Punish Rangers if they’re guilty, say fans
Last week I sought the views of non-Rangers football fans in Scotland about the current meltdown at Ibrox. This is the second of three blogs setting out how they see it.
The straightforward view of all fans who responded is that, understandably enough, Rangers should be punished if found guilty of the allegation of systematically cheating their way to years of football success.
That said, the desire for justice, if there is indeed guilt, was balanced by extreme suspicion that Rangers would somehow escape justice. This is based on the widespread belief that the powers that be, from TV through the SFA to the SPL, desire Rangers in the top-flight league at almost all costs.
Joe wrote -
“If the SFA/SPL fail to act… then the repercussions for Scottish football will be even greater than the SPL without RFC. The fans of other clubs will unite as never before to ensure that justice is done and the rules are adhered to.”
Jamie said, if guilty, Rangers should be demoted and emerge under a different identity, perhaps “Govan FC”. He said -
“But they must build from the bottom anew. Applying to the league in the same way as Inverness Caledonian Thistle did when they were formed as a brand new club.”
And many looked abroad for European precedent where big teams had fallen foul of the laws administrating the game. The names Marseille and Fiorentina came up time and time again as clubs which had paid the requisite price, in the view of many.
Brian wrote saying that if Rangers are found guilty of malpractice, Uefa should take action -
“Allowing RFC, in whatever guise they eventually emerge, to remain in the SPL would make a mockery of their Financial Fair Play initiative. This is something I sincerely hope the 11 SPL chairmen will consider before rubber-stamping their return to top flight football.”
And talk of that 11 brings us to a big gripe – that the voting structure of the entire SPL badly needs reform because the Big Two – Rangers and Celtic – can block anything they don’t like.
As Stuart put it -
“If Rangers are not in the SPL next season, the voting structure of the league can be changed. Currently any motion can be blocked by two clubs. This enables the Old Firm to block any proposals put forward by the rest of the league.”
The current 11-1 voting structure is seen by many fans merely as a way of keeping the status quo the way the Big Two want it, not least in terms of cash and the distribution of TV money.
The view is that Rangers should go through due process and, if guilty, be required to pay back those who owe them money – which might turn out to be you and I, taxpayers, the way things stand.
If they have to sack people there is considerable sympathy for those individuals. If they have to sell Ibrox there is virtually no sympathy at all. Play by the rules. Start again from the bottom. Rebuild with a new identity and ethos.
As Michael said -
“If Rangers are allowed to remain in the SPL under current conditions and be given a slapped hand, I think from speaking to many others and reading other fan forums most of the fans will walk away from football.
“We do not follow non-Old Firm teams just for us to finish third, or to let the Old Firm have a league. Scottish football will change NOW, and Rangers have caused it all.”
Though you’d have to say, even in the context of Scotland’s peculiar SPL and two-team domination, the spectre of fans really walking away to concentrate on their golf, as one Aberdeen fan threatened – or equally, of banding together en masse – seems a little romantic.
In our final part of the trilogy, we’ll look at the widespread idea that what is happening to Rangers FC is in fact a great opportunity to improve Scottish football across the board, from governance at the top, down to the numbers coming through the turnstiles at the smallest of league clubs.
Read Alex Thomson’s previous Rangers blog
Read Channel 4 News’s coverage of the Rangers situation
Follow Alex Thomson on Twitter
Related posts:
There are 67 comments on this post
Great to see a London-based journalism exposing the corruption at the highest level in Scottish football. Scottish media have been controlled / complicit for decades. Only external pressure will enable a level playing field.
Keep gigging Alex! Much more to be prised out here.
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We must also review all SPL clubs books and check for irregularities before deciding on what punishment be put to Rangers if they are found guilty.
I’m sure more than one club if not all operated this way.
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I just wonder if anyone is aware that EVERY club in Scotland evaded paying millions in tax for years by manipulating attendance figures. How many times were you at a game then read the attendance in the paper and thought that the crowd was way bigger than the official tally. It’s always been a standing joke and never taken seriously.
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No-one at Rangers, the Scottish media or indeed the SPL/SFA have highlighted the wrong-doing here.
This in itself is massive, if there was corruption and tax evasion, then surely these are not victimless crimes. Rangers seem to think they could financially dope their way to success and expect to only lose 10 points is an incredible mindset.
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I endorse everything this gentleman says and I would call on anyone sharing this view to contact their own MP on this matter and urge them to put pressure on George Osborne the chancellor to instruct HMRC to use all its powers to recoup the monies owed to the taxpayer.Why have the fraud squad not become involved in this?This is a monstrous act of criminality and if it were any other business in this land HMRC would have already liquidated the business and sold off all its assets to recoup the monies.Crooks ,pure and simple.Their former chairman should be in jail ,not being allowed to schmooz the Scottish media with lame excuses.UEFA must now step into this,this club is in breach of all uefa governces on fiscal propriety.
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It’s the sheer hypocrisy I can’t stand. by all means punish Rangers, however, EVERY single club in this country is guilty of duping the tax man by manipulating attendance figures. Only the late Jimmy Sanderson and Gerry McNee ever commented on this as being criminal. It appears the first thing the pious lose is their memory.
