SISU don’t rule out a long leasehold (3 Viewers)

[Calista]

Apologies if I’ve missed any discussions on this, but there seemed to be a hugely significant couple of paragraphs in the Telegraph’s reporting of the CCFC Holdings Ltd shareholders’ meeting (http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/buying-land-new-coventry-city-6404266):-

“Mr Fisher re-iterated Sisu boss Joy Seppala was calling for a sale of the “unencumbered freehold” owned by Coventry City Council.
He added it did not exclude the possibility of Sisu buying a long leasehold, not the 50-year lease currently held by Arena Coventry Limited.”

I don’t have a clue about the legal or financial distinctions between these concepts (OSB?). But surely the above statement offers some hope for sensible negotiations to take place? You know, an adult approach resulting in a mutually-beneficial deal for both the Council and the Club, enabling them both to crawl out of the holes they have dug.

I can see both sides to this saga, and I still think it can be resolved.

As far as I’m concerned, the Club (pre-SISU) dumped a huge financial headache on the Council when the stadium was built, and was so badly managed that it ended up selling its rights to revenues. The high rents and close political involvement etc. (which SISU were aware of when they took on the Club) were a natural consequence of that. CCFC cannot expect to live in a state of denial with the political leadership of the city, and can’t expect to get the stadium and its revenues on the cheap at the expense of the Coventry public.

But circumstances (including relegation and FFP) obviously mean that the Club needs a completely new deal. Although the Council/ACL shamefully rejected the Trust’s proposal of independent arbitration, they have made a series of offers of much-reduced rent. Despite all the hatred going on, in purely practical terms the gap doesn’t look that big to me.

By the way, I discount the possibility of moving into a 12,500 seater stadium in about 2017, and playing in Northampton in the meantime. If that’s the plan, you can count me out now (after 50 years of support).

At the moment the two sides in this saga, three when you count the Football League, deserve no respect from anyone. Time to negotiate properly, because me and my kids have lost an important part of our lives, and there are thousands in the same boat.

Merry Christmas to all Sky Blues fans, regardless of their views on this.

 

---

[wingy]

Excellent post.

 

[ecky]

A 12.000 seater is ridiculous, 10.500 with segregation how much would tickets have to be to be profitable? £25-£30
Then if we got promoted?

Completely crazy ill thought and it won't hsppen

 

[stupot07]

A long lease hold makes perfect sense.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - so please excuse any spelling or grammar errors

 

[shmmeee]

A lease of the whole complex? At what cost? Ties to who?

I'd accept anything tied to the club (which I believe is more possible than with a freehold sale, someone correct me if wrong).

As far as I'm concerned as long as CCFC will always see the benefit hand it over, otherwise market value.

 

[SIR ERNIE]

A long lease hold makes perfect sense.

Not with SISU as owners it doesn't. There's no future for CCFC under SISU's ownership, at the Ricoh or anywhere else. They've shown their true colours in the last 6 months and I want rid of them. Give them nothing and eventually they'll pack their bags.

 

[Grendel]

Not with SISU as owners it doesn't. There's no future for CCFC under SISU's ownership, at the Ricoh or anywhere else. They've shown their true colours in the last 6 months and I want rid of them. Give them nothing and eventually they'll pack their bags.

Your not very bright are you?

 

[mighty quinn]

Bang on the mark

 

[SIR ERNIE]

Your not very bright are you?

Bright enough to know when to use 'you're' not 'your', thicko.

 

[Grendel]

Bright enough to know when to use 'you're' not 'your', thicko.

Sisu will be here until they get a return. Losses are minimal in comparison to other high risk yields. They will certainly tolerate the status quo for another season. Giving them the lease for the amount of money they have already piled into the Ricoh is fair and equitable.

There is no alternative. Wake up to reality.

 

[SIR ERNIE]

Sisu will be here until they get a return. Losses are minimal in comparison to other high risk yields. They will certainly tolerate the status quo for another season. Giving them the lease for the amount of money they have already piled into the Ricoh is fair and equitable.

There is no alternative. Wake up to reality.

Well that's your guess and that's all it is, a guess.

My take on it is that SISU have backed themselves into a nightmare of a cul-de-sac with no prospect of worthwhile revenues. I reckon that sooner or later, their investors will decide that they're backing a lost cause. That's when SISUs wheels will drop off.

 

[Calista]

A lease of the whole complex? At what cost? Ties to who?

I'd accept anything tied to the club (which I believe is more possible than with a freehold sale, someone correct me if wrong).

As far as I'm concerned as long as CCFC will always see the benefit hand it over, otherwise market value.

