[Archived] Rovers Sold ??

[Exiled in Toronto]

Are you referring to that quote EIT?!

I'd say the last thing you do in a big money purchase is give anything away to the local rag at all - unless it's a full and accurate progress report.

Nothing more certain to upset the locals than if that interview is full of half truths or worse.

I was referring to the 'it's a lot closer than you think' comment.

If I was investing $100m the last thing I would worry about is the sensibilities of the locals. This deal is all about TV money, not the relative peanuts contributed by the fans. I thought he was being careful with his statements, which I find more reassuring than him doing a Knighton (Michael, not Ken)

There's been a 'For sale' sign up for 2 years. If BRFC was a house, we'd have had Justin and Colin in by now to get it shifted. I think a rapid sale is inevitable and we don't get a vote. Personally, I'd like the bloke to feel welcome.

[brfcshabba]

Fred?

?

Jack Walker's brother

[blue phil]

The thing you are missing, sadly, is that the present Trustees have been trying to find a new owner for at least two years by the admission of John Williams.

I'm well aware , sadly , that the "PRESENT" trustees want to sell . Maybe the trust itself needs revitalising (if that's possible) .

[Fife Rover]

Whilst this particular guy Williams is getting a bit of a slating at the moment, it's probably wise not to set our sights too high as fans.

Whilst as supporters we would all like to see a Blackburner who lives on Nuttall Street, has the wealth of Abramovic, and hasn't missed a home game since 1960 take over, it's probably worth remembering that even if new owners "only "made a modest net 5m available for transfers each season, that's 5m more than Mark Hughes has had since he took over the managerial reins.

(Discounting the effect of the new TV money)

So you believe that MH has not yet had any money at all for signing new players since he became the manager, therefore every player he has signed has come for free with no signing on fee and somebody else is paying all their wages. Hmmmmm!.......

[thenodrog]

So you believe that MH has not yet had any money at all for signing new players since he became the manager, therefore every player he has signed has come for free with no signing on fee and somebody else is paying all their wages. Hmmmmm!.......

I think it's fair to say that Hughes has frequently had to wait to get some players off the wage bill before he has been able to bring new ones in Fife.

[Bing]

So you believe that MH has not yet had any money at all for signing new players since he became the manager, therefore every player he has signed has come for free with no signing on fee and somebody else is paying all their wages. Hmmmmm!.......

I doubt very much whether Hughes has broke even in terms of his spending on transfers and wages considering the several substantial fees we've received and when you look at the high earners that have gone - Ferguson, Jansen, Flitcroft, Amoruso, Thompson, Gray.

[Scotty]

I've got an open mind on this so far. It looks like the club's going to be sold soon, the leading contender seems to be a Rovers fan, and there's been nothing said in the public domain that's got me worried about the sale yet. We're not going to get another Jack Walker type. The best we can hope for realistically is someone who cares about the club and has the acumen and the finance to keep us progressing.

More details will no doubt emerge soon enough. In the meantime I'd suggest that while speculation is inevitable, anyone forming a strong opinion one way or the other is doing so without knowing the full facts - which is never a good thing.

[Roar of the Rover]

Well Sparky hasn't still broke the bank yet really, by that i mean someone who cost around 7-8 million, thats alot of money for a club our size.

[Manchester Blue]

72000 mancscumfans went in uproar at the sale oif the club to the Glazier family, I dont see anyone whingeing now from mould t espcecially as they have just spent the best part of 50m quid on a couple of players even when they are in 800m worth of debt !

Far too many on here ar jumping the gun without any knowledge of the deal, the talks or any semblemnce of the ultimate views/opinions of the potential buyers and investors and are basing their own views on media reports and headlines sprinkled by one Alan Nixon and the like.

Until John Williams and Blackburn Rovers make any positive noises and/or announcements I suggest people take a chill out pill, get ready for the summer holidays and WAIT until something happens.

The club are the ones in the know and the pure speculation on this thread is bordering on suicidal madness.

Relax people, its 3 week on Friday for Blackburn Holidays !

You don't see anyone whingeing at Old Trafford? You're not looking very hard then. Article's in the Manchester Evening News slating the 14% price rises and pricing out ordinary fans. Many articles pointing out the levels of debt United are now saddled with. Make no mistake United were succesful last year in spite of the Glazer's not because of them.

At present I have no real view on this deal until it pans out a but more, it's clearly early days. It's promising he seems to have local knowledge and hopefully a reason for investing. However it also seems any investment won't be on a huge scale so what is in it for them?

