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hibiedude
16-12-2009, 08:39 AM
Watford Football Club has asked for its shares to be suspended after warning it may go into administration.Three of the club's board - the chairman, vice chairman and director - resigned after last night's AGM.

"In the event that a funding solution cannot be obtained then the company may have to be placed in administration.

Viva_Palmeiras
16-12-2009, 09:02 AM
Watford Football Club has asked for its shares to be suspended after warning it may go into administration.Three of the club's board - the chairman, vice chairman and director - resigned after last night's AGM.

"In the event that a funding solution cannot be obtained then the company may have to be placed in administration.

I mentioned about the regulators stepping in to sort things on from a general perspective in the Notts County thread. But I'm thinking its like shutting the door once the horses have bolted.

Serious questions should be asked of the regulators(football authorities) role in helping ensure the future viability of the game. From what I understand of Finance just like the FSA didn't "step up to the plate" the football authorities (other than a notable few tough words from Platini prior to his election) have been rather quiet on all of this nonsense.

Donno about Watfords situation whether to feel sorry for them or not but at the end of the day they are just fans like us that feel the pain. Maybe Elton can pull a few strings.

Hibbie0762
16-12-2009, 09:15 AM
Clearly neither of these clubs have heard of Yamanomics. When you owe money to yourselves, of course you don't have any debt.

Maybe someone should point Sir Elton in the direction of UBIG or send him a copy of the latest Romanov epistle to Yams fans. That'll sort it. :greengrin

NORTHERNHIBBY
16-12-2009, 09:20 AM
I think that a few clubs will start to lose the place financially over the next season and a half. I see that Plymouth have had a transfer ban out on them and they seem to be finding money hard to come by. Add Crystal Palace to that list as well.

lucky
16-12-2009, 09:30 AM
It is all very sad regardless of which club including the manky mob from gorgie. Poor leadership threatens the clubs future. The fans are the ones who suffer. When you read about other clubs I'm amazed how good STF and RP have been. It also makes you wonder how RP has not transfered himself

Viva_Palmeiras
16-12-2009, 09:42 AM
If the situation gets dire and clubs start to disappear as fast as Hearts managerial staff then if those wot run football do step in how do they do this without penalising those showing prudence - like Hibs.

If things turn out like this it could get very messy, quite lucrative being a lawyer specialising in football administration...

Hibbie0762
16-12-2009, 09:43 AM
It is all very sad regardless of which club including the manky mob from gorgie. Poor leadership threatens the clubs future. The fans are the ones who suffer. When you read about other clubs I'm amazed how good STF and RP have been. It also makes you wonder how RP has not transfered himselfIt is sad, but - especially where the Gorgie mob are concerned - largely self-inflicted. It is taking football an awful long time to realise what the rest of commerce has always known - that whether a business runs on borrowed cash or on earned income, the books still ultimately have to be balanced. Sooner or later a debt becomes due and has to be repaid because someone else wants their cash back.

It is hard to feel too sorry for those clubs which, rather than run a balanced commercial concern where its employees and creditors all get paid timeously, try to buy bigness by pretending that the laws of mathematics can be ignored.

macca70
16-12-2009, 09:45 AM
Really hope they find someone to help them out.

Used to to go to quite a few Watford games when I had a flat right next to Vicarage Rd.

Really surprised by this as they never spent any money and didn't seem to pay big wages.

The times that they have been promoted to Premiership in the past they haven't shown much ambition, never spent much money and gone straight back down.

Must be a lot of clubs going a similar way if this is happening to the Glory Hornet Boys :(

blackpoolhibs
16-12-2009, 10:29 AM
I'm surprised Elton John has not done something here. :confused:

Sergey
16-12-2009, 11:09 AM
I'm surprised Elton John has not done something here. :confused:

There's little love lost between Elton John and a few Watford FC directors. It goes back years and EJ has stated that he'd washed his hands of the club while it's under the current regime.

Caversham Green
16-12-2009, 11:25 AM
There's little love lost between Elton John and a few Watford FC directors. It goes back years and EJ has stated that he'd washed his hands of the club while it's under the current regime.

Sounds like it's not under that regime any more if the op is correct.

Watford have been struggling for some time and this is not really a surprise. Administration looks inevitable, but it might not be a bad thing for them if Elt was going to buy them afterwards.

Hank Schrader
16-12-2009, 11:29 AM
Watford have been struggling for some time and this is not really a surprise. Administration looks inevitable, but it might not be a bad thing for them if Elt was going to buy them afterwards.

If the same were to happen to our pink chums from Gorgie, would Cicero be willing to purchase Hearts with the millions of pence he made from his (brief) pop career?

Sergey
16-12-2009, 11:48 AM
Sounds like it's not under that regime any more if the op is correct.

Watford have been struggling for some time and this is not really a surprise. Administration looks inevitable, but it might not be a bad thing for them if Elt was going to buy them afterwards.

I mentioned last month on a thread on the PM board that Watford wouldn't make it until Christmas. They've been teetering on the brink for some time and it now looks like they don't even have enough funds to see them through until January 1st to allow them to sell a player or two.

The club also needs serious investment with regards it's infrastructure. The ground is a death-trap.

Posh Swanny
16-12-2009, 11:55 AM
The Darren Ferguson debacle aside, Darragh MacAnthony's prudent approach upon reaching the Championship could yet prove Petrie-esque for The Posh's future aspirations. He has constantly said that "unlike other clubs" we will not spend beyond our means and while we're getting crowds of 7,000 to 8,000 that means lower wages than most, if not all.

The plights at Watford, Plymouth and Palace offer us a glimmer of hope while we're rooted to the bottom of the table, without a win in sight! Having said that, a ten point deduction for Watford would still leave us six points behind them! LOL!

