[cite]Posted By: Valley McMoist[/cite]I can't see that takeover happening. They don't have enough money. Saints will be playing in the Blue Square next season.
Irish consortium moves to pole position in Southampton FC takeover
7:40am Wednesday 27th May 2009 Southampton Daily Echo
A CONSORTIUM of Irish businessmen has jumped to the head of the queue to buy Saints after an eleventh hour bid, the Daily Echo can reveal.
The group is understood to consist of two people, who have £500,000 ready to put down as a deposit to gain a period of exclusivity.
The Daily Echo understands that has moved them to the top of the list, overtaking the previous frontrunners, the Matt Le Tissier-backed Pinnacle group.
They are thought to have arrived on the scene late last week and are already at a very advanced stage in negotiations.
Their identities are unknown but last year the Daily Echo reported that millionaire Irish cinema tycoon Tom Anderson had been close to making on offer to buy out former chairman Rupert Lowe.
It was said that the deal was brokered by former Everton chairman Paul Gregg and his associate Tom McLoughlin, but it came to nothing.
Anderson runs Ward Anderson, which controls UK movie theatres including the Leicester Square Empire.
Saints administrator Mark Fry also revealed to the Daily Echo last night that he hopes to announce a preferred bidder by the end of tomorrow.
Fry said he had more than one party in the last stages of negotiations and was hoping things would be resolved soon.
He told the Daily Echo: “We have got a number of people at the final stages and we are trying to get them all to get over the line.
“I am hopeful that it will be within the next 48 hours.”
Fry added the administrators were working “exceptionally hard” to secure a deal, which he said must be satisfactory for the main stakeholders.
Although the Irish group now appear to be favourite to gain control of the club, the other interested parties are not out of the equation.
The Pinnacle consortium is still desperately trying to piece together the final bits of the jigsaw for their completed bid.
They are understood to be very close, however, due to the serious late interest from elsewhere, time is fast running out for them.
That may spark them into completing their bid, but the final deadline is thought to be looming.
Pinnacle’s Tony Lynam, who has been managing the bid, said: “We are still at the table and still talking to the administrator.”
The Daily Echo understands Pinnacle are frantically trying to sort things out today, for fear they may lose the club.
The consortium fronted by Stuart Green and Marc Jackson is still hopeful they can gain control of Saints, while there is thought to be serious interest from another mystery party.
There is no guarantee that whoever is chosen as the preferred bidder will ultimately seal a deal to gain control of the club, though.
Although they will have a period of exclusivity, in which no other bids can be accepted, they will still have to tie up all the final legal and financial issues before taking over.
The Echo understands that Fry would not want other parties to walk away after a preferred bidder is chosen, in case a deal subsequently collapses.
If it is an Irish thing that Charlton are involved with then it seems strange that they might have jumped ship at this stage in favour of Southampton. The Saints have been in peril and looking for a buyer for a long time. Unless things have gone tits up at The Valley of course !
Saints can't pay the wages this month and seem no closer to finding a buyer. The Pompey takeover must rub salt into the wounds.
From the Daily Echo
Update from the Joint Administrator of Southampton Leisure Holdings Plc Mark Fry, Joint Administrator of Southampton Leisure Holdings Plc (“the Company”), the holding company which wholly owns the shares of Southampton Football Club (“the Club”), today made the following statement on progress towards finding a buyer for the Club: “We are still negotiating with four seriously interested parties, but the process of disposing of the shares in a football club, particularly a distressed one in this economic climate, is an extremely complex one, and it has not yet been possible to conclude a sale.
“However, I am confident that we are very close to entering into an exclusivity arrangement with one of the interested parties.”
In addition, the directors of the Football Club today informed the Club’s employees that it is not in a position to pay their wages for the month of May at this time. The directors of the Football Club have asked employees that they remain with the Club for a further week, until next Friday, to see if the administrators are able to negotiate a sale in that timeframe and have asked for their continued goodwill whilst they are not being paid.
The directors of the Football Club proposed that a further meeting will be held with the Football Club’s staff next Friday, which the administrators will attend in order to update them on the sale process.
[cite]Posted By: wickford[/cite]If Saints can't pay the wages then would they not be in breach of contract, therefore leaving the players entitled to move on for nothing?
Eventually yes but not straight away, I think.
More concerned about the office staff etc than the players. I'm sure most of them can manage OK for a while.
Southampton administrators have struck an exclusivity deal with Pinnacle Consortium regarding the sale of the club.
Saints legend Matthew Le Tissier leads the interested party and they will now look to proceed with a takeover of the financially-crippled side.
Pinnacle will be looking to buy out the assets of Southampton Leisure Holdings, the holding company who are in charge of the football club's dealings.
In order to enter into an exclusivity agreement, Le Tissier's consortium had to pay a non-refundable, undisclosed fee, and that has allowed the club to pay their staff in full for the month of May.
The agreement lasts for 21 days and both the consortium and the administrators will now be looking to thrash out a deal during that time frame.