[RevidgeBlue]

It's delicate.

But you will find Daniel Williams gets that website scrapped.

If you look closely you will see it's done by somebody on a two-bob budget.

And, one thing is for sure, yer man is not two-bob.

Has nobody thought it would be a good idea to have a 30-year-old worth a few million running the club? You have to respect his ideas.

Sure there will be a profit on the horizon. But that comes with success.

There is nothing to suggest he is an asset stripper.

Americans see the Premier League as a place to get the potential of free money from TV deals, so that is why it is appealing.

The only way to be in the Premier and on TV is to spend properly.

The alternatives are having the current owners, who have done their bit but are tired of it.

Or some casino owner.

So far the guy has done nothing to deserve all of the doubt and derision.

With all due respect, what do you expect when there's a website knocking about, bogus or otherwise bearing this guy's name which is carrying grossly misleading information?

I would say the range of reaction is nothing out of the ordinary from a reasonably intelligent and inquisitive fan base faced with the type of information we've had so far.

Presume you're Alan Nixon. Other than the fact the story was "your baby" originally don't quite understand why you're so fiercely pro Mr. Williams. It should be a matter of no real consequence to you?

[RevidgeBlue]

Perhaps it's better if Bellamy doesn't return, he might get mistaken and start setting about our prospective new owner with a 4 iron.

[Manchester Blue]

With all due respect, what do you expect when there's a website knocking about, bogus or otherwise bearing this guy's name which is carrying grossly misleading information?

I would say the range of reaction is nothing out of the ordinary from a reasonably intelligent and inquisitive fan base faced with the type of information we've had so far.

Presume you're Alan Nixon. Other than the fact the story was "your baby" originally don't quite understand why you're so fiercely pro Mr. Williams. It should be a matter of no real consequence to you?

To be fair it's hardly Dan Williams' fault if someone sets up a website in his name is it?

I'd hardly say Nicko was fiercley pro Mr. Williams either, all he seems to have done is redress the balance to an extent and point out a few inaccuracies.

[tcj_jones]

I'm well aware , sadly , that the "PRESENT" trustees want to sell . Maybe the trust itself needs revitalising (if that's possible) .

Maybe I'm missing something, but unless it were a friend of Jack, or somebody that shared Jack's love of the club, why would anybody want to be a trustee, bound to the terms of the trust?

[nicko]

Just to clarify.

I am not fiercely pro Daniel Williams, but I think anyone who wants to put money into a club deserves respect. Just got a bit upset that someone putting a bid together was taking pasting and suffering from half-truths and the like.

Looked at his interview again today and it is remarkably straight and tallies with everything that other independent people have said. He was even honest about how it came about and admitting his links with the club. He strikes me as OK.

The story was NOT leaked by Blackburn Rovers and it was NOT leaked by Daniel Williams.

Just got lucky.

Now all that needs to be told is who the American money men are. Word is they are legit, but that is the last piece of the jigsaw and obviously the most important.

Regards.

[Silencio]

Thanks for the posts Nicko...

Much appreciated...

[dave birch]

I'm not overly concerned about Williams D.

Anyone who can get themselves into a position where they can influence people to put serious money up along side their own has got to have something going for them.

As for the venture capital argument, well, these "capitalists" aren't throwing their money around in an effort to lose it. They want to make as much as possible, and for that to happen they will have to make the Rovers successful.

As a fall back, they have to meet the requirements of the Trust Deed otherwise the deal is dead.

[RevidgeBlue]

Just to clarify.

I am not fiercely pro Daniel Williams, but I think anyone who wants to put money into a club deserves respect. Just got a bit upset that someone putting a bid together was taking pasting and suffering from half-truths and the like.

Looked at his interview again today and it is remarkably straight and tallies with everything that other independent people have said. He was even honest about how it came about and admitting his links with the club. He strikes me as OK.

The story was NOT leaked by Blackburn Rovers and it was NOT leaked by Daniel Williams.

Just got lucky.

Now all that needs to be told is who the American money men are. Word is they are legit, but that is the last piece of the jigsaw and obviously the most important.

Regards.

Thanks for coming on the site and it would be really good to hear from you in person in future when there's any other breaking news as well.

Still feel however we're perfectly entitled to state our opinion based on the information to hand.

Looked at objectively, this guy could in theory be a complete fraud. A spot of independent research on him uncovers nothing bar a very strange website which you claim is bogus, and a second website which purports to relate to his principle line of business also leaves much to be desired.

