Although Rangers won their case at the Court of Session today, they have the option not to serve the ruling on the SFA that its Judicial Panel’s 12 month ban on player registration is illegal. Winning the point in law might sound like a victory, but taking the Association to court breaks membership rules of the SFA, rules imposed on all associations by Fifa.
We will find out soon enough the reach of SFA president, Campbell Ogilvie, who was one of the recipients of an EBT which precipitated Rangers crisis.
Rangers are deep in Sion territory now. Either they walk away from this showdown, the SFA expel or suspend them from football, or Fifa will shortly remind the SFA of their duties when a member club takes action in the civil courts.
Campbell Ogilvie was born for this moment; it justifies him holding onto his position all these months despite being “heavily conflicted”, according to his chief executive. I do not expect this to end well.
Despite an independent judicial panel ruling against Rangers, there is no way the office holders at the SFA will expel Rangers, no matter what they do. They would rather jeopardise the Scotland national team and every other club’s European participation.
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canamalar-UEFA should have moved in to Hampden and put the buffoons on gardening leave a few months ago IMO.HH
Paul67
So when Scottish Football get’s shafted out of entry into all european and world football is that the point when we retire from Scottish football altogether and leave them to it. Are there doors open for us elsewhere? Paul you surley must have the answer!
HH
ZKS
ASonOfDan on 29 May, 2012 at 16:40 said:
Correct – in theory they have no choice but to expel them. This is going to get interesting indeed. They can’t be seen to reduce the punishment because they already considered the most serious punishment available first time round.
Paul67 et al
According to top football writer James Richardson in today’s Guardian;
“The roots of the latest scandal lie in the summer of 2011. After a member of Serie B side Cremonose suffered a serious car crash, tests showed that he and other members of the team had been drugged with sleeping pills…..”
Given that the Boards of both the SPL and the SFA appear to be in a constant state of catatonia, is it beyond the realms of possibility that someone has………
slipped them a Mickey Finn?
MadraRua, old habits.
gordybhoy64, I expect Ogilvie will do everything in his power to prevent Rangers being expelled.
ASonOfDan, I hear you.
merseycelt, another time.
RogueLeader, perhaps.
Kojo, they sure will.
Gerry, who knows!
bournesouprecipe, prepare for Scorched Earth policy, Ogilvie style.
If they are thrown out, then that’s a victory at the court of Cessation :-)
“Despite an independent judicial panel ruling against Rangers, there is no way the office holders at the SFA will expel Rangers, no matter what they do. They would rather jeopardise the Scotland national team and every other club’s European participation.”
Surely the SFA must realise that the outcome here is inevitable. Rankers will be thrown out whether they do it or not, as Fifa will force them to do so.
The choice is simple do the right thing expel and get on with repairing our game, or forever destroy it. Surely even the most loyal amongst the SFA have to see the second option would destroy any future Rankers In whatever form it may be? They’ve brought shame on our game for too long, for Goodness sakes it’s time to pull the plug, surely someone at the SFA will be brave enough to do so?
So in taking this to court they claimed:
“…a fine, suspension, expulsion and termination of membership were available, but added: “The sanction of suspending the registration of players is not available under the general disciplinary rules to the tribunal in respect of an alleged breach.”
Ok, so what’s it gonna be? Fine, suspension, expulsion or termination of membership?
This is going to get messy. I predict an SFA fudge……
this sfa thing is a side show. rangers will still go into liquidation.
Paul67,
Celtic will win theiir case out of Scotland.
Norwich friendly will make sure we have a league to play in be it the championship or league one. Portsmouth reg and a few others will be up for grabs.
Doncaster will be in hiding.
Gordon J..,
“It could go with the court and send the matter back to the Appeal Tribunal. ”
If the appeal tribunal sits on this issue, then the sfa have accepted they do not govern scottish football, we’d be looking at expulsion from fifa and uefa.
Seems like the governing bodies have been deliberately complicit,to cloud so many issues.Remember a few weeks ago Regan was considering running all the leagues under a new SFA system…….I smell shoi..
If the SFA are put out of world football because of their incompetent failure to enforce their own rules, then there is no reason why Celtic or any other deprived club couldn’t sue them for lost European revenue.
When did Ogilvie last receive a payment from his EBT?
Looks like another night on the Salvador Dalí
Aff hame
ernie lynch 16.51
About 10 minutes ago!
The court “victory” today could well finish the huns for good.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2151242/Winners-lose-Court-victory-finish-fallen-Rangers.html
If UEFA don’t act against the SFA / Rangers then one of Sion’s basic points about UEFA justice was bang on .
You couldn’t make it up hahahahahahaha! :)
Sir Paul..
And Anither, ither . Thing..
Didnae the Swiss F.A. no.. hit
Sion, wi a Draconian .. Points Deduction, as a Punishment fur thur….thur Impertinent Recalcitrance???
The Deduction , wiz aboot.. Thirty odd Points… Ah believe.
