The Yanks

[rev]

Good to see

[ROCCO]

Originally Posted by rev

Good to see

Hicks looked very unwell yesterday at the game so unwell i thought it was just a relation ....... what happened after the game ..... ? said on SSN he couldn't get out of Anfield ......


Surprised he was at the Bolton game ... just over early with Everton next week ?

[ROCCO]

From the telegraph..

Sources at Anfield have denied suggestions Hicks and Gillett are prepared to lower their valuation of the club — insisting there has been substantial interest in acquiring a stake at the current £500 million estimate — but it is believed the Americans are now prepared to accept a majority partner, diluting their holding further than expected.

[rev]

Interesting qutoe from here

Hicks was in an unfit physical state to listen to supporters' concerns

[JesusTorres]

Originally Posted by rev

Interesting qutoe from here

In other words...He was hammered!

[SUPERFAN]

Hello and a belated happy new year to everyone from SLFC.

Not such a happy new year if you happen to support a premier league club owned by Americans (unless it's Aston Villa). Yes even Manchester United, the "richest club in the world" has financial problems if they are owned by people who want to "turn a profit by leveraging the brand" rather than support a football team. After a few years building up their debt to keep the pretence of investing in the team to keep winning things, the chickens are on their way home to roost.

It's not often we agree with our old foes down the East Lancs Road, but we're all agreed that we'd like our particular Yanks to stop using our football clubs to turn a buck (or several hundred million if you happen to be greedy).

Now even the Prime Minister agrees: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2...t-gordon-brown

The problem is, even when we have a sympathetic government, they won't legislate to force clubs to operate in the realms of normality (that is, in the interests of the team, the community, with rights for their fans). Of course, we do have a general election coming, so you may wish to ask any prospective candidates after your vote exactly what they intend to do about it. We don't need sympathy, we need action, before our national sport is ruined forever.

For our part, we have been quietly engaging the club management at Anfield in their search for investment - sorely needed given the current state of the first team. As ever, though we have thousands of you committed to investment through ShareLiverpoolFC, we have no actual money to show which makes it very difficult to gain the confidence required for serious discussions. We are currently looking at ways in which we might be able change that, including a 'halfway house' deposit scheme that would enable you to demonstrate your commitment by putting money in a designated account, but allowing you retain control of that money until a deal you can support is done. We are also keen to talk to some of those currently interested in investing in LFC to see if we could partner up with them.

We'll keep you informed how things progress. We remain committed to fan involvement in the ownership of the club.

YNWA.

[south]

Hicks fell asleep twice during the game whilst eyewitnesses at Liverpool One's Hilton hotel later claimed that the 63-year-old's security team were ordered by staff to send him to his room after he appeared drunk and incapable

One onlooker said: "People were going over to him as he was being woken up. He had fallen asleep into his food and spilled red wine all over the table.

"His bodyguards had been told to take him to his room and knocked more red wine over as he was getting up."

[redabbey]

DALLAS (AP) — A lawsuit accuses the Texas Rangers and companies controlled by owner Tom Hicks of failing to pay $6.9 million for architectural and construction work.

The lawsuit filed Monday in state district court by RTKL Associates Inc. and Vratsinas Construction alleges that the firms are owed the money for work on a proposed development next to Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, as well as on the stadium itself.

It charges the Rangers and other Hicks-related entities with breach of contract, unjust enrichment, fraudulent misrepresentation and fraudulent transfer.

Neither Hicks nor his spokeswoman immediately responded to a request for comment. Rangers officials said they would have no comment.

Hicks Sports Group has agreed to sell the team to a group headed by Pittsburgh attorney Chuck Greenberg.

Orlando Sentinel

[ROCCO]

INTERVIEW with Christian Purslow


G. G. Balagué 02/02/2010 AS.com

What made you accept the CEO position?

I am a specialist in moving forward financially troubled companies. I've been a shareholder in Liverpool in the past, as well as swells. I know the club. And I love it, but if I am able to improve it, I'll order not to interfere.

Is your goal to sell Liverpool in its entirety or partially?

When I decided to owners who had to find new investors. On one hand, we are one of the most famous clubs in the world and, secondly, many people want to interact with us. We have 60,000 fans on the waiting list to become members as we build the new stadium, which will double our income. But we are living the worst crisis in living memory. We have people interested and would like to fix before the season ends.