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the (it wisni me mum,it was him as well) didn’t when i was a kid. it won’t work for rangers now. comparing what rangers have been doing to whatever clubs skinning whatever thousands off attendance figures is laughable. i’d look forward instead of back if i was a rangers fan. they’ve been winning leagues by one point or last day wins by paying no tax. playing on a level playing field must terrify them.
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Another excellent blog, you wouldn’t see this in the chip wrappers north of the border!
As you say, if RFC are parachuted into the top flight then any pretense of sporting integrity will be forever lost; I would sadly have to make the decision to give up on Scottish football, there’s no way I’d pay another penny if cheats can be allowed to prosper.
Having seen the author’s Twitter feed earlier this morning, I’m not surprised that the SFA didn’t take kindly to him asking pertinent yet awkward questions about the continuing role of Mr Ogilvie, their response speaks volumes. The SFA has been run like an old boys club for years where the only criteria seemed to be having a connection to RFC.
Scottish football will live or die on how it treats Rangers should they indeed be found guilty of defrauding the taxpayer and using second contracts; if a NewCo Rangers does waltz back into the top flight then I predict many will simply walk away from the game.
The SFA/SPL etc need to ask themselves what will damage the game more: losing Rangers or losing the respect of the fans whose hard earned money funds the game.
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The SFA cannot be trusted to investigate Rangers as they are all embroiled in this sorry mess.
There must be a full public enquiry into Scottish Football starting with Campbell Ogilvie and the SFA. Scottish Football is corrupt to the core.
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Excellent work once again.
I’ve been following your twitter feed and agree with the previous poster, there’s a lot more to come out of the SFA / SPL so please keep digging!
I have repeated asked some notably Scottish journolists why they do not simply call some big name ex Rangers players and ask them if they had 2 contracts ? At least that would be a starting point for any investigation I would have thought!
The SCottish media are too dependant on Rangers and the establishment status quo to ask the simple but meaningful questions so perhaps this is one area you could also look at ?
I have a feeling the tide is turning ! Good luck !
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Hi This is part of a bigger Message I have left on another of Alexs’ Blog
The Second contract is REAL its not part of any Dream it was real,away to attract players from all parts of the world to Glasgow Rangers to allow Mr Murray pursue his DREAM for his club,how else could you convince players to leave a country were tax was less on there wages to a League of poorer quality.
Every player and every Agent and every official who had a part of completing the Player Contract would know what was in the Player Contract agreement to be lodged with The SFA and SPL as all get copies of the final contract,so to make it simple if you were to receive £20,000 a week and your Final contract only had £10,000 on it ,you would be saying,wait a minute where is my other £10,000 well we all know where it was, don’t we Boys and Girls its in the very Special Contract.
To be continued!!!
Agent One
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Season tickets are 400 plus pounds a year for a rigged and protected competition. The old saying of we were robbed has never rang truer… its a shambolic situation ever fluid and the SFA dont know whether to have a shave or a haircut whilst the man at the top was an employee of both clubs who used EBT’s, anyone who asks any relevant questions is either an internet bampot, celtic fundamentalist or wants to see RFC gone…. all most fans want is the truth, answers, some justice and those responsible held accountable…..but the lifeblood of the sport get called names, ignored and chastisied by the people supposedly running the sport/business/cartel.
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Well done Alex for having enough integrity to follow your profession in a diligent manner. Teh hacks up here are not allowed by “hidden powers” so it seems.
Up here, it is not deemed appropriate to discuss Rangers in any negative way. There is also a paranoia among non-OF fans that Rangers are way too powerful and “stitched into the fabric” of our football governors (SFA/SPL) in such a way that they are immune from penalties.
For example, many clubs have been fined, demoted, relegated, thrown out completely for breaches of rules. with Rangers, we are having to wait to see the results of the FTT!!! How innappropriate is that?
If there has been industrial rule breaking, unprecedented levels of financial doping and a continued (remorseless) supremacist attitude – for me there is no other punishment than Sin Die. Anything less and the league, the competition, the game is a rigged plaything of darker forces (freemasonry playing a large part).
Good luck with your investigations – we were hoping an impartial investigator from a reputable media outlet or UEFA would ride to the rescue and shine a light in some dark places.
Well done thus far.
Paolo
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Alex, an excellent well written second piece.
I must admit, as a fan of a Division 1 Scottish team, some unbiased reporting, not swayed by an alegiance to Celtic or Rangers, is a breath of fresh air.
I think, albeit very slowly, the mood may be turning and the “glasgow media” might just be detecting a whiff in the air of the way in which the events surrounding Rangers (aleged) systematic avoidance and evasion of legally due taxation are now coming to pass.
There are of course far more serious debatees yet to pan out and I take note of the SFA putting the phone down on you re requests for Mr Ogilvie when he is clearly, even to a simpleton like me, in a hopelessly conflicted and untenable position given he surely must’ve known about EBTs while a senior executive of Rangers. Does he really expect the Scottish public and the law abiding taxpayers to beleive he never knew about more than £20m disappearing out from Ranger’s balance sheet? Or is he saying Hugh Adam is a liar or that he too didn’t know his balance sheets from his fitted sheets?