I'm sure there's a lot more to him than that, otherwise Rovers would have flat out denied they were in negotiations with him after you broke the story. But you can't blame supporters for raising red flags.

Thanks once again for coming on and sharing your views.

[HairwayToSteven]

The inference is that he is Alan Nixon, hence "our favourite tabloid journalist".

I was simply making a joke where Vinjay came on and ghosted as someone ITK.

[thenodrog]

Dont want to diss what you are saying Nicko but Michael Knighton had the press in the palm of his hand initially too.

[daren]

Heh, some of this reminds me of the SoccerAM "Yorkshire News" sketch, which finishes with "change. is not. good".

Some of the comments have been ludicrous - for instance the one about a journalist not being able to find out too much information on him, so he must be 'dodgy'. So if you can't get the right answers from Google then he mustn't exist or be dodgy?

Others are more temperate, and I have to admit I was very worried, but most of that has been alleviated with the (very good) interview in the LET. Thanks Andy! First of all - he exists. And there's pictures. Second of all, he was refreshingly frank about how it all came about. I doubt even the most rabid fans in the world spend all their time thinking about how they're going to buy their hometown club. Most business people are pretty busy, too. Having it brought up like that is credible and it raises the possibility that the thought of some schiester like the chap mentioned doing a quick profit buy'n'sell of Rovers got Mr D Williams worried. Which is a fan reaction, which I like. I'm also pleased that he recognises, publicly, the great work the current board do, and isn't planning on waltzing in. Makes sense to me.

The comment about £10 million on a single player can be looked at as

a) for an overrated player - Grabbi anyone? This is fine

exactly what it says. Hmmmmm, worrying. Obviously (to me anyway) we can't go buying £10 million players all the time. However I'd expect that if someone worth that in Sparky's estimation became available that those funds would be available.

Lastly, the "no debt on Rovers". ManU are in horrible debt because of the (slightly *ahem* risky) way that Glazier went about it.He borrowed cash that has to be repaid on a set schedule - like a mortgage. Investment money is slightly different. There's the expectation of profit in the short, medium or long term, but the invested money generally isn't and cannot be a direct burden on the purchased business. Otherwise why the hell are they selling in the first place (unless it's to get out of Dodge).

Which means that for business people, Rovers is an excellent option. We have manageable debt, and from all indications, it's very manageable (i.e. well within our resources to pay any charges accruing from it), We're in what is probably the most globally marketable sports league in the world at the moment. We've an angle - a small town club with recent success and great history. And the squad is in a strong position, we have some good players, a solid squad, excellent youth facilities and a mostly very modern stadium.

Think about it, with a sustained and well funded global marketing campaign, investment in the team and some success, it could be possible to raise the clubs profile to close to that of, say, Chelsea and perhaps Arsenal. Without the crippling debts of ManU, the major cash flow issues of Arsenal and the potential for horrible collapse at Chelsea (if Abramovich wanted to sell, there's about 100 people in the world that could afford it, based on worth. And cash is a different story entirely). Investment doesn't guarantee levels of profit; a steady earner is a safe bet, and it seems that Rovers could be just that - a steady earner.

Of course, as Rovers supporters we're well used to things going wrong against all the odds, so many of us are pessimistic optimists (we desperately want to be pessimistic all the time from experience, but in the end we're optimistic about Rovers. It means a lot of grumbling and fairly phlegmatic reactions when we, for instance, lose to all four bottom sides ). So we're going to gripe, bitch and moan until a takeover happens, at which point we will all support it unless it really damages the club.

Anyway, this post went much longer than intended. So, welcome to DW, hope things go as planned, and I'd love to beat the red scum fans, scousers, pretentious L'Arsé, big mouth Chelski, annoying spuds, BIG CLUB, Pompey, WHammers, Barcodes, and, of course, the dingles with a premiership trophy. (I've missed a few because I'm tired. Feel free to add to the list). I trust JW, and the trustees not to flog us to a looney, so he must be ok. Effusive praise can wait until I see what happens.

[philipl]

Excellent post daren. Sums everything up perfectly.