What will you do if you do not get that investment?

Then continue as we are. That's Plan B: run the club the most responsible way possible. We generate a healthy profit and fulfill our obligations, while we remain sufficiently competitive in the market and the wages we pay. We went under the requirements of what is required to compete in Europe Platini. We would like more if possible, but not attract a rich guy. First step then: new investment. Second step: stadium. Third, generate more profits to make a stronger team. Without investment, there is no new stadium.

With the money he has the club, can no longer say that is one of the big four from England?

It is not fair, it's ridiculous to say that. One of the big four clubs in the world! We pay salaries and transfers to the level of the top four in the league. And that's the level I hope to continue sports. Our problem is that we have two teams of owners, as do other clubs do not have the financial capacity.

If you do not qualify for the Champions League next season, what can you say to Torres, for example, to convince him that the club is progressing?

We will be in the Champions League, for sure.

It is said that Gerrard and Torres could be sold if they do not qualify for the Champions League. We are not a club seller. For nothing.

Why Rafa Benitez has so little support in the media?

This is a huge club. . You have to accept praise and criticism with grace. Keep in mind our values: stability, consistency and concentration in the long term goal, nothing to react to bad results. Here's how to run a business.

In Italy they say that Benitez will go to Juventus.

Nor have we considered not going to consider a future without Benitez. The plan calls for five years we have stability in the coaching staff and the staff. Hence the headlines recently renewed and Rafa. Nothing drastically restructure. It is normal that big clubs are interested in Rafa, but ... There are many things I want in this life, but that does not mean that the will have. The coach himself has denied.

His first task upon arrival was in charge of selling Xabi Alonso to Madrid.

I miss the person I really like him. But Xabi wanted to go, the final point: well we did know. What I wanted or I would have liked is irrelevant. I was saddened, I am a fan too. I wish him well in Madrid.

[ROCCO]

Liverpool: Investment pivotal to 5 year plan

We have been enjoying a healthy discussion on the site over the past few days following my recent article on the possibility of future investment at Liverpool. Several fans have been asking for details of those plans following the meeting I had with senior figures at Anfield referred to here....

Without breaching confidentiality, I can tell you that during those conversations with the Liverpool hierarchy, the details of a 5 year plan were outlined to me: with an emphasis upon stability.

Confirmation of a £100 million pound investment is pivotal to the first step of that plan, and assurances have been made that this money will arrive before the end of the season. Clearly, whether or not this money materialises will have a significant impact upon the next step in any plan.

If that investment arrives, then Gillett and Hicks` share of ownership of the club will be reduced – and if not, then the level at which club profits will be required to service the debt will remain the same: as will all the limitations that this entails.

Without that investment, then those financial limitations mean, and this is my view, the club (and fans) cannot expect a top four finish as a minimum expectation. It was explained to me – and it is a widely held belief amongst financial experts in the football industry –that there is a direct correlation between the amount of wages paid by a club and the level at which that club can expect to be competitive. With Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal all operating on a higher wage structure than the one in place at Anfield – and with Spurs and Manchester City all matching Liverpool at the moment – then, it is fair to assume the top for cannot be taken for granted, don`t you think?

This is an argument that has been articulated, not by the American owners, but by the directors instilled by RBS to oversee the financial strategy at the club. Naturally, they are trying to convince everyone of their own ideas and vision – but, personally speaking, I have been persuaded that, if the investment required arrives, then the club is in the right hands.

The source of that £100 million investment will also have to be in a position to help finance the building of a new stadium (at a cost of £350 million) while also having enough leverage to help attract the necessary loans and further investment from the banks.

I anticipate the next question from the fans will be regarding how much of any £100 million investment will be made available to strengthen the squad.The answer is, in the short term, that supporters are unlikely to notice any significant increase in spending power at Anfield. However, in the longer term, the club will be in a much healthier financial position and, over time, the clubs budget will grow. For example, the plan is for the additional revenue generated by a new stadium to double the club`s £45 million profits – which in turn will lead to an increase in the budget available for transfer spending etc.

Will that be enough to convince Rafa Benitez of a long term future at the club? Yes, provided that his plans for the squad in the short and medium are adhered to. That will involve the ability to secure the two or three players he has identified on free contracts at the end of the season. The manager will also need to offload several unhappy players for a decent fee and be able to re-invest any money generated by player sales back into the squad, and the directors say it is the case.

