Football Crazy

What the devil is going on at the once proud Rangers Football Club?

Now as I recall, last year the fans were asked to stump up millions of pounds to put the club on a sound financial footing, yet the BBC reports that Rangers were only hours away from bankruptcy again before being 'saved' from administration by a last minute injection of funds in the shape of a £2 million loan from Mike Ashley, the owner of Newcastle FC.  

How long this will last is anyone's guess, but the Ibrox club seem to be stumbling from one crisis to another as various business people vie for control.

Rangers: Mike Ashley funding deal staves off administration

By Chris McLaughlin & Richard Wilson - BBC Scotland

Rangers were 48 hours from going into administration until a £2m loan was agreed with Mike Ashley, according to one senior Ibrox source.

Prospective administrators had been contacted by the Ibrox club.

Newcastle owner Ashley put forward a financial package, which includes the option of a new share issue, on Friday and it was agreed on Saturday morning.

And, as part of the agreement, chief executive Graham Wallace will follow director Philip Nash in stepping down.

The arrangement could be finalised early next week.

English businessman Ashley, who owns 8.29% of the Glasgow club's shares, had called for the removal of Nash and Wallace as part of his offer.

Under Scottish FA agreement Ashley is not allowed boardroom influence or a shareholding of more than 10%.

But his possible underwriting of a share issue could take his stake above that threshold if there is not enough buy-in from other investors. An alternative option could be further loans.

The SFA plan to write Rangers next week seeking clarification on the loan agreement with Ashley.


Kennedy was involved in an unsuccessful attempt to take over Rangers in 2012

Rangers need a financial injection to cover wages beyond November and Sale Sharks owner Brian Kennedy became a surprise latecomer in the battle for control with a funding package offer of his own.

In response to the news that Ashley's offer had been accepted by the board, Kennedy said he was "disappointed for Rangers" but would not be commenting further.

Former director Dave King had also offered fresh funding to Rangers but could not agree a deal following talks with key shareholder Sandy Easdale and the board.

Before returning to his South African business base on Thursday, King issued a statement saying that his group's offer remained on the table and that he was hopeful it would be accepted.

Ashley, who already has control of Rangers' shirt sales and retail division and owns the naming rights for Ibrox Stadium, refused to back King's proposal.

Sandy Easdale, who controls a 26% block of shares, also declined to agree to King's proposals.

While Ashley is demanding two representatives on the board, King also wanted to choose its chairman.

Nash, the former Arsenal and Liverpool executive, had been employed as a financial consultant by Rangers before joining the board in July.

Wallace, currently on a family holiday in Greece, and Nash had been supportive of the bid by King's group, which includes fellow Scottish businessmen George Letham and Paul Murray.

In the Money (6 January 2013)

The latest edition of Private Eye has a very interesting article about the complex financial affairs of Rangers Football Club - here's what the Eye had to say.

PLANET FOOTBALL

Rangers

"The Glasgow club is due to return to the stock market this week. Shares in a brand-new parent company, Rangers International FC, have been sold to fans and institutional investors at 70p and will be listed in the AIM market.

Football clubs are rarely stellar investments, whatever their success on the pitch. But some lucky Rangers shareholders are guaranteed to make money. These are the present investors in the new Rangers FC that acquired the old bankrupt club earlier this year from its administrators. Between May and August, some paid just 1p a share for shares in Rangers FC, which were swapped for shares in the listed company ahead of the flotation. Just over 19m shares were issued at 1p and another 2m at 50p (including 1m issued in October), compared with around 12m shares issued at a riskier 99p or 100p.

So who were the lucky investors? They seem to include mainly the inside group around Charles Green, who led the takeover, and his backers, including three mysterious offshore backers who held more than 23 per cent of the club immediately before the flotation: Blue Pitch Holding Trust (4m shares), Margarita Funds Holding Trust (2.6m) and Norne Anstalt (1.2m). Only with the last of these is it known where the entity is registered (Vadux, Liechtenstein). But the prospectus is completely silent on the beneficial owners.

There is a lock-in of at least six months for some investors and 12 months for Green and other directors. But the shares would have to perform very, very badly for those who paid 1p not to have a big result."

Now I'm no expect on share prices, but am I correct in thinking that some investors  have paid up to 100 times more than others - for the price of acquiring just one, single share?

If so, does this mean that the people paying through the nose are the ordinary Rangers fans - while those who have scooped up a real bargain are these mysterious  offshire backers - and certain 'big cheeses' on the inside track?

Whatever the truth of the matter I think that ordinary Rangers fans deserve to know what's going on - after all they are the real backbone of the club.