We now know that Craig Whyte met Neil Doncaster and Ralph Topping, directors of the SPL, in London in October 2011 and informed them of the likelihood that Rangers would go into liquidation. Whyte’s plan, to start a Newco and have it parachuted into top flight football was only taken seriously as a result of these three having a head start on everyone else and doing some preparatory work.
Charles Green has no such plans. If he loses Ibrox, becomes embroiled in IPO-related troubles or fails to bridge the gap between money-in and money-out, an unplanned liquidation could follow with a potentially protracted period where physical assets are moribund and playing assets and other staff are released.
The SPL and SFL would do well to consider ‘what next?’ when they hold separate meetings next week. The century-old ways are gone, things will never be the same again.
I’m really pleased the aforementioned Charlie issued an apology for his offending comments, even if he did so under duress from the SFA. This kind of rhetoric has taken control within football in some European countries. Once the door is open it is hard to close it again.
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vale bhoy
11:48 on
12 April, 2013
Basic arithmetic would suggest that £137k is half of the £250k
Eh?
====
I blame Kafolik skools i do.
I read Iain King’s column in the Sun on the Sandaza/Tommy story.
Like many on here, I was uncomfortable with Tommy singling out a regular footballer for the hoax treatment, when previously he has targetted people who are in a position of influence behind some of the biggest stories in the game.
Iain King goes after Tommy in strong terms, and is very clear that in his view, Sandaza was sacked because of what Tommy did, Tommy being a low life for doing so. King does not consider the approach adopted by the Sevco management in his discussion of the outcome for Sandaza.
Leaving that aside, there is a rather incongrous “Glass Houses” reflection on Iain King and The Sun, given News International’s long and discredited use of similar techniques. Let’s not forget than a number of NI executives are currently facing criminal procedings associated with unlawful and contemptible ‘news gathering’ practices.
From phone tapping to corrupting public officials, from publishing Craig Whyte’s recorded converstations last week, to the nasty sting carried out on John Higgins, The Sun and its associated publications have demonstrated over many years that the means of getting the story should not be coloured by ethics or moral judgement.
In condemning Tommy as “a thoroughly cynical and nasty individual” Mr King should perhaps reflect that he tars himself and his colleagues with the same brush.
livibhoy
11:42 on
12 April, 2013
How depressingly true!
But if none of the football clubs chairman will do it why don’t the fans do it?
Radio Clyde News @RadioClydeNews 27m
The #SFA have confirmed to Clyde News there is no intention of asking Charles Green to explain ‘no surrender’ comments.
Retweeted by Scotzine
You can all relax now guys.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club today
outlines in detail the new proposed
league structure for the professional
game in Scotland.
The Board of the club will support the
proposals for positive changes to the
game in this country.
Article continues
Advertisement
Hearts believes, as one of the most
established and largest clubs in Scottish
football, that it has a responsibility to the
game in this country and that the new
proposed 12-12-18 structure, while by no
means perfect, delivers a series of
important improvements. These are
improvements we, along with many other
clubs and their supporters, have lobbied
for in recent years. It is incumbent on us
to deliver change for the game as a whole
and in turn improve the longer term
prospects of all clubs, at all levels, within
the game.
Most notably, the new structure will
provide:
– increased competition amongst the top
24 professional clubs in Scotland with
almost every game at every stage in the
season having value to spectators,
broadcasters and sponsors.
– fairer distribution of wealth across
teams in all leagues. The top two
positions alone in the current SPL will
give up £1 million in prize money in order
to facilitate a new 24 team professional
league in Scotland.
– increased financial protection for
relegated clubs from the SPL.
– one merged organisation superseding
the SPL and SFL to run league football
– the introduction of a true pyramid
system – featuring promotion and
relegation play offs at all levels – for
Scottish football rewarding ambitious
teams while protecting those that are
more “community / regionally” focussed.
The Q&A below explains more about why
Hearts will vote in favour of change for
Scottish football. Hearts wants you to
have a clear picture of the importance of
committing to these changes. We can now
present the positive detail and we hope
that supporters will see the opportunity in
adopting a new approach to the game. As
such, we are rejecting the status quo
which is no longer adequate in meeting
the needs of the nation’s game.
There is only one possible opportunity for
change in the game after years of
deliberation, discussion and negotiation.
QUESTION AND ANSWER
League models based on 10, 14, 16, 18
and 20 teams have been examined, as
well as the current 12-team model. What
were found to be the drawbacks of each?
Structures with a smaller number of clubs
have proved to be undeliverable (i.e. the
clubs will not vote in sufficient numbers
to reduce their number). Additionally, this
would not be of interest to supporters who
would rather see more games against
different clubs if possible.