Liverpool fans may be alarmed at the mention of free transfers playing a significant role in summer spending plans, but it illustrates that Benitez is acting prudently and making allowances for the fact that additional investment may not materialise or that his budget may not increase significantly.

It also emphasises the fact that, despite the interest from Juventus, Benitez is planning ahead for a future at Liverpool and that his head – and his heart – are tied to Anfield whatever happens regarding external investment. If the additional £100 million does reach the club – and the new stadium is built - then Benitez will at least be able to build a squad with the depth to rival United or Chelsea. And if it doesn`t, then the target will have to be to maintain an extremely competitive first IX, while trying to assemble a second string of players that is as good as possible under the circumstances.

http://www.guillembalague.com/blog_d...ar+plan&id=404

[Aido82]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/spo...cle7012838.ece

Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr, the Liverpool owners, have less than six months to secure the £100 million investment demanded by their creditors or they run the risk of being forced to put the club up for sale.

Christian Purslow, the Liverpool managing director, revealed the extent of the pressure that is being brought to bear on the club to reduce their £237 million debt by the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) — with whom they have a one-year refinancing agreement that is due to expire at the end of July — in the minutes of a meeting he held with the Spirit Of Shankly (SOS) supporters’ group.

RBS has made it a prerequisite of another refinancing deal being secured that Liverpool cut their debts by £100 million. Should they fail to do so, Hicks and Gillett would be faced with two options: find another financial institution willing to enter into an arrangement with them or put the club on the market. Purslow refused to guarantee that such investment would be secured in the specified time frame, although he did inform the supporters’ group that he “hopes” it can be done.

Typical of the strife that has plagued Liverpool during the reign of Hicks and Gillett, even this disclosure was clouded by controversy, with Purslow becoming embroiled in a row with SOS over the minutes of the meeting. The managing director claimed that the version of events proffered by the dozen supporters present in one section of their minutes was not representative of his position.


The ensuing row threatened to distract attention from the revelations surrounding Liverpool’s financial plight. But the admission that neither Hicks nor Gillett — who were able to refinance last July only on the condition that they reduced the debt by £130 million — will be injecting any further capital into the club they bought in February 2007 ensured that the dispute did not take precedence over the more serious matter of the monetary pressures that the Anfield side are under.

Hicks and Gillett are not expecting their creditors to prop up their ailing regime for a further year unless the “requirements” outlined by Purslow are met and the admission by their managing director that there is no Plan B should talks with a number of potential investors come to nothing raised the possibility of the Americans being forced to sell in the summer.

“One of our key priorities is to reduce the debt by £100 million,” said Purslow, who described himself yesterday in an interview with AS, the Spanish newspaper, as “a specialist taking on companies with financial problems”. He said: “This is a requirement from our bankers and will allow us to look at a more flexible and longer-term refinancing when this investment is brought in. The targeted reduction was agreed by the bank, myself and the owners when I was brought in [as managing director in June 2009].

“The £100 million investment will be made by the issuance of new shares and will not go towards anything else other than paying down the debt, reducing it to £137 million. This new investment will also mean a dilution of the current ownership.

“There are no promises [that investment can be secured by July], just an expectation and hope that it can be done in that time. There are now around five or six potential investors with whom we are talking.

“You should rest assured any investor in this economic environment will spend plenty of time understanding Liverpool Football Club before committing and this is a good thing, if sometimes painfully slow. I would rather get it right than rush and our banks and owners agree.”

Liverpool are edging closer towards agreeing a pre-contract deal to sign Milan Jovanovic, the Standard Liège and Serbia forward, who will be available on a free transfer in the summer.

[justydawson]

Myself and a friend have come up with the latest protest banner

"Hicks and Gillet - Pain is Temporary, Passion is forever.... With a Liverbird upon our Chest...."

(yes I know the pain is lasting too f*cking long!)

[ROCCO]

The Rangers sale is a "trainwreck"
Mon Feb 01,2010 2:45 PM ET By Craig Calcaterra

That's the viewpoint of someone associated with the group of creditors meeting with prospective Rangers' owners Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan in New York tomorrow in an attempt to iron out their differences regarding the team's sale. It's an ominous sign with respect to something that everyone is assuming is a done deal.

