Rachat du club par les fans - ShareLiverpoolFC

Dear Mathieu,

The long-awaited declaration that Liverpool FC is for sale is tremendous news. As soon as we heard it, ShareLiverpoolFC contacted the Club to reaffirm our commitment to getting involved in negotiations. After all, any potential owners must realise by now the value and importance of getting Liverpool fans on board, regardless of possible future regulations on fan representation.

The responsibility to find the right owner for our Club is a heavy one and we call on the current regime to make the right decision - and what can be better than to give those who care most about the Club - us, the fans - a real stake in its future? We would not just own the Club, we would be the Club.

We will email those of you who are registered on our database as soon as we have any concrete update on our negotiations.

ShareLiverpoolFC supports the democratic ownership of Liverpool FC by its fans. If you would like to become involved with ShareLiverpoolFC and wish to register your interest please register here.
Many thanks.

ShareLiverpoolFC.

Dear Mathieu,

The 2009 financial statements published last week for the club and its parent companies Kop Football Ltd, and Kop Football (Holdings) Ltd, highlight the precarious financial situation that the club finds itself in as a result of the debt introduced by the present owners. The need for change of ownership and an immediate reduction in the ever increasing levels of debt is absolutely paramount.

Examination of the accounts reveals some key issues that illustrate this point.

Crippling interest payments

The group suffered having to service over £40 million in interest and similar charges in the last financial year (up from £36.5 million in 2008). That equates to 22% of the club’s annual turnover, spent merely on servicing the debt, not repaying the capital.
As the main trading company in the group, clearly this group cost has a direct impact on the club.
Over £8 million of this was interest and charges due to the parent company, owned by Hicks & Gillett, for loans it has made to the Holding company.
The group has suffered over £70 million in servicing the debt owed to the banks over the last two years for which accounts are available.
Around £45 million pounds has been spent on a stadium that doesn’t yet exist
The high cost of arranging finance under Hicks & Gillett

Closer scrutiny of the “interest payments and similar charges” reveals the high costs of refinancing the short term credit facilities forced upon the present owners. The club’s bank debt at the end of Jul 2009 was £233 million, but it suffered more than £70 million in interest and similar charges over the previous two years.
These finance and interest charges equate to over 20% of the club’s annual turnover (paid over two years) spent on arrangement fees, charges, consultancy & advice etc. All this cost just so that the owners can effectively renew their loan arrangements.

Unsustainable Debt Levels

The amount of net borrowings increased by £58.8 million in the last accounting year.
The amount of debt owed to the banks actually decreased by £27.7 million last year, but the amount of debt owed to the parent company (Hicks & Gillett) increased by £86.5 million.
Interest on the parent company’s loans accrues at 10% APR. Unfortunately for LFC this is approx 5% higher than the interest payable on the bank loans that have been paid down. (Worryingly, a note in the accounts states that none of this interest has yet been paid to the parent company. Is it building up like a time bomb for future cash flow or is it a negotiating tool to ensure the maximum extraction of cash from the club when they finally depart?)
Over the past two years the net level of debt in the company has increased by £107 million (An increase of £51.6 million in 2009 and £55.5 million in 2008). In the same period the company made losses of nearly £100 million.
The company made a net loss before interest and taxation of nearly £21 million in this period (£15.2 million 2009 and £5.7 million 2008)
But these losses increased to nearly £100 million for the period, with the £76.5 million paid in interest and similar charges by the company (£40 million 2009 and £36.5 million in 2008)
Could it be that the increase in debt (£107 million) has largely been taken on to enable the company to continue to pay the interest and charges (£76.5 million) on its existing debt? If so, time must surely be running out on Hicks & Gillett’s business model.

The club cannot afford to continue to suffer the impact of such a large amount of its profit on servicing the debt. Bear in mind that the principal reason that the debt exists in the first place is to reimburse to the present owners their costs of acquiring the club. If the debt had been built up financing a new stadium, or spent on developing the squad to ensure success on and off the pitch, we might expect to see some increased revenue to help meet the interest payments.

