Post by Macmoish on Jul 4, 2011 23:02:04 GMT
May have already seen this...Besides being Ridsdale, another example of a club now not owning its own ground. 
GUARDIAN/Matt Scott
Peter Ridsdale set to become Plymouth Argyle's new owner
• Former Leeds chairman has 'eminently sensible' business plan
• Deal will not include Plymouth's ground and property assets
A new name will join those of Sheikh Mansour, Lakshmi Mittal and Roman Abramovich in the ranks of English football club owners this week: that of Peter Ridsdale. For the first time in his chequered football career Ridsdale will be working for himself when he takes control of Plymouth Argyle in a deal that will take only a few more days to complete.
The 59-year-old, who has had controversial tenures as the chief executive of Leeds United, Barnsley and Cardiff City, will pay £1 to take over Argyle, where he has been serving as a consultant since last December. The deal will permit the club to leave administration, which it filed for four months ago. Nevertheless it will come as a major blow to Argyle's future prospects that the entity Ridsdale is taking over will already have been stripped of its property assets as a result of the deal.
Ridsdale will hold his equity through a newly incorporated company called Plymouth Argyle Football Club (125) Limited, of which he is the sole shareholder, whose incorporation documents were published at Companies House on Monday. "I am a reluctant acquirer of these shares," Ridsdale confirmed. He is sure the takeover will work, claiming he has forecast an "eminently sensible", self-sustaining business plan for the club for the next two years that would have League Two rivals "casting envious glances".
The property assets, which include a substantial parcel of potential development land abutting the south stand, will be held by Kevin Heaney, a Cornwall-based property developer. Heaney, whose supposed partners in the Gibraltar-registered Bishop International shell company being used to purchase Home Park have not been revealed, is also the owner of Truro City and is not permitted under Football Association rules to hold a role in the playing side of the club's business. This has led to the separation of the football operation from its property.
It is common practice in football to hold the football and property businesses in separate vehicles, since it permits clubs to exploit their fixed assets as security for borrowing from lenders who are concerned about the risks involved in making loans to clubs. However, there will be an important and difficult difference in Argyle's case: the two entities have separate shareholders. This means the relationship is effectively a tenancy agreement between Ridsdale's Argyle as tenant and Heaney's Bishop International as landlord.
The purchase price for the land and the value of the rent are not yet known, although Ridsdale claims it will be on an "affordable" sliding scale according to what is the club's league position. It is believed that Bishop International will provide working capital for 12 months from the date of the deal, allowing Ridsdale a little breathing space as he attempts to rationalise the club.
However, the League One club are expected to make a loss next season and there could be future financial difficulties under the terms of the purchase agreement. The football creditors, including playing staff, club employees and other Football League clubs, were owed £3.7m of Argyle's £17.5m debts when they filed for administration in March. That number has since risen after wages went unpaid in March and April, and the players received only 50% of their June salaries.
Under Football League rules, all football creditors must be paid in full in order for Ridsdale's new company to receive the competition share that will permit Argyle to begin next season. But the takeover proposal provides insufficient cash for that regulation to be satisfied up front, meaning as soon as the bid is processed Ridsdale must hold an urgent series of discussions with creditors over what are acceptable payment schedules.
Although this will probably satisfy the League to hand over the competition share, it may cause future financial headaches since the deferred debts to football creditors, along with the rental obligations to Bishop International, may in future pile up.
Ridsdale is clearly no Mansour, Mittal or Abramovich when it comes to funding but his current financial circumstances are unknown. It is known that the company that previously received his football club wages collapsed into liquidation in 2009 owing about £350,000 to HM Revenue & Customs. In April the liquidator stated in documents at Companies House that he could not wind up the company due to an investigation being under way; Ridsdale says he believes a settlement has already been struck and will be legally ratified "in days".
He said on Monday that the value of his own future wages at Argyle had not yet been set. "Whatever I am paid in fees won't be arranged by me," Ridsdale said. "At no time at all, irrespective of my shareholding, will I determine what fees can be paid to me; that will be the role of the other directors."
Another potential curveball is the court action brought by Cardiff council's trading-standards department against Ridsdale, which is due to return to Cardiff magistrates court on 22 July after a prior adjournment. Ridsdale, who strenuously denies all charges, has been accused of three counts of unfair trading and fraud relating to a promotional offer the Welsh club ran while he was chief executive. If convicted, Ridsdale would fall foul of the League's owners and directors test and would be forced to relinquish his ownership and directorship of Argyle.
