Rangers Owner Admits Ticketus Deal
Rangers owner Craig Whyte has admitted using money from the sale of future season ticket income to complete his takeover of the Scottish club in May 2011.
A statement issued by Mr Whyte said Ticketus paid £20m in return for ticket revenues for the next three seasons.
The Scottish Premier League (SPL) champion entered administration last week after failing to pay off a multi-million pound tax and VAT bill to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
Rangers’ administrators Duff and Phelps released a statement, admitting the controversial agreement had provoked “widespread concern”.
Administrator David Whitehouse said that £18 million was transferred to the Lloyds Banking Group, which was owed money when Whyte bought Sir David Murray’s majority stake in Rangers.
‘The application of the remainder of these proceeds is subject to further examination,’ Whitehouse stated. ‘We are now investigating all the circumstances surrounding both the purchase of the majority shareholding in Rangers Football Club plc and the flow of funds which stemmed from the transaction and were intended to fulfil the purchasers’ obligations at the time of the sale.’
Whyte said: ‘By any stretch of the imagination that is a very substantial commitment to the football club of which I have been a supporter since I was a boy and dearly wish to see through this crisis so that Rangers emerge as a financially fitter and stronger institution. I am the biggest stakeholder in Rangers and I face huge financial losses personally if the restructuring fails or is not allowed to proceed.’
Whyte added that he would not remain as Rangers chairman following any restructuring by the club’s administrators. He added that he would give “immediate consideration” to gifting the majority of his shares to a supporters’ foundation should he remain in control of Rangers after administration.