"I am extremely pleased to be able to announce this significant development in the sale process of Southampton Leisure Holdings," joint administrator Mark Fry told the club's official website.
The Times reports the fee as 'nearly £500,000' and the club can use it to pay its wage bill, 'tiding it over until the middle of June'. However, a second bidder- a wealthy European family- is understood to be waiting in the wings'. The key creditors are Aviva, which financed the new stadium (£30m.), Barclay's, the club's bank (£5m.) and HM Revenue and Customs (£2m.).
Comments
Oh yes we will in 6 seasons.
7:40am Wednesday 27th May 2009 Southampton Daily Echo
A CONSORTIUM of Irish businessmen has jumped to the head of the queue to buy Saints after an eleventh hour bid, the Daily Echo can reveal.
The group is understood to consist of two people, who have £500,000 ready to put down as a deposit to gain a period of exclusivity.
The Daily Echo understands that has moved them to the top of the list, overtaking the previous frontrunners, the Matt Le Tissier-backed Pinnacle group.
They are thought to have arrived on the scene late last week and are already at a very advanced stage in negotiations.
Their identities are unknown but last year the Daily Echo reported that millionaire Irish cinema tycoon Tom Anderson had been close to making on offer to buy out former chairman Rupert Lowe.
It was said that the deal was brokered by former Everton chairman Paul Gregg and his associate Tom McLoughlin, but it came to nothing.
Anderson runs Ward Anderson, which controls UK movie theatres including the Leicester Square Empire.
Saints administrator Mark Fry also revealed to the Daily Echo last night that he hopes to announce a preferred bidder by the end of tomorrow.
Fry said he had more than one party in the last stages of negotiations and was hoping things would be resolved soon.
He told the Daily Echo: “We have got a number of people at the final stages and we are trying to get them all to get over the line.
“I am hopeful that it will be within the next 48 hours.”
Fry added the administrators were working “exceptionally hard” to secure a deal, which he said must be satisfactory for the main stakeholders.
Although the Irish group now appear to be favourite to gain control of the club, the other interested parties are not out of the equation.
The Pinnacle consortium is still desperately trying to piece together the final bits of the jigsaw for their completed bid.
They are understood to be very close, however, due to the serious late interest from elsewhere, time is fast running out for them.
That may spark them into completing their bid, but the final deadline is thought to be looming.
Pinnacle’s Tony Lynam, who has been managing the bid, said: “We are still at the table and still talking to the administrator.”
The Daily Echo understands Pinnacle are frantically trying to sort things out today, for fear they may lose the club.
The consortium fronted by Stuart Green and Marc Jackson is still hopeful they can gain control of Saints, while there is thought to be serious interest from another mystery party.
There is no guarantee that whoever is chosen as the preferred bidder will ultimately seal a deal to gain control of the club, though.
Although they will have a period of exclusivity, in which no other bids can be accepted, they will still have to tie up all the final legal and financial issues before taking over.
The Echo understands that Fry would not want other parties to walk away after a preferred bidder is chosen, in case a deal subsequently collapses.
Perhaps the Irish have pulled out because Charlton are selling to the Arabs?
Chester have gone into administration.
From the Daily Echo
Update from the Joint Administrator of Southampton Leisure Holdings Plc Mark Fry, Joint Administrator of Southampton Leisure Holdings Plc (“the Company”), the holding company which wholly owns the shares of Southampton Football Club (“the Club”), today made the following statement on progress towards finding a buyer for the Club: “We are still negotiating with four seriously interested parties, but the process of disposing of the shares in a football club, particularly a distressed one in this economic climate, is an extremely complex one, and it has not yet been possible to conclude a sale.
“However, I am confident that we are very close to entering into an exclusivity arrangement with one of the interested parties.”
In addition, the directors of the Football Club today informed the Club’s employees that it is not in a position to pay their wages for the month of May at this time. The directors of the Football Club have asked employees that they remain with the Club for a further week, until next Friday, to see if the administrators are able to negotiate a sale in that timeframe and have asked for their continued goodwill whilst they are not being paid.
The directors of the Football Club proposed that a further meeting will be held with the Football Club’s staff next Friday, which the administrators will attend in order to update them on the sale process.
On the BBC too.
Eventually yes but not straight away, I think.
More concerned about the office staff etc than the players. I'm sure most of them can manage OK for a while.
Saints legend Matthew Le Tissier leads the interested party and they will now look to proceed with a takeover of the financially-crippled side.
Pinnacle will be looking to buy out the assets of Southampton Leisure Holdings, the holding company who are in charge of the football club's dealings.
In order to enter into an exclusivity agreement, Le Tissier's consortium had to pay a non-refundable, undisclosed fee, and that has allowed the club to pay their staff in full for the month of May.
The agreement lasts for 21 days and both the consortium and the administrators will now be looking to thrash out a deal during that time frame.
"I am extremely pleased to be able to announce this significant development in the sale process of Southampton Leisure Holdings," joint administrator Mark Fry told the club's official website.