All he needs to state is, what did or didn’t he know and what he did or didn’t do about it.
If HMRC win the tax case but end up with a final position where they are denied collection of every penny then there should rightly be public uproar. Or can anyone run up a tax bill well outside their operational limits and then tell the taxman to go away or take 10p in the pound?
Keep pressing the governing bodies and my thanks again for shining a light on the murky and black world of high level collusion in Scotland.
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at last, someone from the wider media community taking an interest in whats happening here, the cosy relationship between rangers and the SFA.
now the light of scrutiny will at last shine on this dirty little secret.
shame that it’s taken so long and that its going to take someone outside the closed ranks of the SFA to expose this.
but better late than never.
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If Rangers are liquidated, and its hard to see how they won’t be if the BTC goes against them, the press up here is heavily pushing the case that a newco must be admitted to the SPL. Can the SPL survive without newco Rangers, they ask. But no-one’s asking if the SPL can survive with newco Rangers. There will be no sporting integrity. Its a licence for Rangers to do what they want. There will be some inevitable loss of fans, disgusted at what Rangers can get away with. Perhaps more significantly, it establishes a precedent for any other badly run SPL team. Default on your debts, liquidate and reform as you were without any debts. Anyone owed money would start calling in what’s owed, they’d be stupid not to. Credit lines would vanish. The SPL would be stricken. Without newco Rangers, Scottish football has a chance. With newco Rangers its hard to see how the SPL could avoid disaster.
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Not to mention UEFA might have something to say about it. Weren’t the Swiss FA threatened with expulsion by UEFA and FIFA over their initial reluctance to punish FC Sion for fielding ineligible players in their tie against Celtic?
It would have seen all Swiss clubs potentially banned from European competition as well as the national side from international competition if the Swiss FA had not finally acted and docked Sion points.
What’s to say it won’t happen to Scotland if the SFA/SPL continue to just close their eyes and hope it just all goes away? They need to act, not just to protect the integrity of the game but to stave off any threat the Scottish sides’ participation in European and International competition.
Nothing would make me angrier to see the whole of Scottish football punished for one single club’s malfeasance.
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Can the SPL survive without a newco Rangers? We need to remember that given half a chance oldco Rangers (and Celtic) would be off to the EPL in the blink of an eye without a thought about the others! ps I think the SPL would survive very well albeit after finding it’s own level.
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Alex
Thanks for going where the lap-dog Scottish media have never gone and challenged the institutional supremacy of Rangers Football Club in this little country of ours. Be tenacious and I’m sure an interesting story will emerge.
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Outstanding Alex,
Delighted that you are taking up this story and presenting the views of the majority of fans.
I’m a Livingston supporter and our club tried to live beyond its means and deservedly had to accept the price for irresponsible management. While painful at the time, the club has emerged from the brink of ruin to a well-run and forward thinking club focused on development. I sincerely hope that the SPL and SFA can take a similar view when the votes are made.
We may not have the greatest product in the world just now, but it is ours and although it is presently broken it can be fixed – but only if we the customers are listened to!
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A worrying assumption is being purported throughout the media and from various sources, that the SPL needs Rangers. Mention of the gate receipts, the away fans revenue they bring to other clubs, mention of the TV deal revenue being lost. All that is brought to the discussion is negativity from the media and representatives of other clubs and our football authorities.
These things are all mentioned in isolation as negative impacts. Whilst we can’t deny some of this to an extent, there is no consideration to potential positive impacts that upheaval in the Scottish game could bring. There is no discussion about a way forward that can benefit the game longer term (even if there is pain to suffer in the short term) whilst ensuring that justice is seen to be done.
Actual attendance patterns for the other clubs have not properly been assessed as some fans will testify that to make up the shortfall of Rangers being out of the SPL would not be so great to make up especially when considering that a better league with greater competition and fairer distribution of revenue and voting rights would encourage fans of the smaller clubs to return.
I have also not heard of any club chairman engaging with their fan base to understand their view on the matter. The game is for the fans, not the owners, but the fans opinions seem to be the ones that are not being taken into consideration by those who run the game. Without the fans, there is no game and if the football authorities are not seen to handle the investigations properly, with a fair outcome that displays sporting integrity, then it will turn away more and more fans from the game. Those fans will not be at Rangers though, and the remaining clubs who have been unable to compete for 20 plus years will struggle even further.
I have to wonder though, if this was happening to Inverness Caledonian Thistle, would there be any suggestions of the club being allowed to go into liquidation and parachute back into the SPL? If a club of their stature in the SPL was under suspicion of improperly registering player contracts with the league and association, would there be any mention of whether the league can survive with out them? The line is being touted across our media that, even if it is wrong (nobody tends to address the integrity question with a clear opinion), that Rangers in whatever form will be kept in the SPL. It is backed up with the statement that the league and other clubs need them. Any other suggested outcome is given little time, little discussion and certainly of no constructive value.
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Alex,
Finally, a voice from the MSM!
Up to now, we’ve had to rely on bloggers such as the excellent RTC to uncover the truth.