Structures with a larger number of clubs
do not provide the required number of
league matches (i.e. there are too few
league matches), do not deliver improved
commercial opportunities, can lead to
more meaningless (and therefore less
attractive to fans) matches and would
have a negative impact on the revenues of
clubs from both match day and central
sources.
On average it would costs Hearts
£250,000 minimum lost revenue per
home game. So, for example, the 16-team
league would result in a loss of more than
£1 million to Hearts in ticket revenue
alone based on a 30-game season with
teams playing each other home and away
once.
Why not keep it the same then? Why
change?
Change is constant. Over the last eight
seasons, more than half of the European
leagues have changed their league
format. It doesn’t mean it is always right
but we do believe that there are some very
compelling reasons to change as we
outlined above.
But we should also ask – ‘What happens if
we don’t change’? Crowds are dropping
at games, audience figures are dropping
with broadcasters and commercial
income is dropping as a result of both
these factors. Quality on the pitch is being
affected by the pressure on clubs’
revenues and we are in real danger of
speeding up the demise of the game if we
don’t change to the new model.
In the proposed 12/12 model, how would
the league structure for the top 24 teams
operate?
12 Team ‘Premiership’
– The 12 Premiership clubs each play 22
games in the first half of the season.
– These first 22 games determine which 8
clubs go forward to the ‘Premiership 8’
competition; and which 4 clubs go
forward to the ‘Play-off 8’ competition.
12 Team ‘Championship’
– The 12 Championship clubs each play
22 games in the first half of the season.
The winner is awarded the Championship
trophy.
– These first 22 games determine which 4
clubs go forward to the ‘Play-off 8’
competition; and which 8 clubs go
forward to the ‘Championship 8’
competition.
8-8-8 split
– The ‘Premiership 8’ clubs play off home
and away over the remaining 14 fixture
rounds for the Premiership trophy and
European places.
– The ‘Play-off 8’ clubs play off home and
away over the remaining 14 fixture
rounds for promotion / relegation. Top
four play in the Premiership next season,
bottom four in the Championship.
– The ‘Championship 8′ clubs play off
home and away over the remaining 14
fixture rounds to battle against relegation,
with two automatic relegation places (7th
and 8th place) and a further two play-off
places (5th and 6th place) Sounds like we need a degree in Maths to
understand that! And in English please…
OK. Let’s say it was this season. Hearts
would now be playing in the Play-Off 8
having finished ninth after 22 games this
season.
We’d currently be playing Morton,
Dunfermline, Partick, Livingston, St
Mirren, Ross County and Dundee to retain
our Premiership status.
Effectively it’s a Play-Off League
guaranteeing 14 meaningful games, large
match day crowds, extra TV income and
more associated commercial backing. It
also satisfies those fans who want to see
us play more new teams. And, if as we
hope, we achieve Top 8 status when the
new system is introduced, yes we’ll be
playing the same seven teams home and
away again but we’ll be in the mix for a
European place so again there will be
meaningful games right through until the
end of the season.
But it seems there is an increased risk of
relegation to all but one club in the
current SPL?
That’s one way of looking at it. It is also
true that there is an increased chance of
survival for the team that finishes in 12th
place as they are no longer certain to be
relegated given that the Play-Off 8
provides them with a survival chance.
It’s true, though, there is a greater risk of
relegation for every club in the current
SPL with, being realistic, the exception of
Celtic. This, together with the acceptance
to redistribute base income across 24
clubs as opposed to 12, shows just how
seriously SPL clubs view the need to
change the game as a whole for the
betterment of Scottish football.
Every game in the SPL will matter with
teams 1 to 12, right from the start of the
season, all going for a Top 8 place and
trying to avoid the drop into the Play-Off
8. The Championship will also have
almost every game meaningful with clubs
vying for a top four finish in order to be
promoted into the Play-Off 8.
In any one season up to 4 new teams
could enter the Premiership. Alternatively,
all four Premiership bottom 4 teams have
a chance of surviving.
Will there not be difficulties in playing 22
rounds of fixtures before the New Year
split? What if games are postponed?
Consideration can be given to adjusting
the start date of the season to ensure that
the required number of games have been
played when the split occurs.
It is also possible that additional midweek
fixtures may be scheduled in the summer
and early autumn months to capitalise on
better weather. In an extreme situation it
would be possible to use the period of the
winter break to complete phase one
fixtures.
Better weather! Now there’s a thing, and
what about the chances of summer
football?
This is something that we as a club are
very keen to explore. However, this is a
more general topic and will be dealt with
separately from league reconstruction.
