Delighted Aberdeen are now free of their “debt servicing burden” after long-term supporters Willie and Elaine Donald proposed to reduce net debt by an astonishing £14.9m. The club have been able to service their debt but it’s been caught between paying for old overspends and driving ahead with a new stadium to provide for its future.
Aberdeen has a vibrant business and corporate entertainment sector which the club is well-placed to exploit. In the right environment, specifically, playing a regional league with a new stadium, they could be transformed into a European power, as they were back in the day.
Unfortunately, it’s not all rosy positive financial news for Scottish football clubs. Rangers International’s statement to the stock market this morning confirmed that Mike Ashley’s £2m loan will not be enough to see the club through to the end of this month. Ash’ has provided a further £1m, which will take them through to the second week in December – at least!
The statement confirms yet more money will be needed before the end of the year and that the directors have begun a cost cutting exercise. So where does this leave them?
Living week-to-week is fine if you are within sight of season ticket renewal deadline but that’s six months away. The funding requirement to get them to that day is likely to be north of £10m, with Ashley now the only wallet in town.
A great deal of analysis is taking place over his commitment to the SFA that he’ll not acquire more than 10% of the club, but this overlooks all the important factors, specifically that owning more share capital is neither necessary nor helpful to Ashley.
Football clubs are a collection of businesses. There is the football, of course, but there is also a media business (print, online), retail services, brand merchandising, corporate hospitality, there’s advertising space to fill, and with some, there’s a link to a charity, which requires administration.
The charity and football operations cost money but everything else tends to make a profit. Football clubs are horrible entities to manage. You have unrealistic competitive pressures, fans who demand conflicting objectives and your performance can be undermined by a defender’s lapse, before you’re scrutinised in public. Only lunatics would apply.
By contrast, corporate retail management is a walk in the park. Ashley already has a healthy share of Newco’s retail, merchandising and IP rights. He can and will make money out of them, and no one has been able to tell me why he’d be remotely interested in owning an ounce more than Rangers International.
The funding which will get the club through the rest of the season is likely to cost them all those profitable income streams in perpetuity. There’s a good chance security will be required over the property assets too.
Newco is pretty much hollowed-out already but the scavenging isn’t finished. By the time the consequences of all that ‘we will continue to act like a big club’ nonsense of the last two years has comes home to roost, the cost of their hubris will be laid bare to even the most blinkered mind.
All of this was inevitable when Sir David Muray overruled his board’s recommendation and sold out oldco to a liquidation expert.
TIME CHANGE Remember, we’ve got Davie Hay on the blog tomorrow from 9:30 – 11:30.
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HT-:)
HT,
Lol.
Whoever it is i hope he has a big bro that’s like a brick sh1t hoose :)
hamiltontim
21:39 on 12 November, 2014
Deciding for yourself is not allowed on here HT, get with the program.
If you go to Celtic games your either a happy clapper or your part of a big lie, I’m not any of those I’m just a guy that loves watching the hoops, when did it become wrong to do that ? HH
HT,
Surely your joshin its Celtic your going to watch, your expectations have been managed to an all time low, getting someone to fill the jersey is a rarity now not the norm. And when we do get one he’s off quicker than they can count your season ticket money.
But what your really saying is some of the duds are dudder than the others, no? :)
From what I remember of Balde was he got a few sub starts and was mostly found on the wing or tracking back to try and get a kick of the ball, how many starts did he get to help you make up your mind, I honestly can’t remember was it 3 or 4 and how many games was he out between starts ?
tomtheleedstim
21:54 on 12 November, 2014
Twitter is insane, period ….hahahahahahaha
hamiltontim
21:53 on 12 November, 2014
Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha
McQueen……?
Guid thought.
BGX
“i on the other hand am a progressive forward thinking optimist….”
Your a bit too fond of the self praise to be referring to anyone else as “his highness”
Kean rumour my source (aggy the tea woman) is hearing it was smeto, in a see who could punch hardest competition,
I’llgetmycoatcfc
SFTB…not self praise ..but self appraisal….
Marspapa
Howdy sir :-)
I’d play McGregor on the left wing, get him to the bye line and tell him to put crosses in.
Simples :-)
I mean honestly your telling me this bhoy isn’t very good
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oCM5JWz-cAs
ra Bommur……..
Gumsy, gubbed?
HT
Cheers for the info. I’ve been unhappy at the stewards’ attitude towards the fans for a while.
Re a “No 10”, I would love to see us bring in a mature, streetwise playmaker. Mind you, how long would such a player last in Scotland? He would get zero protection from the MIBS; if he dished some back, like Bertie Auld, he’d see red cards regularly and he’d be lured away by the cash from EPL if he was as good as we want him to be.