I agree. Any sale, lease or other arrangement would need to ensure that the assets & revenues are legally and permanently for the benefit of the FOOTBALL CLUB (preventing, for example, the sleight of hand we saw with the “non-trading property subsidiary”). It can’t be a mechanism for shunting money to the Cayman Islands. Not easy to achieve I’m sure, but then again I’m not a lawyer.

 

[Bill Glazier]

Good post, let's not forget it was the council that rescued the club and built the stadium. I remember Jimmy Hill on the pitch at half time pleading with the council to step in. But yes, there must be a deal to be had. I too am out for good, in my case after a mere 47 years, if we end up at either Northampton or a new stadium.

 

[wingy]

Well that's your guess and that's all it is, a guess.

My take on it is that SISU have backed themselves into a nightmare of a cul-de-sac with no prospect of worthwhile revenues. I reckon that sooner or later, their investors will decide that they're backing a lost cause. That's when SISUs wheels will drop off.

You do have to wonder If we are seeing signs of desperation with the output over the last two weeks,media ,Fishers rant ,rushing the pictures out after the Poll and mud slinging which Is due to be covered in the JR,I'm convinced they never assumed the volume on Stay away would be so great and so long. Of course i could be wrong but we don't really know . Oh and the FL are watching,January Is the time when assessment on FFP will be made ,Swindon fell foul of It last year which resulted ultimately with a fracture between Dicanio and his board ,followed by a takeover ,as I say who knows .

 

[Gary.j]

Sisu will be here until they get a return. Losses are minimal in comparison to other high risk yields. They will certainly tolerate the status quo for another season. Giving them the lease for the amount of money they have already piled into the Ricoh is fair and equitable.

There is no alternative. Wake up to reality.

There's always an alternative to being submissive! I'll hold your hand if you're frightened!

 

[stupot07]

Not with SISU as owners it doesn't. There's no future for CCFC under SISU's ownership, at the Ricoh or anywhere else. They've shown their true colours in the last 6 months and I want rid of them. Give them nothing and eventually they'll pack their bags.

Unfortunately, Sisu are our owners so the short to medium term future of ccfc will be under their ownership. Doesn't matter who wants rid of them, unless someone offered them an acceptable bid for the club they're going nowhere.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - so please excuse any spelling or grammar errors

 

[Nonleagueherewecome]

You do have to wonder If we are seeing signs of desperation with the output over the last two weeks,media ,Fishers rant ,rushing the pictures out after the Poll and mud slinging which Is due to be covered in the JR,I'm convinced they never assumed the volume on Stay away would be so great and so long. Of course i could be wrong but we don't really know . Oh and the FL are watching,January Is the time when assessment on FFP will be made ,Swindon fell foul of It last year which resulted ultimately with a fracture between Dicanio and his board ,followed by a takeover ,as I say who knows .

I think that's exactly what we are seeing. Nobody has taken the ground plans seriously; they've made an incredible PR OG with the threats to the Trust; they've been hammered in the national press by two highly respected journalists; they are no nearer to securing a deal to return to The Ricoh; they have unleashed the Labobeast, which is a bit like choosing the "Kamikazi option".

Those who say that NOPM hasn't worked and it's time to give up need to remember that it is a long game and is clearly effecting how they are preceived nationally. They're losing oodles of cash every week that they spend in Northampton. They're screwed, they can't win this-they're just banking on a freak judgment from the Judicial Review.

Just because people are perceived as "hard-nosed business people", it doesn't mean that they can't be utterly incompetent in any given area, EG football-which is utterly unlike any other business they have experience of: they've treated the fans terribly, with a total lack of empathy. And Private Equity does tend to attract the true scum of the business world in my experience, where greed is prized over ability.

 

[Nonleagueherewecome]

Unfortunately, Sisu are our owners so the short to medium term future of ccfc will be under their ownership. Doesn't matter who wants rid of them, unless someone offered them an acceptable bid for the club they're going nowhere.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - so please excuse any spelling or grammar errors

Depends how you define short to medium term. They've already been here at the long end of long-term for a business of their kind: when my company was obtained by Privaty Equity out of administration (for free), they'd sold it on for a cool £8m profit only 6 months latter! I don't think they initially planned to own us for more than 3-4 years max, certainly not over 6 years. So is it really likely that they'll stay until 2016/17?


They're already squirming like a maggot on a hook. They'll be looking to exploit every legal loophole that they can, use any dirty low-down trick in their book of dirty tricks. But make no mistake, continuing to own CCFC without an improvement in their position soon is going to lose them a lot of money. They should have cut their losses earlier when they had the chance, but they've just made the club even less attractive to potential buyers-the opposite of what these firms intend to do!