Make no mistake, this *should* be Scottish football’s Watergate scandal; it’s got the potential to be the equivalent of the collapse of the Berlin Wall for the Scottish football establishment.
No wonder the OF, SFA and Scottish MSM are running scared …
We need a champion – please keep digging; there is a LOT more to uncover.
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If you look at the way this is being handled by the SFA/SPL the EBt’s exist of that there is no doubtthe FTTT will decide if tax should have been paid on the payments from these EBT’s to players management etc.
This allowed Rangers to field players whose contracts at the SFA would appear to be only part of ther recompense ,so how does that correlate with being properly registered to play professional football?
If this is the case all trophies won by Rangers during the period of these EBT’s should be stripped from them and awarded to the runner up, the club must recieve no mercy and expelled from the league and clubs finacially affected seek damages from an incompetent governing body who allowed this to happen.
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I live in the North East (of England) and am staggered at what seems to have gone on in Scotland if the blogs are correct.
Aside from their financial troubles, a former Rangers director admits players have had 2 contracts (cue Scottish media response ………. minimal
This means Rangers have cheated whomever they have played, by fielding inelligible players – surely the club must be banned from world football, along with all those office bearers found to have been involved.
Any other outcome renders Scottish football corrupt from head to toe. There will be innocent parties, I’m sure, but failure to act will see them tarnished as just as guilty.
If the Scottish authorities and press continue with their reluctance/refusal to investigate then only investigation by people like yourself, offer any hope that Scottish football can survive this scandal.
This is an incredible story – I feel like a voyeur looking in on this, but am fascinated by what I am seeing.
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or equally, of banding together en masse – seems a little romantic.
I think you underestimate the feelings of fans in Scotland. If RFC(IA) are found guilty and not punished or if any Newco is allowed straight into the SPL any integrity in Scottish football would be lost.As the Establishment club most fans have felt they held undue influence on Scottish football, if this was to result in a rewriting of the rules to accommodate there re-entry into the SPL any hope of a level playing field would be lost.
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If interviewing some bitter Celtic fans about how they would like Rangers to be punished if indeed they have actually done anything wrong is what now passes as “investigative journalism” then C4′s standards have slipped to a new low.
Rangers have been found guilty of nothing and most of the claims made against them originate either from one disgruntled ex director of the club or from the plethora of anti RFC blogs which have sprung up on the internet.
There may be an ex Rangers employee on the SFA board but there are also ex Celtic directors and the current CEO of Celtic! The suggestion that an SFA that has stuck the boot into RFC on every available occasion is somehow complicit in a cover up is the sort of thing one would expect to read on a Celtic internet messageboard.
You’ve been taken for a ride Alex.
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Des, as a Celtic supporter, I’m not sure I’d want those trophies. But certainly, if its established that Rangers won them by signing a calibre of players they couldn’t have afforded if they’d operated by the same rules other clubs did, then they must be stripped of any trophies/titles.
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I agree, I couldn’t care less about teams being awarded trophies by default, whether its Celtic, Aberdeen, Hearts (then again, they might also have some questions to answer regarding Campbell Ogilvie) or even Queen of the South!
What matters is that if Rangers are found guilty then it doesn’t become something that should be done, it becomes something that MUST be done.
If it means having to write off the last 10 years as an inherently crooked competition then it has to be done. Anything less would be an insult to the rest of the clubs who have lived within their means and lost out on titles, cups, european places, been relegated etc etc because of the unfair advantage RFC potentially had.
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Frankly, agree with most of your post that if found guilty then something should be done, but feel the removal of trophies is going too far.
It is enough their fans are being punished by this administration process, lets remember that non of this was their doing.
I feel relegation would be a suitable punishment, who’s to say they will want to stay in Scottish Football if they are punished too harshly for minor infringements.
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Bruce, It is ok to say that about Celtic, if it is your honest opinion, however it is NOT a Celtic only issue.
OTHER teams are involved here & any medal involved may be THEIR players, who were cheated, only chance of a tangible trophy for their years in the sport.
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Fair enough, Ian, that’s why I made it clear I was speaking from a Celtic perspective. If other teams want to claim trophies they were cheated out of I’d have no problem with that. In fact if there was a broadcast the day they rocked up to ibrox to claim their trophies I’d break out the jelly & ice cream and settle down to watch.
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Bruce
Fair enough I will leave it to our board to decide about trophies following a consultation period with supporters and shareholders we have all suffered due to this it would seem.
However it is not just Celtic who have been runner up to them
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Good to see a journo doing some research (asking a question) and then reporting, seems a bit “beginner’s guide” level to me but apparently cutting edge up here where the OF PR machine writes the story. This is all about competitive sport; the SPL may well be financially poorer without RFC (and the other cheek but you can’t have everything) but it would be better
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rangers cheated their way to success, those titles/ cups should be awarded to those that they defeated in cup finals or second place in league titles.
anything short of this would be to reward, and as importantly, be SEEN to reward cheating because make no mistake – financial doping IS cheating.
the very sad thing is that no one in the rangers camp – fans or management – have shown any recognition of their corrupt practices , no wonder it’s fans from all different clubs want to see justice done here.
if justice isnt seen to be done then we may as well do away with the SPL because cheating will have won.
