Since the Ibrox takeover was completed—or formalised, or whatever word we want to use—over the weekend, a number of mainstream media types have taken shots at our fans.
We’re being criticised for claiming that it would never happen. We’re being criticised for predicting that it would end in disaster, for saying it was either some sort of fakery or that those involved would look at the books and walk away.
It suits the media to push this narrative, even though regular readers of this site and others know that it isn’t true. From the start, I believed there would be some version of this takeover.
There was too much noise around it for it not to be at least partially true. What we have done, over and over again, is point out that the version of the story being presented by the mainstream press has a number of holes in it.
Those holes don’t relate to the takeover itself. The takeover is a fairly straightforward piece of business. Where we took issue was with how those attempting it were going to reach 51%. We now know they’re going to use some procedural tricks to get there—and that on 23 June, they’re going to formalise an even bigger power grab.
I’ll do a longer piece on that a little later in the week. But for now, let’s talk about the holes in the “plan” itself.
The presumption in the mainstream media about how this is all going to shake out is as ignorant as it is dumb. It’s as contradictory as it is crazy.
They’ve said that these are fully-fledged, hard-nosed professionals who will bring a touch of sophistication to the operation of the club. But at the same time, these same people are expected to spend tens of millions more —and will never see again—on making the club competitive on the pitch.
One of the mantras repeated constantly is that the club has to be successful for them to see a return. And time and time again this has been proven, in football and across professional sports, to be completely untrue.
Mike Ashley—the last hard-nosed, serious, world-class businessman to have any sort of influence at Ibrox—ran Newcastle United on a for-profit basis. They weren’t successful. They didn’t have to be.
As long as he was making money, he didn’t care whether they won trophies or not. He brought professionalism to a depleted operation. He modernised it. He turned it into a cash machine—but not a trophy-winning one.
Likewise with the Glazers at Manchester United who, although they’ve presided over some trophy-winning seasons, have also overseen regression on the pitch. This season ended with them outside the top ten, with no European qualification. Yet in spite of this, United remains the most profitable football club on Earth.
Almost all of the debate over this takeover has been conducted in the media with hyperbole and proven nonsense at its core.
Take the claim yesterday, amplified by the press, from Dave King—who said that 49er Enterprises had at least quadrupled revenues over the last four or five years. For a start, they haven’t been in control at Leeds for that long.
And the idea that they’ve increased revenues by 400% is absolutely ridiculous and has no basis in reality whatsoever.
When the media is printing obvious rubbish like that without doing even the smallest, tiniest bit of research into the actual numbers—it’s closer to 28% than 400%, still impressive but nowhere near the stratosphere he’s talking about—you have to wonder what else they’ve missed or are ignoring.
We have a very professional board of directors. We have people at our club who have tried to tap into every income source available. The idea that there is some miraculous source of funds out there that our club hasn’t found, but theirs is now uniquely privy to, makes no sense whatsoever.
It doesn’t stand up to even the scantiest examination. Yet it’s one of many things the media expects us to believe.
These people are non-emotional investors. Their sole reason for getting involved in any project is to make it profitable.
If you take over a distressed company—and that is exactly what the Ibrox club has long been, a business that makes continuous losses and is funded out of the directors’ own pockets—then there are only two ways to increase revenues: you either make more money or you cut the budgets across the board.
There are no other tools at your disposal.
Running the club on something like a subsistence level ought to be the first thing these people attempt. They’ll jack up prices if they have to. They’ll resort to even more extreme measures. And the only way that can be prevented is if the fans have some meaningful say in how the club is run.
That will be snatched from them on 23 June.
When the details of that meeting become more widely known, that’s when the blinkers will fall off a lot of eyes. And that’s when the Scottish sporting press will owe a lot of the bloggers an apology. Yeah. Another one.
But I’m not holding my breath on us getting it.
“Yeah another one” – An apology from these utter Scummy Scottish Bastards James…
Hell will freeze over first so it will…
Youse never got one ever from today back to the first day that Blogsphere started and youse never fuckin will…
Anyway we Celtic supporters and youse excellent bloggers don’t need no fuckin apologies from These Scummy Sevco Fanboy Tramps !
(Paragraph 6) – We don’t need no apology as we are LEAGUE CHAMPIONS AGAIN !
I don’t think their takeover is about Scottish football at all, but rather about a future Euro league and they see Sevco as one of the potential “Monopoly properties” in such a league…whether they see them as the Old Kent Road, Pall Mall, Fleet Street or Park Lane who knows.But I can see a mindset that said “let’s grab ourselves some insurance against this Super League thing…
Do you really think they would ever meet the criteria for such a league?, doubtful.
I dont see anybody from the media mock Celtic bloggers. Lots of Celtic fans however were fed the Fakeover message by your pompous mate Joe Mchugh. I enjoyed your great post yesterday on the subject but on trinity tims we have been misled for many weeks by your mate who mocked anybody that stated anything contrary to his opinion.