Bear in mind also that the record losses posted for 2009, were done so despite the club generating record turnover on the back of enjoying its best ever season in the Premier League. It is unlikely revenues will be as high in this current financial year, or next year for that matter, but it is extremely likely that debt and losses will continue to rise. The need to change the ownership and debt structure has never been greater.

How does this affect our plan?

Up until now, dealing with owners who have been both unrealistic in their valuation of the club and unwilling to deal with a fan owned shareholding partner has resulted in a stalemate. We know that this stalemate has been intensely frustrating.

To press forward without a realistic chance of securing a shareholding in the club would be extremely costly. The costs involved in the collection of the financial pledges of the Share Liverpool FC registrants and the administration of these funds are extremely high. Prohibitively high, when the unwillingness of the owners to deal, means that the possibility of the funds having to be returned unused is too great. However as the situation changes at the club so too does our situation.

In one sense the publication of the accounts merely reinforces what everyone already knew, that the owners need to sell up quickly as they do not have the finances to carry on running the club. However the scale of the debt and the costs of servicing it add urgency to the situation.

We have begun a series of informal conversations and confidential meetings with club officials; with Barclays Capital and investment bankers. We cannot conduct this process ‘in public’ but need to engage with key players and prove our ability to maintain confidentiality. We feel very positive about the situation going forward. The prospect of acquiring some significant fan equity in the Club appears to be sharper and more encouraging than ever before.

Ironically, as the general situation of the Club gets worse, our prospects get better. The Chinese are right to translate the word ‘crisis’ as ‘opportunity’. We can almost tangibly feel the prospect of real engagement moving towards us.

We may very shortly reach the point where we can table a bid. When that happens we need to rely on all of your support, not only in providing the funds to purchase the club, or a significant share thereof, but also in helping this project reach as many Liverpool fans as is physically possible. As things currently stand, ShareLiverpoolFC can only offer shares for sale in UK & Ireland (regulated by the Financial Services Authority in UK), but there are many thousands of Norwegians fans who may wish to take part.

WE ARE VERY KEEN TO HEAR FROM ANY OF OUR NORWEGIAN REGISTRANTS - PROBABLY LAWYERS - WHO HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE OF GAINING RULINGS FROM THE NORWEGIAN FINANCIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY. IF SO, PLEASE GET IN TOUCH WITH US DIRECTLY.

Only by securing a meaningful level of fan ownership of our club can we ensure that the debacle that is currently being played out is never repeated at our football club.

Many thanks.

ShareLiverpoolFC.

Kilkenny a écrit:Je reste assez circonspect sur ce truc.

Bien sûr, la valeur sentimentale du projet est inestimable.
Mais après, s'il y a des déficits de trésorerie, c'est nous qu'on paye?
C'est nous qui décidons de l'équipe dirigeante en place, ya une AG annuelle d'actionnaires?

simon59 a écrit:

Kilkenny a écrit:Je reste assez circonspect sur ce truc.

Bien sûr, la valeur sentimentale du projet est inestimable.
Mais après, s'il y a des déficits de trésorerie, c'est nous qu'on paye?
C'est nous qui décidons de l'équipe dirigeante en place, ya une AG annuelle d'actionnaires?

Déjà il faudrait savoir si cela suit le modèle du Barca et voir comment eux fonctionnent...

Kilkenny a écrit:Je reste assez circonspect sur ce truc.

Bien sûr, la valeur sentimentale du projet est inestimable.
Mais après, s'il y a des déficits de trésorerie, c'est nous qu'on paye?
C'est nous qui décidons de l'équipe dirigeante en place, ya une AG annuelle d'actionnaires?

Kilkenny a écrit:Je reste assez circonspect sur ce truc.

Bien sûr, la valeur sentimentale du projet est inestimable.
Mais après, s'il y a des déficits de trésorerie, c'est nous qu'on paye?
C'est nous qui décidons de l'équipe dirigeante en place, ya une AG annuelle d'actionnaires?

