unable to walk, talk or feed themselves. The cause of the disease is unknown and there is no known cure. Around 5,000 people in the UK have MND at any one time, with half of people with the disease dying within 14 months of diagnosis.