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slightfold · Joined: 13 Oct 2009 Posts: 609

Just announced after this morning's meeting in London. There was too much bad blood for any agreement to be reached. ACL the stadium owners were the main creditor. It was the non-payment of rent which forced them into putting the club into administration last season and resulted in the deduction of 10 points, which effectively scuppered any chance they had of promotion. Under League rules they could now be hit with a 15 point deduction when the season kicks-off tomorrow! The ground share at Northampton will mean a massive reduction in income and could threaten their very existence. Sad days indeed for the club and its fans.

Drvonshineck · Joined: 24 Dec 2011 Posts: 525 Location: Scotland

If they didn't agree a CVA then doesn't that automatically mean it's over for them?

How can they avoid folding?

littlewiggy · Joined: 07 Apr 2013 Posts: 1812 Location: Newport

Very sad, who could forget that iconic Ernie Hunt free-kick or the infamous chocolate-brown away strip of the 1970s!

Having been through this myself, I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy.

sharrowblade · Posted: Fri Aug 02, 2013 12:49 pm Post subject:

Firstly, ACL are not the Stadium owners, they are the Landlords.

The Ricoh is owned by Coventry City Council and the Alan Edward Higgs Charity.

It is the Council through ACL who have rejected the CVA.

The rejection of the CVA doesn't mean its over for them as a club. Coventry City FC Ltd are only one part of the Club.
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slightfold · Joined: 13 Oct 2009 Posts: 609

As I understand it when a company goes 'bust', and is liquidated, the assets are sold and the creditors are given a portion. Say the debts were £100 and the assets were £10 then they would get 10 pence in the pound. I don't know what assets CCFC have, they have no ground! Middlesbrough went under at the end of the 1985/6 season, anybody remember the Ayresome Park gates being padlocked by the liquidator? They reformed as Middlesbrough Football and Athletic Club (1986) Limited, which is what I believe they still are Until matters were sorted they were forced to play their first home at Hartlepools.
I guess there will be a new limited company and the main losers will be ACL?

PhilWBA · Posted: Fri Aug 02, 2013 12:54 pm Post subject:

The thing I don't understand about the whole mess is how they refused to pay their rent in the first place and expected to get away with it. If I turn round to the Housing Association that own my house and tell them I think i'm paying too much rent and so will reduce it to a level i'm happy with i'd expect all sorts of shite to come flying my way and deserve it all. Forgive me if i've got that scenario wrong but thats how it sounded to me when it all came out.

When they sold Highfield Road where did the money go for it and why didn't they build their own stadium then ?

slightfold · Joined: 13 Oct 2009 Posts: 609

Sharrowblade is of course correct that ACL are the landlords. It's this failure to reach agreement and how this situation can ever have occurred which seems utter madness. A great modern stadium now not having the City's team playing there is a sad day for football.

sharrowblade · Posted: Fri Aug 02, 2013 1:43 pm Post subject:

FootballcardsDirect wrote:

When they sold Highfield Road where did the money go for it and why didn't they build their own stadium then ?

A certain Mr Richardson had arrived at the club when debt was running at 4.5 million. He left with at it at a reported £61 million. The club was struggling to stay afloat. highfield road was sold to pay off a tax debt. The club then still had to rent Highfield road at £1 million a year. The theory was that Highfield road only generated match income and a move to a new stadium would create more revenues in the shape of cinemas, office blocks and other attractions.
Unfortunately, coupled with relegation from the Premier, they then had to sell their interest in the Ricoh for about £13 to help with the debts, and therefore now have to pay rent and have no other matchday income apart from any tickets sold.

Its a real mess sadly, and only likely to get messier.
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PhilWBA · Posted: Fri Aug 02, 2013 1:57 pm Post subject:

sharrowblade wrote:

FootballcardsDirect wrote:

When they sold Highfield Road where did the money go for it and why didn't they build their own stadium then ?

A certain Mr Richardson had arrived at the club when debt was running at 4.5 million. He left with at it at a reported £61 million. The club was struggling to stay afloat. highfield road was sold to pay off a tax debt. The club then still had to rent Highfield road at £1 million a year. The theory was that Highfield road only generated match income and a move to a new stadium would create more revenues in the shape of cinemas, office blocks and other attractions.
Unfortunately, coupled with relegation from the Premier, they then had to sell their interest in the Ricoh for about £13 to help with the debts, and therefore now have to pay rent and have no other matchday income apart from any tickets sold.

Its a real mess sadly, and only likely to get messier.

Thanks for that Thumbs Up

pompeypete · Forum Moderator Joined: 17 Sep 2009 Posts: 1094

I'm certain that eveyone here at Pompey wish coventry all the best.....

We all know the football league & premier league bosses couldn't give a toss.

Fit & proper test ......rings a bell !!!!

Lets hope the FFF sorts out the premier league as most of the clubs owe millions......