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I cannot believe the funny handshake brigade are letting you get away with this.
If Rangers pay anything more than a token penalty, I will eat my bunnet, unfried and saltless.
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Finally, someone from the mainstream media picks up the baton and carries forward the great work carried out by the Rangers Tax Case blog and Phil Mac Giolla Bhain.
The mainstream media’s primary concern in Scotland is not with regards to punishment, but with keeping the Rangers brand alive at all costs, and keeping it alive in the top tier. They want the old status quo preserved, and it’s in their interests to do so because a large percentage of their readers, particularly the Daily Record, are Rangers fans who only buy the paper for the news on their club.
My main concern is that should Rangers be found guilty of the big tax case, they will be liquidated and a new company will be formed that will be granted entry to the top flight with a minimal penalty.
One Scottish journalist, James Traynor, who writes for the aforementioned paper, even offered a paltry 6 point penalty as adequate punishment on BBC Sportsound for letting them back into the top flight.
I do not want to see a new Rangers denied entry back into Scottish football, if it comes to that, but they must be made to start from the bottom rung up.
If the current Rangers survive, then credit to them for getting out of a gigantic mess but if the second contracts are proven then games won whilst fielding illegal players then surely must be forfeited for the duration that they played them, otherwise Scottish football will be finished.
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There’s a lot of people with a chip on their shoulder clutching at straws
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Wow, how many “ifs” can you get in an article? Perhaps the headline should be “If anyone is guilty, they should be punished”.
Lynch mob mentality. Sad.
“It’s all Rangers’ fault. Boo hoo” crys one of the posters. What are they guilty of? Can anyone tell me what crime/rule breakthey have been proven to have committed? Anyone?
Administration has been caused by errors in Management and they have been punished for it.
How about waiting to see if anyone is ACTUALLY guilty of something before wanting them hung, drawn and quartered?
If only…
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“In our final part of the trilogy, we’ll look at the widespread idea that what is happening to Rangers FC is in fact a great opportunity to improve Scottish football across the board, from governance at the top, down to the numbers coming through the turnstiles at the smallest of league clubs.”
Great to see someone bringing this up. The only point made in the Scottish press is that ‘Scottish football needs Rangers’ or in some cases even ‘Scottish football needs a strong Rangers’.
Any other possibility is largely ignored or shot down on phone-ins etc.
The short-sightedness of the Scottish footballing authorities and the media have been shown up embarrassingly by this whole saga and yet the line seems to be just to try to stick to the status-quo.
Their short-sightedness is why none of them are looking at this as an opportunity to restructure and save what is a failing, dying footballing country.
Attendances are poor, the national team is failing, many kids now just support English teams, any remote outside interest has all but vanished and it all happened under the SFA’s watch. Interesting that this cycle’s roots can be traced back to David Murray’s ownership at Rangers.
The whole game in Scotland needs a shake-up, and this could be the catalyst.
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I agree they should be punished accordingley. thrown out of the spl, and at best let them apply into division three. Its only fair!!!
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Celtic should also give up their trophies..for the period that Big Jock Knew..WATP
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Some great points made on this thorny subject.
At the end of the day,all we are asking is for fairness,nothing more,nothing less.
If the integrity of the Scottish Football Association is to be questioned,then so be it.
No more ‘Oh we didn’t know this that and the next thing,’ Channel 4 is to be commended for this story,simply because up here in Scotland,Laptop Loyal,i.e. our media,is too frightened to go to print,more so when you get journos like James Traynor of the Daily Record,Scotland’s largest selling newspaper eating and drinking with Sir David Murray,his sidekick Keith Jackson,named Union Jackson by Celtic fans,telling us that Craig Whyte the Rangers owner had wealth that was ,in his own words ‘Wealth off the radar.’
Is it right that a club such as Dunfermline,who may be relegated this season,pay their taxes up front and get chucked out,yet Rangers,who have been fiddling the taxmen for years(i don’t need to put in the word allegedly,)can jump straight back into the Scottish Premier League,simply because our journos,in their own words,say ‘Oh the SPL,will die without Rangers,’ is that Dunfermline’s fault?
C’mon Regan, i know you are reading this,so do what is right,the whole world is watching,more so U.E.F.A.trust me on that.
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and when this all comes to a close and all law breakers are dealt with severly i may add ;all football directors in all clubs should be seated in hampden and work together for the good of the game
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Alex – so glad that you’re shining a torch into the murky goings-on in Scottish football but at the same time rather depressed and ashamed that it seems to take a journalist from outwith the Scottish media establishment to do so. You’re starting to unravel a story of nepotism and corruption that’s so brazen that you’d be forgiven for concluding that fact can indeed be stranger than fiction. Keep digging. Please.
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For many years, football fans of clubs other than Rangers in Scotland have questioned whether the establishment club are treated favourably by the SFA and the SPL.
These fans are accused of paranoia or conspiracists.
All non-Old Firm fans in Scotland want is a fair, unbiased and thorough investigation into what has happened.
After this, fair and consistent punishment for any wrongdoings without protection that hasn’t been offered to any other football club. A handful of clubs have faced administration and liquidation in Scotland in the past, but never has anyone been accused of the levels of disregard for the laws of the game and the land.