As you'll recall, the creditors are led by a hedge fund called Monarch Alternative Capital, which bought up a bunch of Hicks Sports' Group's debt when it nearly defaulted on its obligations last summer. The creditors have to sign off on the tentative agreement between Hicks and Greenberg/Ryan, and from the sound of it, they don't have a huge incentive to do so.
According to the article:
The key issues, the sources said, are that while the sale has an announced price of $570M, there is only $390M of cash changing hands, with the difference assumed liabilities. And of that the banks would only get $250M, sources said. Before they get paid, according to the deal, Hicks would be paid for the real estate around the ballpark, MLB must be paid for loans it forwarded the team, and Rangers investment bankers, Merrill Lynch and Raine get paid too.

That's right: Tom Hicks has helped broker a deal in which he personally gets paid before the people from whom his spendthrift ownership group had to borrow in order to make ends meet last year. And of course, Hicks himself is part of the new ownership group too.

The result: an angry group of creditors is worried that they're going to only get pennies on the dollar -- "We will be better off in bankruptcy court," a source says -- and may very well tell Greenberg, Ryan and Hicks to go back to the drawing board. If that happens, you have to figure that Jim Crane and Dennis Gilbert, who were reported to have better bids than Greenberg -- would come back into play.

In December I reported that there were people around Major League Baseball who were worried about this deal coming together. Those worries were brushed off at the time. Based on what we're hearing today, I have this feeling that they're back.

http://bases.nbcsports.com/2010/02/t...wreck.html.php


How the fcuk did Moores ever sale to Hicks ....

[ROCCO]

THN: Dallas Stars Could Be Sold This Summer?


According the The Hockey News and The Sporting News hockey blog, the Dallas Stars could be up for sale as early as this summer.

Despite selling the Texas Rangers for more than $500 million recently, Stars owner Tom Hicks' financial troubles have not subsided and the CIT Group, to whom Hicks has defaulted on loans, is forcing Hicks to sell the NHL team.
To that end, the Stars have hired an investment advisor to put the team on the market. The starting asking price is believed to be more than $300 million. It's believed the Stars lost just $5 million last season, but that was without the benefit of any home playoff dates.

With reports out about the troubles surrounding the sale of the Texas Rangers, and how that sale would not satisfy all of the debt Hicks Sports Group has accrued, it's not surprising that the Stars would be next in line. One reason the Stars were not sold before the Rangers is because of the value of an NHL team versus a baseball team, and how it was hoped that the sale of the Rangers would satisfy all of the loans HSG has defaulted on. Yet with Hicks' financial troubles mounting, and the fact that the Stars still generate a very high amount of revenue, selling the hockey franchise might not be as hard as some thought.
With the Tampa Bay Lightning sale in it's final stages, the NHL could set it's sights on Dallas and the ownership situation that is developing here.

http://www.defendingbigd.com/2010/2/...-could-be-sold

[Rover 609]

Originally Posted by justydawson

Myself and a friend have come up with the latest protest banner

"Hicks and Gillet - Pain is Temporary, Passion is forever.... With a Liverbird upon our Chest...."

(yes I know the pain is lasting too f*cking long!)

GROI Justy,bedsheet and a tin of red paint you'll have it done in 20 mins.There cant be enough of these types of banners constantly in the ground.

[justydawson]

Rover - do the stewards give much stick of these flags?

[Rover 609]

Originally Posted by justydawson

Rover - do the stewards give much stick of these flags?

Once theres no foul language or anything racial on them theres nothing they can do Justy,that one you have would be fine.

[ROCCO]

The Hicks family are really hurting financially now the Empire is crumbling right in front of them been forced it seems to sell the Stars because of financial difficulties with them and the deal for the Texas Rangers is also in trouble ... oh happy days oh happy days ... hopefully Hicks could be also forced to sale his share of us at a much more realistic price and hopefully walk away out of pocket { dreams do come true }

[LFC Barry]

From The Times
February 9, 2010
Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani sets sights on buying Liverpool from Hicks and Gillett
Mukesh D. Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director, Reliance Industries, India,

Helen Power, Business Correspondent, Matt Hughes, Patrick Kidd



Liverpool emerged as a takeover target for the seventh-richest man in the world last night as the pressure mounted on Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr to cut a deal to sell Anfield.