SOME GOOD NEWS AT LAST

We are delighted to tell you that the board of ShareLiverpoolFC can announce that it is confident that the costs of organising and delivering a full share issue can now be met.

As many of you will be only too well aware, the substantial costs of offering (even not-for-profit) shares for sale under the proper regulation of the Financial Services Authority of UK has proved a major barrier to our moving forward.

At last that barrier has been removed.

Clearly there is a great deal of work to do beforehand, but we will now look to specify a date for a share issue – probably some time within the next two to three months.

There is a great deal you can do too to help the cause:

Start to save towards buying a share, currently a minimum of £500 (but with an opportunity to invest more if you can afford it – check out the website for more details).
Send this email on to at least one other LFC fan you know by clicking here
You do not need to register again, but please tell every Liverpool fan you know that the time is coming and they should register their interest on the website, and start saving too.
Unlike the collapsing 'Red Knights' proposal at Man Utd, ShareLiverpoolFC's plan does not depend upon a few wealthy fans, rather it relies upon the collective efforts of individual supporters in order to raise the funds necessary; not high net worth individuals behind the organisation.

Also, unlike Man Utd, Liverpool FC is for sale, and the Club's value is considerably lower. ShareLiverpool has over 35,000 registered supporters whose current pledges could raise up to £40 million in order to acquire a stake in the club.

It will require hundreds of thousands of LFC fans to buy a share for the plan to succeed. But there are more than 4 million in UK & Ireland alone, and uncounted millions more abroad. If the sum raised is insufficient to take a majority stake in the Club, then the board would seek to partner a suitable majority owner by purchasing a minority share which could not be diluted by subsequent share issues; Club board representation and pre-emption rights. If in the end, ShareLFC is unsuccessful, the money will be returned to everyone who put money in.

This is our time. This will be the one chance we'll get to take control of the Club we love and support. This may be the only opportunity we'll ever have to make sure that what has happened to Liverpool FC these last few years will never be allowed to happen again. There's only one way to guarantee that. But it will need a huge number of LFC fans to contribute.

As the Kop banner says: 'What we achieve in life echoes in eternity'

Let's get on with it.

ShareLiverpoolFC board


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Mahiya a écrit:C'est surtout celui qui a le meilleur projet qui est élu. En 2003, Laporta est élu, car en plus de ramener Beckham (ce qui n'est pas arrivé Dieu merci), avait promis d'assainir les finances du club mis à mal par le président Gaspart. Il a réussi à faire baisser la dette, tout en améliorant les résultats sportifs de l'équipe. (Enfin, c'est une façon de parler en disant qu'il a amélioré les résultats )

VikinGaulois a écrit:

Mahiya a écrit:C'est surtout celui qui a le meilleur projet qui est élu. En 2003, Laporta est élu, car en plus de ramener Beckham (ce qui n'est pas arrivé Dieu merci), avait promis d'assainir les finances du club mis à mal par le président Gaspart. Il a réussi à faire baisser la dette, tout en améliorant les résultats sportifs de l'équipe. (Enfin, c'est une façon de parler en disant qu'il a amélioré les résultats )

HS mais justement, la dette du Barca n'a pas explosé, justement?
Donc voila, si on a ce modèle et que les candidats aux élections se tirent dans les pattes, on avancera pas a grand chose.

Spirit of Shankly and ShareLiverpoolFC update

In the last month both Spirit of Shankly and ShareLiverpoolFC have had a significant number of approaches urging both organisations to work harder for a more formal arrangement between them.

Both organisations want to reassure their registrants and members that they entirely share the view that supporters' organisations need to work together in order to secure fan ownership of our club.

Spirit of Shankly and ShareLiverpoolFC have worked hard over the last few months, and particularly the last few weeks, to formalise the combined work of both organisations toward this shared objective.

There were some difficulties in developing the structure of a merged organisation but both organisations remain totally committed to working towards the same goal and have never lost sight of this fact during the dialogue.