There are two other points that those of us outside Glasgow might contend:
1. That Glasgow Rangers are somehow “an institution” that needs to be saved. Let’s look at past evidence of the behaviour of the fans and and the club’s difference between actions and words on the subject of sectarianism.
2. That Scottish football would somehow not survive without the two Glasgow giants. Many of us believe that the departure of these clubs that they have campaigned so long for, would inject new vigour and excitement in the game that might attract fans back to the sport. Perhaps we might take our children to games when our clubs are battling it out for the league instead of 3rd place. If the accusations against Rangers are true, a whole generation has seen a financially-doped club dominate the sport. That’s enough to make any fan turn away from the sport.
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“We all know Dingwall is attempting to blind you with a mixture of his own obesity and third rate propaganda tactics, so here’s what you ALL need to keep in mind over the next few weeks (bent SFA rules permitting):
1. Paul Murray can’t be a Director of your club. He was a Director over the last five year before you suffered your ‘insolvency event’.
2. Neither can Alaistair Johnstone.
3. Neither can Dave King – apart even from his ban on international trading by the South African government.
4. Craig Whyte owns over 80% of your shares.
5. Fudd and Skelps want to arrange a Creditors Voluntary Agreement (CVA) in advance of your sale. Craig Whyte must agree to this.
6. Criag Whyte is ‘not a fit or proper person’ according to the SFA.
7. You have no audited accounts.
8. You need audited accounts within 18 days or you won’t be in Europe next season.
9. If you have no audited accounts by March 31, you can’t be a member of the SPL.
10. You will then be out of the SFL as well.
11. To reapply for an SFL license, you need three years audited accounts. Good luck in the juniors.
12. The SFA President is about to be hounded out of office in disgrace – one less on the SFA board to plead your case.
…and lucky number 13…. the Big Tax Case will certainly cometh!”
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Is this a balanced view of non old firm fans or anti rangers fans?
As far as history goes I don’t think Rangers are the first team to go into administration, and none of them received this level of distain.
All this talk of removing titles is nonsense. I think the players on the park won the trophies, seem to remember a Celtic team laden with expensive stars doing quite well, not so long ago and additional funding was needed by big backers to pull them out the mire.
All I see here is that Rangers lost their big backers ability to guarantee the funding. For this I think Lloyds bank has questions to answer.
EBT’s , you are really having a laugh, I have read many thoughts on the complexities of these with the negatives being highlighted, when these were a legitimate vehicle for reducing your tax burden.
I feel this whole agenda is being driven by Celtic and their fans, stirring everyone up to a frenzy, even when we don’t know all the facts. It is quite ridiculous.
Yes be prepared, but do so without the vitriolic’s and bad feeling. A lot of these fans have Rangers guilty before the verdict and this feeling wil continue even if they are proven to have done no wrong.
The hatred we see in all the press is quite astonishing, now you are trying to remove Cambell Ogilvie, is it a coincidence he may be the only person on the SFA board that may hold sympathies towards Rangers, have you forgotten why he had to leave Rangers.
I’m beginning to think this whole thing has nothing to do with football and if this is the case we really do need to worry.
Either way I despair for the future of Scottish Football.
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The outcome of the FTT has no relevance to the SFA/SPL dual contracts the “Institution” did not advise the SFA/SPL of all payments made to players as per association rules therefore they could “win” FTT but should still be punished by SFA/SPL to the fullness of their powers.
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Great writing Alex.
If Rangers are found to have transgressed then they must be punished according to the seriousness of their crime and the governing bodies must also come under scrutiny for failing to function.
As an Aberdeen fan, I’d like to know if there is actually a 4 Old Form game clause in the TV contract. The MSM up here keep alluding to it and if it does exist, this surely amounts to fixing the league. Nevertheless it also hasajor financial implications for other SPL teams.
As a Scot I’d like to know who currently owns Ibrox as it’s a commonwealth games venue.
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Alex,
For years I have listened to Celtic supporters claim things were not right with the Scottish game. The overwhelming response from Scottish media was that they were “paranoid”, I took this at face value and also dismissed Celtic supporters as paranoid, only now to find they have had a decent claim all along.
I now find that with everything that is being exposed in the Scottish game there is still a reluctance to allow them a say, even by yourself. A couple of years ago whilst working with a few Celtic supporters they took unmbrige to me referring to them as “Old Firm” and was a bit bemused by this, but they insisted that the term was a Scottish media PR exercise to ensure any adverse publicity assigned to Rangers would ensure Celtic were dragged into the bad publicity. Again I dismissed it, only to be proved wrong again when Rangers visited Manchested for the UEFA cup final and the reports on riots were, according to most press associations around the world as “Old Firm” supporters rioting. Again I was forced to reasses my opinion.
I now find that as one of the leading investigative journalists in the UK that you also appear to be under the same misconception I suffered, but excluding them from your enquiries, I have one very simple question which I hope would make you think again about this approach.
If as the Celtic support suspect that the Scottish game is indeed corrupt, who in your opinion have been the biggest loosers either financially or in honors.