Caversham Green
16-12-2009, 11:57 AM
I mentioned last month on a thread on the PM board that Watford wouldn't make it until Christmas. They've been teetering on the brink for some time and it now looks like they don't even have enough funds to see them through until January 1st to allow them to sell a player or two.

The club also needs serious investment with regards it's infrastructure. The ground is a death-trap.

:agree: Shame really, I've got a soft spot for Watford and I like Vicarage Road despite (or possibly because of) it being a bit dodgy.

Caversham Green
16-12-2009, 12:07 PM
The Darren Ferguson debacle aside, Darragh MacAnthony's prudent approach upon reaching the Championship could yet prove Petrie-esque for The Posh's future aspirations. He has constantly said that "unlike other clubs" we will not spend beyond our means and while we're getting crowds of 7,000 to 8,000 that means lower wages than most, if not all.

The plights at Watford, Plymouth and Palace offer us a glimmer of hope while we're rooted to the bottom of the table, without a win in sight! Having said that, a ten point deduction for Watford would still leave us six points behind them! LOL!

The Championship is nowhere near as lucrative as people think. Reading's turnover in their promotion year was only £12m - that's with 24k seel outs for every home game and topping the league with a record points total. Stoke got £11m in their promotion year.

I guess Watford's parachute payments ran out last year, but they still had players' contracts to service - paying Premiership wages on Championship income.

Best of luck to Posh anyway.

Sergey
16-12-2009, 12:22 PM
The Championship is nowhere near as lucrative as people think. Reading's turnover in their promotion year was only £12m - that's with 24k seel outs for every home game and topping the league with a record points total. Stoke got £11m in their promotion year.

I guess Watford's parachute payments ran out last year, but they still had players' contracts to service - paying Premiership wages on Championship income.

Best of luck to Posh anyway.

The year after Watford got relegated they banked on getting automatic promotion the following year and retained a lot of their squad. Foolishly, due to financial hardship, they continued to sub-let Vicarage Road to Saracens and the longer the season went on, the pitch began to resemble the allotments that are adjacent to the ground.

Their home form from Dec-May that season cost them the automatic berth and they got done in the play-offs (by Hull IIRC)

Watford_Mark
16-12-2009, 03:32 PM
Elton John is trying to help out by playing a concert at Vicarage Road with the proceeds going to Watford FC.

However the concert is not until May 2010, which may be a bit too late. Also they reckon the receipts may 'only' raise £600k.

As somebody commented earlier, I'm amazed they find themselves in this position as their attendances are average for that league and I always thought them to be quite prudent on the transfer front too. I was obviously very wrong.

Hope something can be done.

Mark

Sergey
17-12-2009, 08:13 PM
Looks like they're screwed.....

Administration (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8418667.stm)

HibbyAndy
17-12-2009, 08:57 PM
Elton John is trying to help out by playing a concert at Vicarage Road with the proceeds going to Watford FC.

However the concert is not until May 2010, which may be a bit too late. Also they reckon the receipts may 'only' raise £600k.

As somebody commented earlier, I'm amazed they find themselves in this position as their attendances are average for that league and I always thought them to be quite prudent on the transfer front too. I was obviously very wrong.

Hope something can be done.

Mark


Isnt Elton John a billionaire and former Director or chairman?..why cant he pay whats needed to stem the tide?

Pretty shan if Watford head into Administration, always had a wee sof spot for them cause they where always s hight

Viva_Palmeiras
17-12-2009, 09:29 PM
Isnt Elton John a billionaire and former Director or chairman?..why cant he pay whats needed to stem the tide?

Pretty shan if Watford head into Administration, always had a wee sof spot for them cause they where always s hight

Looks like there's a matter of principle (and brinkmanship) here...

In any case if Elton did this any Tom, Dick or Harry who stepped in would reckon - "I'm alright, Elton will bail them out if the club get into a pickle".

CropleyWasGod
17-12-2009, 09:59 PM
Isnt Elton John a billionaire and former Director or chairman?..why cant he pay whats needed to stem the tide?

Pretty shan if Watford head into Administration, always had a wee sof spot for them cause they where always s hight

Why should he? :confused:

HibbyAndy
17-12-2009, 10:35 PM
Why should he? :confused:

Cause he's a Watford fan :dunno:

CropleyWasGod
17-12-2009, 10:40 PM
Cause he's a Watford fan :dunno:

Sure, that's a reason why he would. But not why he SHOULD.

HibbyAndy
17-12-2009, 10:41 PM
Sure, that's a reason why he would. But not why he SHOULD.


Ok,.. im not trying to be smart in any way, just trying to think.

Sergey
17-12-2009, 10:42 PM
Ok,.. im not trying to be smart in any way, just trying to think.

You could also have read the thread before you commented :wink:

The answer lies above...

macbeth
18-12-2009, 09:08 AM
I've added Watford to the Football Finances site.

As other shave said Watford messed it up badly when they gambled on coming straight back up after their last relegation.

Ther income will drop from roughly £22m last season to roughly £8m this. No one can manage that sensibly.

That the directors paid themselves huge salaries is pretty grotesque. Even higher than Petire !!! :rolleyes:

http://www.football-finances.org.uk/watford

cabbageandribs1875
19-12-2009, 10:31 AM
problem solved, for the time being at least http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/w/watford/8418667.stm


Watford have avoided the threat of administration after majority shareholder Lord Ashcroft agreed to pay former chairman Jimmy Russo £4.88m.

The rescue package, which will be underwritten by Lord Ashcroft, means the club can be kept running at least until the end of the season.