It is Hearts’ view that there is a very
strong case for summer football although,
in reality, it is essentially “four seasons”
football with the season starting in
February or March and ending in
November.
It seems only natural that we should be
playing the majority of our season in the
better weather with lighter evenings and
increase the appeal of live Scottish
football amongst the supporters. The
advantages from an attendance point of
view are one aspect but the footballing
arguments are also paramount and for
those teams competing in the early
rounds of Europe it will be advantageous.
Also the costs of staging a match at
Tynecastle can in theory be reduced due
to less use of under soil heating and
floodlights as well as better ground care
options.
While we’re on the subject, any chance of
more sensible fixture scheduling?
Yes, one of the benefits of the new
proposal is that it allows for regular
fixture scheduling with ideally sequential
home and away matches for the first 22
games and then again for the next 14
games.
The new proposal also allows better
planning of fixtures at the conclusion of
the Premiership and Championship in the
first week in January. This gives
supporters more time to plan their
attendance and related travel and
financial plans for games in the
Premiership 8 or the Play-Off 8.
We’ll also be lobbying for early
announcement on games that are
scheduled for television to allow
supporters more advance notice.
Sounds to me like TV could be calling the
shots again and we’ll be having seven-
night-a-week football.
There has to be a balance struck with the
TV companies and this is an ongoing
discussion with the broadcasters. It will
also be of importance should any other
entrants come in to the Scottish football
broadcast marketplace in the seasons
ahead.
The new proposed league will allow the
game to benefit from potential new
revenues that do not currently exist. This
in turn provides valuable additional
income that is distributed amongst the
clubs. This is guaranteed income which is
crucial for clubs when predicting cash
flow projections for the new season.
There should be no reason, however, why
suitable agreement can’t be reached on
establishing a much better template for
kick-off times that also suits the majority
of supporters and this is something that
Hearts and many other clubs are keen to
secure.
Even so, the footy’s a bit expensive so
surely you’ll need to do something with
the pricing to attract crowds?
It is important to recognise that because
of TV revenues in the game, clubs can
resist increasing season ticket or match
day ticket prices as much as they might
need to in order to maintain a self-
sustainable football club.
Without TV income, Scottish football
clubs and the game in general would be
in a much worse condition. A better
product on the park – which is something
we all want to see – requires funding and
this is why a balance must be struck in
order that supporters can benefit from
football at times and locations that suit
them while also allowing for the
requirements of TV companies
scheduling. We must establish a harmony
between both as both are integral to the
game in this country. Hearts is highly
active in incentivising season ticket sales
and match day ticket sales and we would
plan to continue this. But no club can
balance the books based on ticketing
revenue alone and we do have to work
with many stakeholders to keep the club
competitive in the professional game in
this country.
What about the next 18 clubs below the
top 24? What will the league structure
look like?
The Scottish Football League has
proposed that the remaining 18 senior
clubs should compete in a single division.
18 team ‘First Division’
– The remaining 18 clubs each play 34
games per season. The winner is
awarded the First Division trophy.
– The top two clubs at the end of the
season would be promoted automatically
to the Championship, replacing the two
clubs relegated from the bottom of the
Championship 8.
– Clubs in positions 3 to 6 of the First
Division would play-off against each
other and then against the clubs fifth and
sixth in the Championship 8 for a
possible two additional promotion places.
– The clubs finishing in 17th and 18th
places in the First Division would play-off
against two teams from the leagues
below (from season 2014/2015 onwards)
for possible relegation out of the First
Division.
– The Scottish FA should work with the
East of Scotland League, the South of
Scotland League, the Highland League
and the Juniors to ensure the existence of
a league structure appropriate to the
smooth operation of such play-offs.
One of the key issues with the current
system is that the lion’s share of revenue
generated in Scottish football is
distributed among the top 12 clubs only.
What would financial distributions be
under the 24/18 model?
Key aspects of the new fairer, revised
distribution model include:
– the top two positions in the SPL will
reduce their share of base revenues from
a total 32% to a total 23% equating to
approximately £1m based on historic and
projected figures.
– teams 3 to 8 in the SPL will reduce their
share of base revenues by approximately
7%.
– the team that finishes top of the
Championship (after 22 games) is
projected to earn £387k as opposed to
the £68k it would gain for winning the
current SFL1.
– every team in the Championship will
earn more revenue when compared to the
equivalent position in the current SFL1.
From a competitive point of view, would
clubs who believe they will finish in the
bottom four of the Premiership not just
rest their best players and wait until the
Play-Off 8 to spend money on new
players and make a push for promotion
then?