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This is Chick young and Walter Smith
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dG27qGTMXa4
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Nothing has been proven. This is just anti Rangers’ hype and conspiracy theories by bitter opposition fans. Can’t believe you’re buying into this rubbish, Alex.
No-one likes us (coz we’re simply the best), but we don’t care !
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Hi Alex,
I hope you really pursue this story to the end, because huge as it is this story is much much more than just about the highly possible demise of Glasgow Rangers Football Club. You will find that this story is just like peeling an onion; layer upon layer of obfuscation, and all the time your eyes are watering… The real story here is about what Alex Salmond refers to as ‘the fabric of Scotland’, and a very poor fabric it is. The real story here is not just about institutionalised corruption supportive of a select club of ‘people’, it is also about extreme religious intolerance (from ‘people’ who clearly aren’t religious), hatred of anything Catholic and/or Irish, it is about blind ingrained hatred and violence as an ‘acceptable’ way of life, it is about how the self-serving non-inclusive ‘fabric’ of Scotland is rotten and corrupt to its very core. I see this story as being like the fall of the Berlin Wall in miniature. Until it happens, ‘people’ won’t believe it can or will happen. When it does happen there will be bedlam and violence initially in Scotland, but ultimately in years to come, perhaps a generation or so, Scotland will be a better place for having had to confront its secret sordid past and having to amend its ways. If it doesn’t, Scotland will become a Third World Country and England will demand Independence from its sordid neighbour! This is the real story Alex; will Scotland grow up and change its ‘fabric’ for a new one, or will it continue to wear the same rotten rag that it currently does?
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Frankly as a celtic fan to pick up any trophies that Rangers have to forfeit would be entirely inappropriate. Far better for the history books to have all of these trophies deemed null and void due to the persistent breaching of rules on eligibility by Rangers FC and that way the truth of the despicable and tarnished history of RFC will always remain in black and white – lest we ever forget!
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The reaction to a newco post-liquidation depends on what the newco is.
Whether or not it accepts the debts of its predcessor is a biggie, for instance.
The extent to which it can be seen as “a clean pair of hands” is also significant.
Whyte claimed in an interview with Tom English to have shown SDM/old board proof of £28-33mil of available funds in Nov2010…preceeding the Ticketus money being deposited with Collyer Bristow.
There is thus clearly a possibility if Ticketus are involved that this is essentially a front for Whyte’s financial backers who have invested in the fund.
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Duggie, there whole point of a newco is to escape those debts so there’s no chance of it accepting them. That’s why Ticketus is trying to insert itself into this consortium. Their whole strategy is a CVA -unlikely – or liquidation then newco. Ticketus is out, not unreasonably, to protect its money.
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The Scottish football authorities are fighting fires on various fronts now but it’s falling apart and it’s been coming for a while, it’s taken a while but the MSM have woken-up to a world where a new media exists and are realising that the MSM cannot be relied upon to hide and manipulate their questionable behaviour anymore.
The Scottish MSM have been shown for what they are via Rangers Tax Case blog, yet amazingly, even now, they still refuse the intiative, such as Campbell Ogilvie and the manner in which such is being reported and researched defies belief and i for one am very, very happy that Alex Thomson has taken interest. Especially as Channel 4 news is, in my opinion, the best and most impartial service of it’s kind. It’s a big-hitter and carries weight, Mr Thomson is also an excellent journo and is highly respected throughout the indusrty.
Parallel that with the following; Jangle Jackson, Shug Keevins, Jabba Traynor, B.O. Leckie and all the others we have for sports-writers…these guys, with even a wee bit of investigation, would have known the RFC situation, they would also have found out all about Craig Whyte and been all over anything else dodgy in no time. There was/is loads there to write about! The reason they (especially those i mention) never did was because they are fed scraps from the table of RFC P.R people, this being their life-blood. You don’t bite the hand that feeds you and you certainly don’t upset your ‘loyal’ readership with bad Rangers stories…it makes circulation go down.
So what’s there to do? Embarassingly react to stories that have gone viral on the internet as though you have some impartial and exclusive story…when it’s really all been lifted from RTC blog and had some RFC P.R spin attributed, then sit tight until the next big story breaks…in internet bam-pot land…and ask your P.R. contacts what on earth you’ll write now!
You need to show you are on the ball to the public but, well…how do you print such sensational news without upsetting those the P.R. folks represent or the Rangers fan reading?? And if all of that isn’t bad enough..there’s all these questions about rules, Campbell Ogilvie and all that stuff about pension funds and the like…it cannot be easy being a MSM journalist!
The internet has taken away the traditional influence the enjoyed in the past and now they just look daft, like present-day ludites.
The issues that are happening in Scottish football will bring attention from many outside, the sheer scale of RFC’s cheating affected European competition also. Millions of pounds lost out on by Celtic in particular but others also and teams beaten by Rangers in such tournaments may also have reason to feel aggreived.
The millions paid by the fans and by UEFA themselves, the rule of the law. If the authorities fail to do that here before UEFA become involved then it’s goodbye SFA. Simple as that and I say let them do it! They don’t know what to do and have lost their way in the modern day. This is an absolute scandal, there has been a few but this is something else and they were complicit in it’s making.