Hmmmmmmmmmm
Like Ollie said tae Stan..
Ach.. Ye know fine well, whit He said… so
Ah wull Skip It.
Kojo
Still , Laughin’
This is like when a couple of wee diddies have a scrap in the playground and during said scrap one of them accidentally punches the biggest boy in the school…..
Paul67
What if the SFA end up changing their sanction to suit Rangers, as you seem to be suggesting? FIFA could look the other way on the basis that the SFA rules did not allow clubs to go to CAS.
Maybe, just maybe, SFA will say that they have been held over a barrel by their own overseers (UEFA/FIFA) and have no choice but to insist on the embargo remaining in force (by ignoring the court judgement).
Otherwise, scottish fitba would be exterminated by the bad boys in Switzerland!
looking forstrawsagainCFC
Rangers win court challenge over SFA transfer ban
Rangers were placed into administration in February
Continue reading the main story
Rangers in administration
Appeal refused for Whyte’s firm
Ticketus deal ‘being terminated’
Ticketus begins Whyte legal bid
Three Rangers bids to be pursued
A judge has ruled that the Scottish Football Association (SFA) acted beyond its powers in imposing a year-long transfer ban on Rangers FC.
The ban was given, along with a fine of £100,000, after the club was charged with bringing the game into disrepute.
Rangers challenged the ban at the Court of Session in Edinburgh, on the grounds it was not one of the sanctions listed in the SFA’s own regulations.
Lord Glennie said the ban should be reconsidered by the SFA appeal panel.
An SFA disciplinary tribunal originally imposed the fine and placed an embargo on Rangers signing senior players for 12 months in April this year.
Judicial review
That decision was upheld by an SFA appeals tribunal, including the judge Lord Carloway, earlier this month.
The club went to the Court of Session to challenge the decision on the additional transfer ban sanction in a judicial review of the tribunal decision.
Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote
The sanction of suspending the registration of players is not available under the general disciplinary rules to the tribunal in respect of the alleged breach”
Richard Keen QC
Lord Glennie ruled that the SFA appeals tribunal was wrong in holding that it had the power to impose the additional sanction in the case and that in doing so they were acting outside their powers.
The judge set aside the decision and said he would send it back to the SFA appeal tribunal to look at it again in light of his decision.
He said the fact that he had found the extra penalty imposed on Rangers to be outside of the powers available did not necessarily mean the club would escape a lighter punishment.
Lord Glennie said that was a matter for the association.
The judge also rejected an argument made on behalf of the SFA that the correct venue for deciding any dispute was the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Rangers counsel Richard Keen QC, the Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, told the court: “We are the victim of an unlawful sanction and we have had imposed on us a sanction that the SFA panel had no right to impose.”
Mr Keen had argued that the transfer ban was outside its powers and said that under the appropriate rule a fine, suspension and expulsion were available.
‘Not competent’
“The sanction of suspending the registration of players is not available under the general disciplinary rules to the tribunal in respect of the alleged breach,” he said.
“It follows in my submission that the purported additional sanction imposed by the tribunal and confirmed by the appeal tribunal was not a competent sanction,” he told the court.
Aidan O’Neill QC, for the football authorities, had argued that the tribunal sought to find a sanction which would fit the breach committed.
He said it was clearly thought that the fine was “simply not enough given the gravity of the issues here”.
He said that if their powers of penalty were restricted to sanctions such as suspension or expulsion then suspension would have to be looked at.
Mr O’Neill told the court that the paradox was the Dean’s argument could lead to greater sanction.
“Suspension would not just simply impose a transfer ban, but would stop any playing of friendly matches in the off-season,” he said.
“Suspension is a greater sanction than the targeted sanction of the transfer ban that was in fact imposed,” said the counsel.
He said the current sanction allowed Rangers to continue to trade and play.
Original tribunal
Mr Keen said that if the matter was to be sent back it should go to the original tribunal to look at the question of sanction if that was considered appropriate.
He said that if they imposed a new sanction within their powers it could be looked at and if considered unreasonable the club would have a ground of appeal to the appellate tribunal.
Mr Keen had argued that Rangers would suffer “utterly irretrievable” prejudice if the transfer ban was allowed to stand.
After the club was placed in administration in February, senior players took substantial wage cuts.
This was conditional, however, that in return they would be able to seek a transfer for a low fee.
Mr Keen said: “These players have every incentive to go.”
He said if the transfer ban stayed in place the club could not replace them with players over 18 years of age.
If they wanted senior players to stay they and their agents knew they could not be replaced and their bargaining power would be “immeasurably stronger”.
Lord Glennie awarded the expenses of the proceedings to Rangers after saying that he took the view that the club had substantially succeeded on “the narrow point” before the court.
Ernie,
“When did Ogilvie last receive a payment from his EBT?”
Next year.
Hi Paul,
”Despite an independent judicial panel ruling against Rangers, there is no way the office holders at the SFA will expel Rangers, no matter what they do. They would rather jeopardise the Scotland national team and every other club’s European participation.”