Mukesh Ambani, the wealthiest man in India, is one of two tycoons from the sub-continent competing to buy a stake in the Merseyside club.

The Sahara Group’s chairman, Subrata Roy, and Ambani’s Reliance Industries have each tendered similar bids to pay off Liverpool’s £237 million debt in return for a 51 per cent stake in the club.

Last night Christian Purslow, the Liverpool chief executive, denied any knowledge of either bid, but The Times understands that approaches began as early as November and that some preliminary talks have taken place.
Related Links

* Americans must raise £100m, says Purslow

* Hicks and Gillett agree re-finance package

* Liverpool vow to invest windfall on pitch

Each deal requires that the present owners make a commitment to take no dividends or expenses out of Anfield for three years to allow the club to resume a secure financial basis. One of the potential owners has also indicated a willingness to allow supporters to take a 10 per cent stake in Liverpool.

A source close to Hicks and Gillett said that the duo would reject on principle any bid that left them with less than 50 per cent of the club’s shares unless it involved either of them selling out entirely. A sale of more than half of the total stake would mean they would lose control of the club.

It is understood that Liverpool’s banker, the state-backed Royal Bank of Scotland, is pressing Hicks and Gillett to cut their asking price.

The bank declined to comment last night, but a source close to RBS said that there has been plenty of interest in Liverpool from investors. However, the source added, the owners are blocking all deals on the table because they refuse to budge on price.

The source said the bank’s stipulation that the pair must pay off £100 million of the debt and inject tens of millions of pounds into the club was intended to push them into an agreement with a new investor that would permanently stabilise Liverpool’s finances.

A number of other potential bidders include a Saudi Arabian consortium and a United States-based buyer, who is prepared to pay the £100 million required by the lenders in exchange for 40 per cent of the club.

Roy, whose interest appears more serious, has been linked with ownership of one of the next IPL franchises, possibly to be based in the north Indian city of Lucknow, where the Sahara Group, of which he is chairman, is based.

Roy, 62, founded the company, which deals in property, media and tourism, in 1978. Its four-year sponsorship deal with the India cricket team, worth £55 million, expires this year and Roy could be looking for a new project. Sahara was linked with shirt sponsorship of Manchester United last February, a deal that fell through.

Ambani, 52, is said to be worth $19.5 billion (about £12.5 billion) — more than the combined worth of Sheikh Mansour and Roman Abramovich — from his investment in Reliance Industries, a petrochemicals giant, according to Forbes business magazine.

His father, Dhirubhai, turned a small textiles company into one of Asia’s largest conglomerates, but after Ambani Sr’s death in 2002, Mukesh and his younger brother, Anil, had a bitter feud over the company’s direction, eventually splitting the assets.

Mukesh Ambani is already a big player in sport. In 2008 he created the Mumbai Indians, one of the eight teams in the Indian Premier League (IPL), having paid £70 million to buy the franchise. Anil Ambani has been linked with a bid for one of two new franchises in the IPL that will be put up for auction at the end of the month, with a starting price of £140 million.

Gillett and Hicks took over at Anfield three years ago in a leveraged buyout costing nearly £300 million, including £70 million for a stadium that remains unbuilt. Despite promises to the contrary, they loaded the debt on to the club via a £350 million loan with RBS and have struggled to service the debt since the credit crunch began 18 months ago.

Before the economic climate changed for the worse, the American duo turned down an offer from Dubai worth almost £500 million — a deal that would have allowed each of the owners to walk away with a clear profit in the region of £125 million.

The Americans are unpopular with the supporters and the hostility at Anfield has increased as it has become clear that there is no money available to strengthen the team.

Purslow, whose background is in private equity, joined the club last summer with a brief to bring in investment but, despite repeated briefings that an influx of cash in close at hand, there has been little to suggest investors are keen to take a minority stake in the club.

While these latest offers will almost certainly be rejected, it marks the beginning of a period of jockeying for position in the ownership battle. It is a battle that, ultimately, RBS may have to resolve.

Let it begin again!

[south]

i'm sure he has a nice house anyway.. $1 billion worth

.................................................. .................................................. ...

loooks like he as linked with us and a few others before.

http://www.premiershiplatest.com/new...a-5514564.html