Wasps downward spiral... (40 Viewers)

[shepardo01]

Unbelievable.... more money possibly being thrown at them. How and why do they keep getting this treatment

"Sky Blues owners Sisu are not commenting publicly on these latest developments, but fans will be concerned about the potential fallout if the stadium company benefits from another taxpayer bailout."

 

---

[SBAndy]

They are….what’s the word for it? Ah yes, fucked.

 

[shepardo01]

They are….what’s the word for it? Ah yes, fucked.

Not if they get "millions of pounds of public money"!..... unbelievable!!!

 

[fernandopartridge]

Wherever the application is up to, there is no chance they are going to meet the deadline they set themselves of the end of the month to pay bondholders, unless WMCA can somehow circumvent all of its internal governance processes.

 

[tisza]

Is it within the remit of WMCA to bail out businesses? Thought it was about developing new ones etc.
Suppose immediate area of interest could be housing & planning projects !!

 

[SBAndy]

Not if they get "millions of pounds of public money"!..... unbelievable!!!

2 thoughts:

1. Is this to plug a gap as one of the lenders has pulled out?
2. Are they looking for funding support to help with the structural integrity of the arena?

More likely to be point 2 thinking about it, and given it is ultimately a council-owned asset they may get the help they’re looking for.

 

[Gynnsthetonic]

Fuck off, you're not a Coventry team, not entitled to our hard earned money

 

[CCFC54321]

doesn’t this type of tax payer bailouts need to get public consent?

 

[fernandopartridge]

2 thoughts:

1. Is this to plug a gap as one of the lenders has pulled out?
2. Are they looking for funding support to help with the structural integrity of the arena?

More likely to be point 2 thinking about it, and given it is ultimately a council-owned asset they may get the help they’re looking for.

Interesting thought, perhaps a condition of any lending from HSBC is that any known issues with the stadium are addressed.

The council owns the freehold of the land, Wasps is a long leaseholder. The argument that it is a council owned asset isn't very strong imo.

 

[shepardo01]

Fuck off, you're not a Coventry team, not entitled to our hard earned money

The worst part is, they've already had millions of it at the expense of other local businesses. It's unbelievable that they could be given more!!

 

[Nick]

They asked the council and they sent them to the combined authority that reads?

Couldn't make it up.

They will probably get some money as well. As well as the millions they got before.

 

[shepardo01]

They asked the council and they sent them to the combined authority that reads?

Couldn't make it up.

They will probably get some money as well. As well as the millions they got before.

I'm fuming reading all of this...

 

[fernandopartridge]

Not sure how the council can make an application to a body of which its a member with voting rights on behalf of a third party? Seems a bit weird

 

[Nick]

Not sure how the council can make an application to a body of which its a member with voting rights on behalf of a third party? Seems a bit weird

Very shady. Again.

 

[Liquid Gold]

State aid!

Lets spend a few years in Walsalll and bury the cunts

 

[Liquid Gold]

Can you imagine if when the football club went into difficulties when building the arena the council just helped us then. None of this would have happened and they wouldn't have had to deal with years of shit.

They are bent as a two bob note.

 

[Liquid Gold]

Cost of living crisis, bin men on strike, energy prices soaring, inflation at 10% and people genuinely struggling.

If the council think £13m to a private rugby club is a good idea at this time they can fuck off

 

[oldfiver]

Interesting thought, perhaps a condition of any lending from HSBC is that any known issues with the stadium are addressed.

The council owns the freehold of the land, Wasps is a long leaseholder. The argument that it is a council owned asset isn't very strong imo.

As well as Bondholders , Compass have a charge on stadium so doubt any lender would act without that being ludted

 

[mr_monkey]

Can you imagine if when the football club went into difficulties when building the arena the council just helped us then. None of this would have happened and they wouldn't have had to deal with years of shit.

They are bent as a two bob note.

Obvious saving face exercise is obvious

I wonder how the telegraph will report it

 

[Liquid Gold]

I genuinely thought they'd find refinancing just at a rate that crippled them

That they've had to go begging, for a third of it too, is absurd

 

[Nick]

State aid!

Lets spend a few years in Walsalll and bury the cunts

I can't see councils letting them go under. They have faces to save.

 

[AOM]

Why should the city prop up a failing sports team when it's been made clear the vast majority of residents doesn't have any interest or support of?

 

[Sky Blue Pete]

Fuck off, you're not a Coventry team, not entitled to our hard earned money

It’s the combined authority and it’s pretty outrageous isn’t it ?

 

[Ian1779]

I can't see councils letting them go under. They have faces to save.

I thought it was faces to wash?

 

[Philosoraptor]

Which political party are currently in control of the WMCA?

 

[Sky Blue Pete]

Not sure how the council can make an application to a body of which its a member with voting rights on behalf of a third party? Seems a bit weird

It’s council officers rather than elected members

 

[David O'Day]

Which political party are currently in control of the WMCA?

tories on the vote of the mayor as it is 4 each

 

[Sky Blue Pete]

Looks like some excellent journalism to be fair

 

[samccov1987]

Trying to understand have our council pushed them to the WMCA because they know they would be crucified for lending money to them or is it that they have to go through WMCA for such lending?

Andy Street is always on the socials he needs bombarding with protests.

Commonwealth games coming up at the stadium so are they at risk of that falling through if they go under?

 

[Sky Blue Pete]

Trying to understand have our council pushed them to the WMCA because they know they would be crucified for lending money to them or is it that they have to go through WMCA for such lending?

Andy Street is always on the socials he needs bombarding with protests.

Commonwealth games coming up at the stadium so are they at risk of that falling through if they go under?

The question of what is meant by ‘council’ is an interesting one

 

[MAFF]

Unbelievable.

You can’t move a business 100 miles and then ask for a public bailout cause it’s gone to shit.

Yet wasps fans that aren’t from Cov (@Dubai-Dodger ) will still try and claim the move hasn’t been a total failure and Wasps are doing no damage to the wider city by being here.

Wish they’d fuck off and go bust.

 

[Sky Blue Harry H]

To be fair, even if they annoyingly got it, it would surely be tied to development You'd think it would be hard to offset existing costs against any grant. Certainly not playing budgets etc, At the very best I can only see it kicking the can down the road for a couple of seasons at best. Not sure how it leaves them re: bondholders (my limited knowledge!)

 

[duffer]

Not too hard to join the dots here.

Refinancing the bond always looked like a stretch, and so it has turned out.

Net result, Wasps are after public money to bail them out.

It's basically unconscionable, but I wouldn't be at all surprised to see Coventry City council help out.

They shouldn't.

If Wasps can't repay the bond, the worst that happens is the stadium is sold to a third party to recover the bondholders' debts, the best is that the lease reverts to the council and the bondholders lose out.

Either way we almost certainly end up remaining as tenants (unless we buy the lease), and 13m of taxpayers money is held for things that might actually be needed (rather than to support a few thousand fans of a club that never really belonged here).

 

[oldfiver]

Looks like some excellent journalism to be fair

Nooooo lol

 

[chiefdave]

Is it April 1st, this has to be a wind up surely? In what sane world can a private business borrow tens of millions, not be able to pay it back, and get bailed out with public money. That's before you even consider they've just had over £5m in slightly dubious circumstances.

This has to be a non-starter. If they allow this doesn't it open the floodgates for any other struggling business to demand money?