You can never judge how individual
managers may choose to play. However,
after 22 games this season only five
points separated 5th and 11th place in
the Clydesdale Bank Premier League.
Further, eight teams were within four
points of what would have been the
Premiership 8 points threshold. This
suggests that even in the latter stages
before the split there will be plenty to play
for.
Austria and Switzerland tried similar
systems and both were deemed to be
unsuccessful. Why will it work in
Scotland?
Both countries ran with similar league
systems for a number of years and, whilst
the format proved to be very exciting and
competitive, they have now changed to
smaller ten-team top divisions for other
reasons. Different leagues face different
challenges, and the 12/12 structure has
been designed to address the specific
challenges faced currently by Scottish
football.
What progress has been made to date
and what are the next steps to be taken
to approve league reconstruction?
For the past three years work has been
carried out to examine the issues and
challenges faced by the current set-up,
and the possible operation and benefits of
different structures. This season the key
dates of progress have been:
– 3rd December: an all-club SPL meeting
agreed ‘unanimous in principle’ support
for the 12/12 model, to be discussed with
the SFL and Professional Game Board
(PGB) through the SPL’s Restructuring
Group
– 27th December: a meeting of the PGB
agreed in principle that a 12/12 model
should be examined, including a single
merged league and an all-through
distribution model
– 8th January: a meeting of the PGB
(including the entire SFL Board and six
members of the SPL’s Restructuring
Group) agreed in principle further
refinements, including a revised
governance model and a new all-through
distribution formula, to be taken to clubs
– 28th January: further detail on the
operation of the 12/12 model was
received by an all-club SPL meeting and
again given ‘unanimous in principle’
support
– 31st January: an all-club SFL meeting
overwhelmingly supported the model
being taken forward. The SPL confirmed
that it was entirely comfortable whether
the SFL preferred a 12/12/18 model, or
12/12/10/10.
In order to formally approve any change
to league structure, a new and complete
rule book (see current SPL http://
http://www.scotprem.com/content/
default.asp?page=s43 and SFL http://
http://www.scottishfootballleague.com/thesfl/
constitution/ rule books) has to be
written up for all clubs to formally vote
on. In order to introduce the new structure
at least 11 SPL clubs and 75% of SFL
clubs would be required to vote in favour.
The status quo will remain if this is not
achieved.
Could the 12/12 model be introduced for
next season?
If the SPL and SFL clubs vote in favour,
the 12/12 model will be introduced for the
beginning of season 2013/14.
If the go ahead is given for season
2013/14, what would happen at the end
of this current season?
At end of season 2012/2013:
– The bottom club in the SPL would be
relegated;
– The top club in SFL1 would be
promoted;
– The top club in SFL2 would be
promoted; positions 2, 3, 4 and 5 in SFL2
would play-off for a second promotion
place;
– No relegation from SFL1.
In summary, what would the 12/12
proposals deliver?
The proposals deliver:
– A single merged league
– An all-through distribution model
– Extensive play-offs
– Pyramid
– A new league structure
– Substantial re-distribution of central
revenues
– A fairer governance model
The 12/12 model addresses the key
weaknesses in the current model (i.e. lack
of refreshment in the top tier, lack of
financial support and re-promotion
opportunities for relegated clubs, and the
absence of a pyramid structure).
These proposals, if adopted, will ensure a
dramatic, exciting league, with
meaningful matches at all levels and at
all points in the season.
OK. One last thing though, why has it
taken so long for us to hear the whole
story?
Fair point. The lack of definitive
information has led to much ill-judged
and ill-informed comment, with too much
of the debate centred on the number of
teams in the league rather than the
benefits of the entire new league proposal.
However, it was important that the 12 SPL
clubs established which models would
and wouldn’t be viable in financial terms
for our businesses before presenting the
viable option to supporters.
It was also important to understand which
one could achieve consensus. Consensus
requires an 11-1 vote in favour by SPL
clubs in order for change to be achieved.
Additionally it has been necessary to
discuss viable options with the SFL as we
want to create an “all through” model
which benefits the game as a whole and
creates real value and real competition.
The SFL require to agree by a vote of
22-7 (Rangers can’t vote).
Until there was a realistic chance of this
being achieved there was little point in
presenting any model. There is now broad
consensus after months of discussions
and negotiations although it has to be
stressed no vote has been taken at SPL or
SFL level on the final proposal.
What now?
We hope you will back the right move for
Heart of Midlothian Football Club and
Scottish Football.
As stated at the start of this feature,
Hearts accepts its challenge in turning
Scottish football round and we as a club
are prepared to take a step forward – as
we have done on many previous
occasions when big decisions were
required and leadership needed to be
shown.