We are pleased to say that the discussions that have been continuing have resulted in the issues between the organisations being largely resolved.

Both organisations are currently finalising the details of how a unified organisation to deliver fan ownership will work. We would hope to be able to make a formal announcement within the next couple of weeks about this, but it is reassuring that we can now look forward to coordinated supporters' ownership being pursued in tandem by both Spirit of Shankly and ShareLiverpoolFC.

Spirit of Shankly Management Committee & ShareLiverpoolFC Board

You will no doubt be aware that we at Share Liverpool have been working closely with the Spirit of Shankly over a joint supporter ownership model.

Spirit of Shankly are holding an "Independence Day" Rally at St George's Hall on Sunday 4th July at 12 noon, where they will announce the launch of their Credit Union element of the scheme. Share Liverpool Director, John Aldridge, will be speaking at the event as will local politicians and incidental to the speeches are performances by Pete Wylie, Ian MacNab, John Power and Peter Hooton.

We would urge you to attend if you can do so as the first element of a joint supporter ownership scheme is launched and we begin the real work of reclaiming our Club.

YNWA

ShareLiverpoolFC Board

ShareLiverpoolFC and Spirit Of Shankly, the Liverpool Supporters Union, are pleased to announce that we have reached a formal agreement that allows us to push forward as one unified force for supporter ownership of our club. We have already been working closely together for some time but recognise the need for a unified organisation to successfully pursue this goal.

Recent discussions have led to an agreement about how we can work together for the benefit of all supporters. This will see ShareLiverpoolFC re-branded as Spirit Of Shankly – ShareLiverpoolFC (SOS-SL), bringing together the combined resources of both organisations to work on the issue of supporter ownership. By working as one we will be much more effective in achieving that goal.

Using the strengths and attributes of both Spirit Of Shankly and ShareLiverpoolFC, along with the supporters who back them, we will:
• Continue to develop the model of supporter ownership
• Work to secure the funds necessary to acquire supporter ownership of the club, through direct share purchases and the Spirit Of Shankly Credit Union
• Oversee the launch of the share issue to raise these funds
• Promote the issue of supporter ownership through high quality, consistent communications
• Represent 50,000 (and rising) Liverpool fans on this issue, providing a unified voice that cannot be disregarded
SOS-SL will retain ShareLiverpoolFC’s constitutional status as an investment vehicle through which shares can be purchased to take a stake in LFC and will, like the soon to be launched Credit Union, have its own Management Committee. This will comprise members from the current Board of ShareLiverpoolFC and representatives from Spirit Of Shankly. In order to bring greater unity to the supporter ownership campaign SOS-SL will be represented, alongside the Credit Union, on the Spirit Of Shankly Management Committee, enabling us to build one unified campaign.

Working together is clearly the best result for all of us. By combining forces on this issue we are creating a massive organisation of LFC supporters in pursuit of a shared aim. Every single one of us, speaking with one voice, letting everyone know that this is our Club, not only emotionally but financially too. We have to build on the momentum we have now, grow and become stronger, to become truly representative of the entire fan base.

Then as one, working together, speaking together, let's become proper custodians. Let's take back our football club.

ShareLiverpoolFC Board & Spirit Of Shankly Management Committee

Spirit Of Shankly-ShareLiverpoolFC is aware of the increasing speculation regarding the potential sale of our club. We can confirm that Spirit Of Shankly - ShareLiverpoolFC (SOS-SL) have made contact with those involved in the transaction process to register our interest in acquiring a shareholding on behalf of our constituents.

We have received a polite and positive response and have passed on details of the role an SOS-SL supporter stake might ultimately play in the ownership of our Club, and we await developments.

We would all clearly welcome the prospect of the departure of the Club’s present owners. However we also want to make sure that the Club, the directors responsible for overseeing the sales process, as well as the financial institutions involved, are aware of their responsibility to ensure that if the Club is sold, it is sold to the most suitable owners, who have the interests of the Club and its fans at heart. In that event, we would seek supporter involvement in any proposed purchase.