Probably some clown called him a Fenian bastard :)
BMCUW
Someone should run a ‘where are they now?’ series. :-)
hun skelper
It ain’t wrong but I keep reminding myself these days, it’s a blog where many posters are anonymous and their reasons for remaining so are devious by nature mate.
Canamalar
I watched enough of Balde in the first team and development squad games to know that you’re better than him :-)
Seriously, he just wasn’t good enough. Pukki on the other hand.
HT,
Did you look at that link ?
I couldn’t hit the ball like that.
Tonydonnelly67 at 1304
That is a very interesting scenario – which makes a great deal of sense. Here’s hoping.
HH
HT
i would’nt want anybody getting in Izzies way
he and AS have a good wee partnership building ;))
If you were to follow the advice from some on here you wouldn’t go to any games because of PL, down sizing, stewards, Police, shit football, no competition, no huns etc
I’ve been to every round in the cup, I was in amongst the 13 – 15k others who just want to go and see The Celtic, where are am going wrong ?
If I get tickets for the semi-final I’ll be there whether it’s Aberdeen, Dundee Utd, Arbroath or the huns….
hamiltontim
22:08 on 12 November, 2014
I have my suspicions about a few on here being from the darkside, after a bad result they appear spouting the same shite HH
Anyroadup,
It’s baw baws time
Night night n hail hail timdom
I delivered hundreds of copies of Caesar & The Assassin today to Celtic Park.
We also published for Celtic the club’s official Christmas book, which is called Celtic – A Grand Old Team to Play For. This book arrived ahead of schedule at Celtic Park today and you can see it in Celtic stores now. We will have it available tomorrow on CQNBookstore.com
Anyway if you look carefully at the first few pages of this book you will notice that the wee line saying the owners of Daily Record published the official club books is now gone and is replaced by CQN Books.
We also did a better job.
Davie Hay is going to be interesting tomorrow morning on CQN…
PRAECEPTA
Indeed,mate. On which,how good would it have been to see this fella in The Hooooops?
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WVEcbvrxHQ0
west end of east end
22:14 on 12 November, 2014
Man after my own heart, that’s what it’s all about, the guys not wanting to go will always find a reason mate HH
Has there been a change in attitude amongst the support about going to a Sevco game now that we have to play them ? ….
Gardai called to Ireland football team hotel http://t.co/el7whHsnkO
“Big Goughie” ?
*oh please*
Marspapa, apologies, Ma wee deputy has an inbuilt alarm, he looks at me at tentaenine for his evening stroll ( he als o knows Jamesgang is oan, so time to get oot :-)! And for you James, madeputyisnaeDoc:-))
Anyway the individual was highly complimentary on the work you done, and states he would highly recommend your services :-)
Pfayr, as above :-), reason for asking ( and it does tie in with HT, after police actions on Sunday) I was talking to an extremely high ranking figure in Police Scotland on Monday, he told me about the £100m cuts, and how House is wasting resources in pointless areas, so be spoken about at high levels in Police ?
Now footie
I also believe Biton is worth a run oot in several games, can control a ball, keep possession and find aGreen and White Jersey.
I believe the same with Liam Henderson as well
Kayal , can go
Never seen enough in Gaulds game to warrant any Celtic interest, and from what I hear, Paul McMullan will be every bit as good ?
Oh
And for me Unfortunately, do not see it with Calum McGregor either
Hail Hail
Canamalar
Did you no use to hit them like that on the Hyndland St Mansefield St pitch? :)
!BADA BING!
Blinkin’ flip,that golf course is like a lunar landscape-I’d need hiking boots and a compass before I went near it.
(And a lottery win…)
Canamalar
I’d seen it before mate. It’s a wonder strike, every couple of years I score one at 5s :-)
I just don’t think he’s good enough from what I saw.
Would McGinn improve the Celtic first team squad?
!!Bada Bing!!
21:43 on
12 November, 2014
Vicious rumour Keane has laid someone oot like a carpet at Irish team hotel…..
Hopefully it was Gordon McQueen
viewfaethewindae
22:21 on 12 November, 2014
Wasn’t good enough last time, so a no from me HH
jamesgang @ 21:38
‘wise poo’ … thanks… eeerrr, I think :)
I get what you are saying about SB (and I have heard it from many … the most loved team mate… great guy … so, there must be some truth to it ) … and you may be right in that the debacles may not have been so bad if SB had been there …. but, and there is always a but …
I am looking for someone who can help us beat those sorts of teams (and that means a midfiled general) … not someone who will stop us getting beaten as badly. I agree SB is certainly the latter, but I dont think he is the former…
I agree that it seems more and more likely that KC will be moving on …. again, a great (!!!) player at the SPL level, but not no who could make the step up to the European level… but he did a lot for Celtic the last few years, so, if he decides to go and make a few bucks in England, he will go with my thanks for what he did for us.