Sad for coventry when on the same day a player may be transferred for over 100 million.
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martino · Posted: Fri Aug 02, 2013 7:25 pm Post subject:

As I understand it Gary Hoffman, who has been connected with the Club for many years up to Board level, last week offered to put a consortium together to cover the rent so the Club could stay in Coventry and so the fans would not have to go to Northampton for "home" games.

For reasons best known to themselves the owners rejected the offer without discussion. They obviously would prefer to see the Club go bust. Also a consortium led by Gary tried to buy the Club a while back "for the fans" but again the owners rejected the bid.

A lot of "owners" have no affinity with the town in which the Club is based, loyal fans, history etc - very sad.

As was said when Pompey disappeared up the bunger, they would not be the last. Something needs to happen and quick.

Auchinleckian · Forum Moderator Joined: 21 Nov 2008 Posts: 4352

They could always come up here and join our ever increasing band of shit bust clubs. Laughing

Wullie · Joined: 10 Jun 2009 Posts: 3423

Coventry 2-2 Bristol City, First Division, May 1977

With both sides in desperate relegation trouble on the last day of the season, the match at Highfield Road kicked off 15 minutes late – allegedly to let in fans held up by traffic. Towards the climax of the second half, as both teams tried to improve on the 2-2 scoreline, news came through that Sunderland had been beaten by Everton. Therefore both sides would stay up if their score remained the same. Officials at Highfield Road immediately announced the result over the Tannoy system and on the scoreboard, so both sets of players played out the remaining minutes without attempting to score. The point was enough to keep both teams in the top-flight and send Sunderland down.

Coventry City ---- liquidation ? Wave

PS It's ironic that the excessive wage demands that are killing the game all started with a one MR JIMMY HILL.

sellsell39 · Joined: 19 Nov 2011 Posts: 810 Location: Needham market

If Coventry City have now been liquidated, how can they play any matches - as they don't exist anymore ?

Why would you bother even going to Northampton tomorrow ?
Clearly none of the fans will be there anyway ?

Unfortunately they are not the first, and I doubt they will be the last either - very sad state of affairs caused by greedy foreign owners one presumes ?

mark01 · Joined: 13 Nov 2010 Posts: 384

What a great memory you have wullie.

Yes, You've got it about right, although the queues to get into the ground that night were horrific - at the end of the day the police made the right call to delay the match by 10 minutes.

We didn't equalise until the 81st minute and had come back from 2-0 down. We were all over Coventry and yes they did flash your scoreline up that you had lost with about 3 or 4 minutes to go. Everton 1 Sunderland 0 (before you correct me, I know you lost 2-0).

But that's life wullie, in the same situation I'm sure Sunderland would have done the same. Garland and Ritchie later said that they hadn't seen the scoreline flashed up and were still running around trying to score. By the way no announcement was made over the tannoy that you had lost - that would have been wrong Wink

Do you remember the game at your place when you beat us 1-0. You hadn't scored or won a league game in the previous 10 games!

Do you remember the policeman, late in the game, kicking the ball further into touch, to stop one of our players taking a throw in? No, thought not.

Must admit the first and only time I've cried at the end of a football match. As Bristol City had taken over 90 years to get back to the top flight, I promised myself I would watch every league and cup game that season - and I managed it, and that match was the climax.

regards, Mark

pompeypete · Forum Moderator Joined: 17 Sep 2009 Posts: 1094

Wullie wrote:

Coventry 2-2 Bristol City, First Division, May 1977

With both sides in desperate relegation trouble on the last day of the season, the match at Highfield Road kicked off 15 minutes late – allegedly to let in fans held up by traffic. Towards the climax of the second half, as both teams tried to improve on the 2-2 scoreline, news came through that Sunderland had been beaten by Everton. Therefore both sides would stay up if their score remained the same. Officials at Highfield Road immediately announced the result over the Tannoy system and on the scoreboard, so both sets of players played out the remaining minutes without attempting to score. The point was enough to keep both teams in the top-flight and send Sunderland down.

Coventry City ---- liquidation ? Wave

PS It's ironic that the excessive wage demands that are killing the game all started with a one MR JIMMY HILL.

Don't forget that Sunderland could easily be in a similar position to Coventry.
Season 2011.12 wages to turnover 82% with debts of £84M
I hope finances have improved for you since then......

How the premier league can make a loss of £205M from an income of £2.4 billion...............??

If we ran our business like that we would hounded by the banks ....
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Wullie · Joined: 10 Jun 2009 Posts: 3423

I remember the Bristol City game like it was yesterday. The late Mel Holden got the winner. You have thought we won the cup. Ten games without a goal, then after the 1 0 victory over Bristol City, it was 4 0, 6 0 , 6 1 wins. All at home. You never forget crazy seasons like that.

Back to finances. Anyone can follow Coventry with a run of bad luck. Of course it's all insane and should scare the daylights out of any fan , but is anyone bothered ? Fans are to blame as much as anyone, they are desperate for their clubs to folk out millions on some foreign bloke we have never heard of and all because he looks good in a 30 second clip on YouTube.