Looks like we will be out with Scottish Football sooner than we thought/hoped…
Surely UEFA and FIFA must approve any application Celtic make to a correctly run League, within a compliant Association .
As far as the SFA are concerned – This is a huge mess now, they should NEVER have prevaricated or been lenient in the first place.
The appeal findings included…
” The sanctions available included expulsion from participation in the game and termination or suspension of membership of the Scottish FA, which would have had a similar effect. The Appellate Tribunal observes that serious consideration was given by the disciplinary tribunal to imposing one of these sanctions, which would have had obvious consequences for the survival of the club. The Disciplinary Tribunal rejected these as too severe and this Appellate Tribunal agrees with that conclusion.”
So the Disciplinary Tribunal rejected these [sanctions] as too severe and the Appellate Tribunal agreed.
Now if the SFA impose these sanctions on a new appeal, what is to stop RFCia going back to the Courts and claiming if the Disciplinary Tribunal stated these sanctions were too severe and the Appellate Tribunal agreed then, why are they okay now?
They should NEVER have prevaricated or been lenient in the first place
The SFA need to issue them with new charges, including the CW era, the dual contracts era, using Civil courts etc, etc and get them on everything they did and make official what we have all known for years – R@ngers are not a operational Football team.
if fifa/uefa accept todays decision then a precedent will have been set for all
clubs.
Ogilvie will be on the phone now to his contacts at rangers to discuss and agree the best way out for both of them, you can imagine the conversation, let’s just go with the fine with terms to pay it back over a protracted period of time, if FIFA get involved we’ll just put our hands up and say sorry Guv, we got in to a wee bit of a fankle with our own rules there, promise it won’t happen ever again.
I can smell brown stuff
If the SFA are truly in breach of their obligations to FIFA and UEFA for failing to take action against RFCIA, 2 things will happen:
1. It will be the end of the SFA as we know it.
2. Celtic will be entitled to receive damages for any loss they suffer. If this means our entry to European competition is affected, Celtic will sue the SFA so hard Stewart Regan’s ears will bleed.
When anyone in a position of authority is faced with slings and arrows from so many directions that a clear decision is difficult there is no option but to revert to first principles of fairness and integrity.
Campbell Ogilvie has already shown that he is oblivious, wilfully or otherwise, to such considerations otherwise he would long since by now have resigned or at least removed himself from the decision process.
Campbell Ogilvie may well have one overriding principle that he will use to make his decisions here – do anything that he can to ensure the survival of his former employers and providers of his EBT on the best possible terms , irrespective of the price to be paid by the other memebers of the SFA and the reputation of Scottish football.
If he was heavily conflicted before what is he now?
Even more reason to leave Scottish football now Paul, as the only thing keeping us here (CL football) could be taken away if the huns aren’t expelled
Grant@STV
FIFA eyes now on Scottish FA to uphold their rulebook and punish Rangers for taking this matter to court.
Lord Glennie found on Tuesday that the only sanctions available to the SFA were fine, expulsion from the game, being barred from the Scottish Cup and termination or suspension of the club’s association membership.
Simples
The Judge has given the SFA a green light to suspend Rankers from the association
He said the fact that he had found the extra penalty imposed on Rangers to be outside of the powers available did not necessarily mean the club would escape a lighter punishment.
As the SFA’s QC told the court, they showed the idiot huns leniency
Mr O’Neill told the court that the paradox was the Dean’s argument could lead to greater sanction.
“Suspension would not just simply impose a transfer ban, but would stop any playing of friendly matches in the off-season,” he said.
“Suspension is a greater sanction than the targeted sanction of the transfer ban that was in fact imposed,” said the counsel.
He said the current sanction allowed Rangers to continue to trade and play.
The SFA should now reconvene the appellant tribunal with instructions to agree a sanction from the list
Suspension of Rankers is the only way out for the SFA
Posted this on the previous thread but seems more relevant now.
ADMINISTRATORS IN A STATE OF CONFUSION
The Rangers administrators admitted at the weekend they were ‘unaware’ that taking their case against the SFA to the Court of Session was against FIFA regulations and could incur further penalties.
Having already set in motion their bid to have the SFA’s 12-month transfer embargo overturned, joint-administrator Paul Clark of Duff & Phelps then made the surprising admission that they hadn’t realised the implications of such a move.
FIFA insist that such disputes should be resolved only by the Court of Arbitration for Sport and could come down heavily on SFA should they not take further action against the Ibrox club for their latest transgression.
It seems incredible that no one at Rangers was aware of the potential pitfalls of their legal challenge and despite Swiss side Sion, who Celtic replaced in the Europa League, having fought and lost a similar high-profile case last season.
Clark confessed: ‘I don’t know any of my team or lawyers were specifically aware of that.
‘I wasn’t aware of specifics. I do know that FIFA have a position where they look at the activities of individual associations.
‘We are exploring all points on the transfer ban.’
Come and get them FIFA
HH
/BB