Working alongside Ridsdale in the takeover bid is David Jones, the former chief financial officer of Southampton, who has been working as de facto financial director of Argyle since it filed for administration. Jones is the only other director of Ridsdale's Plymouth Argyle (125) company.
www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/jul/04/peter-ridsdale-plymouth-argyle-owner
GUARDIAN/Matt Scott
Peter Ridsdale set to become Plymouth Argyle's new owner
• Former Leeds chairman has 'eminently sensible' business plan
• Deal will not include Plymouth's ground and property assets
A new name will join those of Sheikh Mansour, Lakshmi Mittal and Roman Abramovich in the ranks of English football club owners this week: that of Peter Ridsdale. For the first time in his chequered football career Ridsdale will be working for himself when he takes control of Plymouth Argyle in a deal that will take only a few more days to complete.
The 59-year-old, who has had controversial tenures as the chief executive of Leeds United, Barnsley and Cardiff City, will pay £1 to take over Argyle, where he has been serving as a consultant since last December. The deal will permit the club to leave administration, which it filed for four months ago. Nevertheless it will come as a major blow to Argyle's future prospects that the entity Ridsdale is taking over will already have been stripped of its property assets as a result of the deal.
Ridsdale will hold his equity through a newly incorporated company called Plymouth Argyle Football Club (125) Limited, of which he is the sole shareholder, whose incorporation documents were published at Companies House on Monday. "I am a reluctant acquirer of these shares," Ridsdale confirmed. He is sure the takeover will work, claiming he has forecast an "eminently sensible", self-sustaining business plan for the club for the next two years that would have League Two rivals "casting envious glances".
The property assets, which include a substantial parcel of potential development land abutting the south stand, will be held by Kevin Heaney, a Cornwall-based property developer. Heaney, whose supposed partners in the Gibraltar-registered Bishop International shell company being used to purchase Home Park have not been revealed, is also the owner of Truro City and is not permitted under Football Association rules to hold a role in the playing side of the club's business. This has led to the separation of the football operation from its property.
It is common practice in football to hold the football and property businesses in separate vehicles, since it permits clubs to exploit their fixed assets as security for borrowing from lenders who are concerned about the risks involved in making loans to clubs. However, there will be an important and difficult difference in Argyle's case: the two entities have separate shareholders. This means the relationship is effectively a tenancy agreement between Ridsdale's Argyle as tenant and Heaney's Bishop International as landlord.
The purchase price for the land and the value of the rent are not yet known, although Ridsdale claims it will be on an "affordable" sliding scale according to what is the club's league position. It is believed that Bishop International will provide working capital for 12 months from the date of the deal, allowing Ridsdale a little breathing space as he attempts to rationalise the club.
However, the League One club are expected to make a loss next season and there could be future financial difficulties under the terms of the purchase agreement. The football creditors, including playing staff, club employees and other Football League clubs, were owed £3.7m of Argyle's £17.5m debts when they filed for administration in March. That number has since risen after wages went unpaid in March and April, and the players received only 50% of their June salaries.
Under Football League rules, all football creditors must be paid in full in order for Ridsdale's new company to receive the competition share that will permit Argyle to begin next season. But the takeover proposal provides insufficient cash for that regulation to be satisfied up front, meaning as soon as the bid is processed Ridsdale must hold an urgent series of discussions with creditors over what are acceptable payment schedules.
Although this will probably satisfy the League to hand over the competition share, it may cause future financial headaches since the deferred debts to football creditors, along with the rental obligations to Bishop International, may in future pile up.
Ridsdale is clearly no Mansour, Mittal or Abramovich when it comes to funding but his current financial circumstances are unknown. It is known that the company that previously received his football club wages collapsed into liquidation in 2009 owing about £350,000 to HM Revenue & Customs. In April the liquidator stated in documents at Companies House that he could not wind up the company due to an investigation being under way; Ridsdale says he believes a settlement has already been struck and will be legally ratified "in days".
He said on Monday that the value of his own future wages at Argyle had not yet been set. "Whatever I am paid in fees won't be arranged by me," Ridsdale said. "At no time at all, irrespective of my shareholding, will I determine what fees can be paid to me; that will be the role of the other directors."
Another potential curveball is the court action brought by Cardiff council's trading-standards department against Ridsdale, which is due to return to Cardiff magistrates court on 22 July after a prior adjournment. Ridsdale, who strenuously denies all charges, has been accused of three counts of unfair trading and fraud relating to a promotional offer the Welsh club ran while he was chief executive. If convicted, Ridsdale would fall foul of the League's owners and directors test and would be forced to relinquish his ownership and directorship of Argyle.
Working alongside Ridsdale in the takeover bid is David Jones, the former chief financial officer of Southampton, who has been working as de facto financial director of Argyle since it filed for administration. Jones is the only other director of Ridsdale's Plymouth Argyle (125) company.
www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/jul/04/peter-ridsdale-plymouth-argyle-owner