There is more than a story at large regarding Scottish football. It’s always been known but treated as tales of yeti’s and such…nothing to see hear, move along…They have all been collectively gazumped on a massive scandal story by an internet blog and now, hopefully, Ch 4 news! Who will act first?? Will the MSM wisen up suddenly? Will the SFA/SPL suddenly be shown as being competent in it’s role? Will the old guard, clinging to their positions and roles of influence suddenly realise the games a bogey?
Ironic that it was an agency of Her Majesty that threw a spanner in the works…wrecked the entire operation, built with the avoidance of tax as principle component.
D
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Tommy, you are being totally unreasonable here, you say this is impartial reporting, the heading of the blog is the views of Non Rangers Fans, how can that be impartial. Kangaroo court more like.
You then spout some flimflam about them being the route of all evil, and to finish it off you say they are cheats, you are wrong to misrepresent evidence as fact until it proven it is fact..
As far as I’m aware everything written of the Internet is only fact when hard evidence proves without doubt it is fact. Until evidence proves sir giuliani I will reserve my judgment.
Stop spouting your vile hatred and start being more constructive.
I think a lot of people reading this blog will beleive everything you say as fact when your hared for anything Protestant is more prevailant than anything else.
We live in a democratic society, if we put more energy into defending our basic human rights we would become a better society to live, at this moment Scotland is becoming an ugly place and people like you are contributing to that.
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basic human rights like what school you went to decided whether you got a job or not
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Another fantastic article that I hope reaches out to the buried head section of the Ranger support.
Didn’t someone state that
“absolute power corrupts absolutely!
Rangers have had the advantage of playing in a poker game where they have all the aces.
Living up here for 12 years I used to question my fellow Celtic fans’ insistance of bias as being sour grapes.
My Father used to complain about an uneven playing field in Scotland for years, favouring Rangers over everyone else.
When you look at it objectively, as you have done; you can see that this has systematically gone on for years.
Now that the dirty linen is now on the washing line; we can now live and hope that justice (whatever you percieve that to be) is done and the root and branch changes are made to safeguard the integrity of football in this country.
Anything less than THE TRUTH would further damage football not just in this country but around the world.
What would be the point of competing if you know that you have no chance of winning
Great article and much welcomed
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Hi Alex,
have I broken the blog rules in my previous submission, I see it is still awaiting moderation, whilst later submissions have been cleard.
I can only apologise if this is the case and request you point out my deficiencies for future reference.
Thanks
John C
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Alex,
You are being led up the garden path here. This is the biggest NON-STORY of all time. Hugh Adam is a senile, doddery old man of 86 who has suffered from senility for the last ten years. Also – he has a pathological hatred of David Murray. Players, agents, managers, directors – all have confirmed there was NO second contracts. This is a non-story internet driven by anti-Rangers sectarian bigots.
Also – and I speak as a tax accountant here. There is NOTHING illegal about EBT’s. Thousands of companies across the UK use them, including many football clubs such as Arsenal, Sunderland, Tottenham AND Celtic. The Revenue have introduced retrospective legislation to claw back tax on them – they do this all the time in many areas of tax law.
There is NOTHING illegal here – absolutely nothing.
The only crime was committed by Craig Whyte.
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why the delay?
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Many posters allude to Rangers getting a favourable press in Scotland, this is absolute nonsense, indeed people like Graham Spiers seem to have made a career attacking the club and it’s fans. Many people in Scotland are queing up to stick the knife in while we are at our most vulnerable what goes around comes around
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Wee bit disappointed by tonites show,7 minutes,and it looked like a cutting job Alex.Here’s hoping Scotland’s shame will get their due rewards in time but with folk like Regan at the helm I won’t hold my breath.
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I’ve no particular axe to grind against either of the two big teams. I just want a level playing field and a fair chance of one day competing in the top division. Maybe, if we bring through some young players, put together a few cup runs, scrape our way up the divisions and expand slowly…
The allegations levelled against Rangers would certainly warrant severe punishment, IF they were proven. I’m one of the priviledged few to have seen Roy Carroll play in a Rangers shirt and have to wonder how any Scottish team could afford to sign players of his stature just to have them warm the bench.
Of course, now we know they couldn’t afford it. And the newspaper talk is of liquidation and a parachute straight back into the top division. IF they get away with that, then the rest of us might as well throw in the towel. What chance for the rest of us if the big teams, one after another, can just run up debts and then write them off with a swish of financial jiggery-pokery? That’s a great way to keep themselves up and the other teams down. With the EBT’s and dual contracts yet unproven, the proposed parachute into the top division is the most unfair play of the moment.
It wouldn’t be punishment for a new company to have to apply to the Third Division, it would be a priviledge, and an even bigger one if said newco, with no history to their name, gained admittance ahead of the likes of Spartans or Cove Rangers who have been knocking on the door for some time already.
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Well done Alex! I was one of the first to alert you to the situation in Scotland and I knew that only external pressure would begin to air the embedded bigotry. All most of us want is a level playing field. but it would would be appropriate for crooks like Murray and Whyte to be jailed.
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