We want you to support us on this
challenge and this is why we’d ask you to
support the club as it votes ‘YES’ to
change on 15th April.
Remember the only other option is the
status quo – our 12-team SPL as it
currently stands.
swatson Neil Lennon’s 6ft skinny twin!
I think the supporters are fighting enough fronts at the moment. Not sure what they could actually do. A member club however giving a vote of no confidence in the organisation who run the game in their country would actually get things moving.
I think they need to state their reasons and I suspect there is a lot more evidence than I have listed. I haven’t even mentioned Hugh Dallas and who knows who else got that email and commented on it. I would go as far as raising that point with UEFA who appear happy to employ him.
The murky world of Scottish football. It’s amazing we were allowed to win anything. As my old man used to say we have to be twice as good as everyone to win anything. It appears to be truer today than it was when he said it 30 years ago.
LB
macjay1 for Neil Lennon @01:35 asks “Ntassoolla, Tell us about ACORN, ..”
You’ve lost me there Macjay.1
Acorn Antiques……You and Mrs Overall
livibhoy
11:56 on
12 April, 2013
Would be good if for nothing else to make him squirm! Especially in front of all the ‘esteemed’ guests.
Vale boy
i should have been clearer. 50% of £250k is £125k but there would have to be additional costs for the consortium to operate. £125k covers your 50% investment in achieving preferred bidder status. Additional £12.5k consortium running costs.
TenMenWonTheLeague @TenMenWonTheLea 17s
Arsene Wenger calls Craig Thomson’s performance in midweek ‘disastrous and completely unacceptable’. “You can’t defend refereeing like that”
Expand Reply Delete Favorite More
Boring RFC shareprice post – please scroll by.
I think we’re starting to see some pre-arranged sells coming through. We’ve had two large-ish trades this morning one for 6.5k shares, the other for 7k shares.
The first went through through at 9:58 at a sale price of 69p. The latter occurred at 11.04 at a price of 69.75p.
This is the kind of stuff that baffles most people (me included) you expect a bigger sale to occur at a lower price than the first one. However arrangements can be made (an nothing underhand about them) to sell at a certain price if conditions are met eg average share price over preceding days falling below Xp.
I know I keep saying it and I keep being proved wrong, but at some point this will snowball.
Ten Men Won The League
Not like him to see anything!
LB
It is not enough to eradicate Ogilvie. We must also eradicate the causes of Ogilvie.
tooheys new
Thank you.
weeminger
I suspect that the majority of investors would take their money back today if offered.
LB
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqTznu59InY
tooheys new
12:06 on 12 April, 2013
You should have been a politician ……LOL
weeminger
12:12 on 12 April, 2013
Keep the updates coming…..not boring at all……..!!!!!!!!
“There are no flowers blooming but the shamrock is growing.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Retl499FhEU
vale bhoy
11:19 on
12 April, 2013
jungle jam67
“A £35m deal”
What £35m?
———————————–
pmsl at the £35 million deal
repost of leftclicktic…….hope u do not mind
We need to tell IA that £137k is 25% of the 10% deposit required of the £5million to buy deadco.
That is why £137k is important in the scheme of things
vale bhoy
the whole scam will be paperwork from duff and duffer to sevco5088 or sevco scotland
who did duff and duffer sign the assets over to?
SDM=whyte=ahmad+green
||. ||
grier(d+d) ||
|| ||
duff& duffer===||
all hear say allegedly
jam67
Manchester City defender Micah Richards today became the third player from his club to receive a six-month driving ban this month.
Too much money and no discipline, no wonder Man City done nothing this season.
ASonOfDan
Hearts player Ryan Stevenson was done for drunk driving the other day. Very much blink and miss it in the press though.
LB
new article posted.
Left Click
If Neil had uttered TAL on air, in the duggout…………..any blessed where…………..
ALL HELL WOULD BREAK LOOSE……………
and he’d be gone………..expedited, quickly and efficiently by the msm.
HH
Would like to see bayern do well. I thought they had the better of the match against Chelsea and were indeed unlucky to lose. Again I thought they were dreadfully unlucky against man utd. when they lost two late goals after dominating the game for large spells in 1999. Indeed if anyone can remember their game against Aston villa, they played villa off the park that day. German football is actually of a good standard. It’s disliked by the English press, so they tend to relegate it a wee bit, and unless you take it upon yourself have a look you will never really find out its qualities.
weeminger and the share price
keep them coming mate(thumbs)
never boring
know your enemy
shine the light into the darkest corners
jam67
testing