Mike Ashley v Dave King: The cold hard facts in the battle to control Rangers Examine the pros and cons of the two key players ahead of the egm shoot-em-up. THE battle for Rangers is reaching an almighty climax after Dave King called for an egm. He wants himself, Paul Murray and John Gilligan on the board – and David Somers, James Easdale, Derek Llambias and Barry Leach booted off. Mike Ashley and the Rangers board is not for turning though. They fired off two statements to the London Stock Exchange this morning that proved as much. The fight is hotting up right now – although whenever was it cold? – and here we outline the plain, hard facts surrounding the two key players... THE MONEY Ashley is an undisputed billionaire – with wealth totalling £3.37bn – so he easily has the means to take Rangers back to the top of Scottish football. But crucially, does he have the will? The Sports Direct tycoon has been heavily criticised by Newcastle fans for the lack of spending at the EPL club. In fact in a table of Newcastle’s net spend over five years up until January last year, the Toon were rock bottom. They had spent £93million in transfer fees but had recouped £138m – giving a net spend of -£45m. Also, a study by respected Newcastle fans publication The Mag insist Newcastle’s wage bill hasn’t gone up in eight years. King is also a man of serious wealth, although not in Ashleys league. His net worth is also less transparent, though he was listed in a South African rich list three years ago. What is clear, however, is in 2013 he had to repay £44m of the £149m he owed the South African tax authorities. THE AUTHORITIES Although Ashley does not have these potential problems with regards “fit and proper”, he does have another issue. Being owner of Newcastle has set him on a collision course with the SFA. The governing body has set a hearing date of January 27 where he will face the charge of wielding too much influence at Ibrox. Although he has just under a nine per cent shareholding at Ibrox, he has right-hand men Derek Llambias and Barry Leach on the board. The SFA remain seemingly unimpressed with him and sources insist he went back on his word to Hampden chiefs over his involvement with Rangers In a statement to the London Stock Exchange, the Rangers board made a pointed comment that is seemingly aimed at King. Following the Castlemilk-born businessman’s tax issues, this morning’s statement questioned his validity of becoming a director of a UK company. It read: The board also state that under stock exchange rules, those appointed to the board must be suitable to be a director of a UK public company. King’s war with the South African tax man began when around the turn of the century he claimed his taxable income was just £34,000. After a decade-long fight, he eventually reached an accord with a South African court when he pled guilty to 41 criminal counts of contravening the South Africa Income Tax Act. Charges of fraud, tax evasion as well as money-laundering and racketeering were dropped after he repaid some of the money they insisted he owed. However, a fresh investigation has been opened by the South African authorities. King has admitted he has not held any talks with the SFA over the governing bodys fit and proper person criteria. But he is confident he would not be debarred from returning to Rangers as a director. SFA rules, however, would seem to preclude him for five years from being a director of a club that has suffered an insolvency event. THE FANS Ashley’s involvement with the club is largely not appreciated by the support. The final straw came when he offered a £10m loan for the club in return for the treasured Ibrox being put up for security. He has already given loans of £3m to the club – but fans are cynical about his motives because others have offered cash on what they insist are better terms. King is seen a Rangers man. He is a fan of the club and a former director of oldco. He wants Paul Murray, another fan and former oldco director – as well as John Gilligan on the board. Many supporters are keen for this to happen. One criticism of King has been he had not put his money where his mouth is. That charge, however, can perhaps no longer be levelled at him. He has bought a stake that now totals around 15 per cent to make him the largest individual shareholder. He also made an offer of a £16m bailout package in October last year that was knocked back in favour of Ashley
Posted on: Mon, 19 Jan 2015 14:28:01 +0000
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