[Paul]

Daniel Williams or whoever I still don't get this and completely fail to understand eveyone's excitment about investment in the club. What is happening is that investors around the world, especially America, have noticed there's plenty of TV cash swilling around the game. I forget how much per cub, £15m or so? Suddenly everyone wants a piece of the action and is looking to invest. Strangely the investors or potential investors all have the same objective "to get into Europe." Somebody better explain the basic facts to them; qualifying 7th for UEFA does not 1) have any impact on gates and therefore income, 2) nobody ever made money from winning the UEFA cup. 3) if you get a decent home game chances are you'll earn enough to let the fans in for free, on that one game. 4) If you want the big bucks CL qualification is the minimum.

If you get one or two rich investors there is a possibility one club might have a chance of breaking into the top four. If half the PL clubs outside the big four get new "investment" it will have no impact at all. The only changes I can see happening are 1) players will cost more, 2) players will earn more 3) clubs will be bought and sold more frequently. Joey Barton is reportedly being paid £3m per annum by Newcastle. For an average midfielder with a very dodgy off-field record!

The status quo in the PL is already set. Investment in the likes of Rovers, Newcastle, Villa, City, West Ham etc will not have a serious impact on the PL. The investors don't have sufficient funds to challenge the top four and if they did, in Rovers case, it would not make financial sense to put them into the club. Just how much money would it take to assemble a team capable of consistently challenging Manchester United? It cannot happen....at any club. Manchester United attract three times as many per game as Rovers did in the championship year. Where would you put your money?

No investor in a PL club will admit to being in for the short-term yet that is the only realistic possibility. Very, very few football clubs make serious money (name one other than Utd) and there is absolutely nothing on the horizon to suggest this will change. The current rash of investment in the PL is rich men's playthings or short-term financial gain. The figures must stack up well on paper because these people are clearly not fools. They will understand precisely a traditional football club does not make money, secondly there are currently some very good opportunities to make money in the PL, and finally will know their exit strategy already.

For my money these investments will have no serious impact on the PL table which means nothing has changed it just costs more.

What is clear is the JW Trust have wanted to sell for a couple of years and realise now is the time to maximise the revenue from that sale.

Take of the blue and white glasses guys. Nothing is going to change. None of this will last for long.

[Eddie]

Be interesting to see if the possible increase in taxation on private equity firms could have any impact on any of our potential buyers.

[philipl]

Paul, what has changed is that in financial and marketing terms, there is a global league and it is called the English Premier League. No other football sporting competition comes close to it now in terms of sponsorship, income, attendance revenue, viewing figures or global recognition of the competition and its constituent parts.

The Spanish League which financially is far more warped towards Barca and Real Madrid has thrown up genuine competitrion from lesser lights. The challenge for the Prem is to do the same so we end up with Champions on 80 points-ish instead of the recent 90+ numbers.

That I don't think impossible as there is no monopoly on great players signing for 4 clubs and outside of Real, Barca, Bayern, Juve, AC, Inter and perhaps the Rome clubs, the Prem's middle ranking clubs can financially boss it over any other club in the world.

It has been a crisis of management at Villa, Spurs, Newcastle, Man City and Everton that has held them back from emulating Sevilla, Valencia and Zaragoza- not a lack of resources.

On that basis, an already well-managed club like Rovers begins to look like an even more appealing proposition to an investor who calculates that the Prem's next three year windfall can be managed into something even bigger still.

There is a window of opportunity to muscle into the big time- West Ham's investors have seen that which is why for the good of the Rovers, I hope against the odds they get duly and properly punished.

£25m transfer kitty giving Mark Hughes the chance to take a hard assessment of his squad picking up Bellamy plus two other key improvements around the £7m mark could well be all Rovers need to move straight into CL contention next season.

Put that together with the purchase price and lack of baggage needing sorting and Rovers are probably by some distance the best value-for-money and most-realistic sporting chance deal available in the most desirable sporting competition in the world right now.

I wouldn't be surprised if John Williams'/Rothschilds' phones are not ringing off the hook with counter offers right now.

[Alan75]

I still don't get this and completely fail to understand eveyone's excitment about investment in the club.

Not everyone

Good luck to DW or whoever, if they want to buy the club. However those supporters who think it will allow Rovers to make a serious impact on the premiership are deluded.

Many of us were lucky, to have been part of the Jack Walker era, when there was no profit to be made from owning a football club. The only reason that an investor pumped money into a club was because he was a local business man and a supporter.

With all the money from tv rights etc now being thrown about, the only ones to win in the short term, will be the players, their agents and the venture capitalists.

When the bubble breaks, it will be the next generation of supporters who will have to pick up the pieces. Sadly by then, the sport may just be another pc game.