Question about the Ricoh/ACL (1 Viewer)

skybluetony176

Well-Known Member
Commercial confidentiality - the term that allows a bunch of ills to be hidden.

Doesn;t need Simon Gilbert to do it either, do it yourself ;) but remember to appeal if they don't tell you...!

The details of the take over are confidential but surely the current status of the loan is of public interest and therefore overrides it?

It would be much better SG doing this than me. I don't check my emails for months and even then I just delete most of it assuming it's junk.
 

letsallsingtogether

Well-Known Member
I was told on Sat that the loan value to debt needs two sporting entities playing at the Ricoh else the loan will default. The initial loan made by the council was paid off by wasps and a new one reissued

Correct I posted this earlier.
If you remember he also said that the Ricoh was too small for AEG to run but their new 15,000 stadium is just the right size, :laugh:

Then again doesn't need to be that big for Billy Smart?
 
D

Deleted member 5849

Guest
The details of the take over are confidential but surely the current status of the loan is of public interest and therefore overrides it?

All I can say is councils know FOI better than anyone. If there's something they don't want to release, they tend to find ways not to!
 
D

Deleted member 5849

Guest
Quite, who would rely on tenants like SISU?

Indeed and, if so, the first thing SISU would do would be to move out, surely?!?

Unless that's why they made it quite so hard to buy tickets when we came back ;)
 

skybluetony176

Well-Known Member
All I can say is councils know FOI better than anyone. If there's something they don't want to release, they tend to find ways not to!

Even more reason for SG to do it. Didn't he get Nuneaton and Bedworth council to reply after initially turning down the request.

While he's at it he could do a fresh round to all the neighbouring local councils on the new stadium, it must be a few months now since he said it and as timmy is still talking about it it's got to be worth it.

Chop chop tea boy ;)
 

Sick Boy

Super Moderator
The details of the take over are confidential but surely the current status of the loan is of public interest and therefore overrides it?

It would be much better SG doing this than me. I don't check my emails for months and even then I just delete most of it assuming it's junk.

As they believe in honesty and fair play, I don't think you'll have too many problems getting the info.

Maybe ask the man with the double barrelled name next time he's on here to give us an unbiased glimpse into what is going on.

Good luck but you won't need it.
 
J

Jack Griffin

Guest
I struggle to accept that tbh. It makes no logical sense to pick up the entire shebang on the hope that the football club stays beyond its short term deal.

It does, but there is a 4 year window before anything can go bad on the situation, so maybe it was deemed a risk worth taking, the alternative for Wasps being to stay put and lose £15M, no contest, especially if they've got a (£12M?) sponsorship deal lined up for next year!
 
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D

Deleted member 5849

Guest
It does, but there is a 4 year window before anything can go bad on the situation, so maybe it was deemed a risk worth taking.

Maybe. Would add fuel to the fire it's a shit or bust strategy from Wasps though. Also if we go out of existence tomorrow, there's somewhat less than four years!
 

Noggin

New Member
OK, see what you're saying. Let's just run this scenario one more time.

Wasps go bust - ACL goes into Admin. The lease probably reverts to the council at this point, although it may suit them to allow it to remain with ACL perhaps, depending on whether there's a deal to be done with someone else perhaps.

Effectively though the council becomes a creditor - what makes you think anyone would buy ACL including the full liability at this point? It seems unlikely there will be a long line of sports clubs bidding.

Wasps can't buy it, we're saying they've folded. CCFC may have moved out or gone bust, or may be reluctant to take on the full liability, or most likely would delight in seeing the council burn regardless (if SISU are still in charge). Who else would take on ACL with the full liability? The point of admin, as we've seen, is to enable the reduction of debts and liabilities.

There's a genuine risk here, to my mind. The lower risk play for CCFC, as I've said, was SISU's where the debt to the council was at least discharged at the point that ACL was sold. That obviously failed, not least because of SISU, but it doesn't mean that the deal the council have done now is any better.

Personally I believe the wasps have gotten a bargain, so the chance of there not being anyone willing to buy ACL for a £1 with the loan attached is tiny not to mention the fact that ACL not being able to pay their loan is tiny too with 2 sporting clubs there. If Wasps go bust the football club absolutely in my mind would want to take acl, you make it sound scary taking on the loan but again if you buy acl you don't take on the loan, it remains with acl, if you fail all that happens is acl go into admin again, ccfc wouldn't be taking on full liability. It's attractive to a huge amount of people, it's a very impressive concert and conference venue with a casino, restaurants etc, we've talked about people only wanting to buy ccfc to get the ricoh in the past and here they get the ricoh for free other than it having a mortgage. The football club just wanted to buy half the stadium for 2.77-2.8mill with the loan attached, why wouldn't they want it for free. Not to mention how many thousand times better a deal that would be than building their own stadium.

Even in the worst case scenario of ccfc losing say 12mill they have the ricoh to do with as they see fit. If there is no ccfc around to want to buy the stadium in this unlikely scenario, I think we are all going to be much more worried about that then the council having lost 10mill but being owners of the stadium again. If all this happened perhaps the council would partner with someone to build a new coventry football team.
 

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