Whilst selling the club, the interests of Liverpool’s supporters must be considered. Supporters make this club what it is, we provide it’s value – financially through branding, merchandising and sponsorship opportunities, and emotionally through unwavering support for our club, the famed “12th man” which makes our club so special. Any prospective new owner should be fully aware of this and we would expect that new owners would seek to develop a mutually co-operative relationship between the supporters, the club and its owners as a matter of urgency and for the benefit of all parties.

With so much speculation and misinformation, we cannot be sure of the intentions and resources of ‘interested parties’. We do understand that Hicks & Gillett's overriding objective will be to sell the club to the highest bidder in order to extract as large a profit as possible. This will not be in the best interest of the club, or the fans and it must not bear influence on who the club is sold to. The club must be sold to those who are ‘fit and proper’ and who will be ‘true custodians’ who have the necessary expertise and resources to restore our great club to its rightful place.

As a consequence, those responsible for overseeing the sale need to ensure that, as a minimum, any new owner is the right person for the football club and it’s supporters, not for the profit they can provide to greed driven businessmen.

The long-term future of this football club, as well as any investment in it, is entirely dependent on the goodwill and support of the fans. Supporter ownership of the Club remains the overriding goal. Should we have new owners, we need to know what role supporters can play, to make sure the problems of the past three years are not repeated and to make sure that supporter issues are heard.

We’ve been in this situation before. The last decision regarding the ownership of Liverpool FC proved to be the most disastrous in the history of the Club. We cannot afford to let anyone else get it wrong again. The supporters can help them get it right.
Make sure you are on board. Make sure your friends are too –tell them about it, pass on the message that we can and will be a part of it. Now more than ever, we have to come together, stand together, and unite to make a change, to protect our club.

Spirit Of Shankly-ShareLiverpoolFC Board

Spirit Of Shankly - ShareLiverpoolFC - Meeting with Chinese Consortium

Spirit of Shankly - ShareLiverpoolFC have been approached by the representatives of Mr. Kenny Huang who has restated his position as the representative of a serious bid for the ownership of Liverpool FC.

They have stated that Mr. Huang intends to be in Liverpool in the near future and he has asked to meet with representatives of Spirit of Shankly – ShareLiverpoolFC. They have said that the reason he wishes to meet with the supporters' organisations is that the bidders see Spirit of Shankly - ShareLiverpoolFC as key stakeholders in the Club and the views of supporters are critical to the way they approach any deal.

They have made it clear that any discussion would be entirely without prejudice, in order to learn more about Spirit of Shankly – ShareLiverpoolFC, what the organisations want and to see if there are mutual areas of agreement.

We cautiously welcomed the approach and restated our position, made clear recently, that we are keen to engage with those charged with selling the Club and any credible potential purchasers. We recognise that the intentions of any potential purchasers need to be thoroughly examined prior to any purchase of the Club and involvement and discussion with supporters is key to that.

However, the Club, their agents and any potential purchasers need to recognise where the supporters' organisations came from - they were born out of the betrayal by the current owners of promises they made when they purchased the Club and their action and behaviour afterwards.

In the same way that no potential purchaser will commit to any wish list from the supporters, Spirit of Shankly - ShareLiverpoolFC will not supply any endorsement to any potential purchaser without the most rigorous of examinations. This examination will include:

1. That they will be proper custodians of Liverpool FC recognising and never forgetting the unique nature of this Club;

2. That they invest proper equity into the Club to eliminate the current debt and to provide the funds to undertake the capital expenditure necessary to rebuild the Club including a solution to the stadium challenge and sufficient funds to allow the team to properly compete on the field;

3. That they are serious about engaging positively to seek ways in which the supporters are able to obtain an equity stake, with proper representation at Board level, within the Club.

We will keep you updated on any developments.

Spirit Of Shankly - ShareLiverpoolFC

matlehulk a écrit:MAJ : le sieur Huang est soit très sérieux, soit très malin, soit les deux...