It was and remains in many ways a fake over from what was expected hun jimmy. From the get go it was all bells glitter n whistles in fact it delivered none of that as it became nothing but a long drawn out farce that your club is well known for , so yes it was fake in many was as much as the moonbeams that have been forcefed to that support for years, the cheating, murray, its hardwired into the club so fake comes natural jimmy boy.
This has a way to play yet and in time precisely because of the support ( wee barry hasnae gone away ) this will end in tears , tears just like yours jimmy boy coz wee joe got on yer nerve?
Tell yi what get to the nearest hardwear and buy a bag a cement n harden up ffs!!!
What a trumpet you are eldorado. Wee pompous joe has always been full of shite but you being a sycophantic arse licker, he will do for you. You both are really well suited. As for being a Hun. I have commented on this site for about 15 years. Longer that you have been wetting yourself over wee Joe.
Ma hinend. Am 70 and i know ur no tim. How do u rate our skip and whats the real reason for hittin on joe.
Its his blog man ! And just like i disagree with jf on here now n again i di with joe and he tells me he its his and writeea what he wants. I dont go bleating to another blog about it snowflake geeze
I am just younger than you Eldraco. My first game was at Ibrox when Bobby lennox scored an equaliser.
Loved Celtic then and still do short of 50 years later. Clearly you have small man syndrome like mchugh. Now get to bed before Snow white kicks your arse.
Ps, I have dealt with Mchugh in the past. A loathsome human being who would fit in well to the follow follow dark world.
I dont know if you are a hun or not but its irrelevant either way.
You’re correct about some celtic bloggers including joe who’ve been wrong about the takeover. Far too many have been dismissive about it. But having said that, I do agree with James, this is going to end terribly for sevco, these investors, if they are in fact investors are doing this to make money. They don’t care about the fans nor the good of the club, they care about money and that’s it.
Cheers The brokenness. Thank God for telling the truth. I stated that certain bloggers have spoon fed us shite about the fakeover, Mchugh hasn’t post a thing on it. As I wrote the piece James wrote on it was excellent. I hope that you are right and they implode. That would be a fantastic watch.
Wrote on it since
I need to ask Jimmy – As a Celtic supporter why are you financially supporting The Scummy Scottish Football Media ? (You clearly state that you don’t see any of The Scummy’s mock Celtic Bloggers)….
That said you are not alone for sure…
CQN – ‘The Record Says’ – ‘This From The Sun’ – ‘It says it in The Evening Times’
And I’ve to idiots on ma street that openly stride past ma house with The Scummy Record every day…
Nice lads but not when they walk by with That Scummy in their grubby mits !
Fair enough Clach about CQN but if other blogs serve up shite they deserve the same mockery that you are giving out.
The beauty of Scottish football is at this present time 2 teams have an opportunity to qualify for the CL,the Yanks know that’s not possible with Leeds without investing on a massive scale,they dont have that concern with Sevco that’s the only thing I personally can think of why they’re here,there’s every chance of qualifying for CL and making a few quid,it is then that the Celtic board will have to act as they will spend to succeed,I fear with this board,next season will be massive as we will also see if Brandan gets backed to keep us ahead,ONLY MY OPINION H.H.??
You’re spot on Timiloy re their reasons – they’ve spotted the “relatively easy” potential access to CL monies c/f other leagues they could have acquired a club in. They still have a lot of work to do to stop the losses (qualifying for CL would obviously work but it’s not guaranteed year on year) but if/when they do (presumably by actually getting a player trading model working) then its actually quite easy to make money here as Celtic have proven.
Worse, I think our Board will be reluctant to back Brendan for two reasons:-
ONE – he could leave at anytime from end of next season onwards, even if he signs an extension, and
TWO – they will look at the amount that was spent last summer on Idah, Engels, Trusty & Bernardo and question whether any of those players are better than the ones we already had or that left and the truth is not really (albeit mitigating factors exist) and thus doubt his ability to spot a player that he hasn’t managed before.
Good post Woodyiom…
Point Two is so very very valid at this juncture for sure…
Big Big Big season for that trio coming up for sure and therefore by dint for Brendan also and not forgetting us Celtic supporters also !
“The idea that there is some miraculous source of funds out there that our club hasn’t found, but theirs is now uniquely privy to, makes no sense whatsoever” —— ?? Only in Scotland as the unquestioning Laptop Loyal Lapdogs of the SMSM play their part supplying Deludamol to the gullible masses.
“ We have a very professional board of directors.” – the profits and the exorbitant and continuous ROI as realised by the owner bears this out 100% but there is a strong argument ( current cash pile? ?) that a chronic lack of investment in coaching level facilities and infrastructure as well as Human Resources ( academy path and churn / loss of starlets) off and on the pitch has led to complacency. The scouting operation has unearthed some great revenues in the recent past but other than Kieran Tierney where are the Academy players who are first team regulars and being sold for considerable sums after being pathwayed into the Celtic Structure and model?