Blackpool - points deduction ?

[Biggs]

It's a completely flawed penalty though, because there's nor risk or deterrent to the owners themselves.

Come in, gamble on getting a World Cup bid/Premier League promotion/TV money. If it doesn't happen then you walk away and leave behind a club and its fans and staff facing points penalties, relegation and financial oblivion.

It's a complete no-lose situation for the owners, which is presumably why football attracts a lot of these dubious characters. I guess its replicated throughout capitalism with the whole limited company concept, but it seems particularly broken when you're talking about what are effectively public community assets in football clubs.

And the less said about the fit and proper persons test, the better. You basically have to be a convicted criminal, and even then you have a decent shot at passing.

 

[Willis88]

What's the chances the owners just find the funds and buy the club again?

I believe this all dragged out as he was looking to sell another business to free up funds to buy out the Belekon (or however it's spelt).

Given it's in receivership he may not even be required to pay the true value of the club as well...

 

[Cult Of Personality]

For me they have to have a points deduction just line Argyle suffered from when we went into hard times. It's only fair

 

[memory man]

For me they have to have a points deduction just line Argyle suffered from when we went into hard times. It's only fair

I am not sure it is a similar set of circumstances but I find it hard to articulate why. I know what I want to say but cannot quite find the right words. Basically our demise was caused by over-reaching ourselves, neglect and stupidity. Oyston has put Blackpool in this position through being bloody-minded.

 

[Keepitgreen]

For me they have to have a points deduction just line Argyle suffered from when we went into hard times. It's only fair

I am not sure it is a similar set of circumstances but I find it hard to articulate why. I know what I want to say but cannot quite find the right words. Basically our demise was caused by over-reaching ourselves, neglect and stupidity. Oyston has put Blackpool in this position through being bloody-minded.

I know there were reports that after they got to the Premier League the Oystons transferred money from the club to their private businesses. Maybe the EFL should have stepped in then.

Just found this from 18th October last year.

Yet nearly a year on Oyston remains in charge despite the ruling he “illegitimately stripped” the club of £26.77m after its one jackpot season in the Premier League, and must pay that huge sum to Belokon, plus the Latvian’s original £4.5m investment and costs.

 

[Quinny]

Lifted from The Guardian

"English Football League rules state that if a club suffer “an insolvency event”, which includes the appointment of a receiver, they receive a 12-point deduction, but the league has not yet determined whether that penalty will be imposed in this case."

 

[EyeOpener]

Lifted from The Guardian
"English Football League rules state that if a club suffer “an insolvency event”, which includes the appointment of a receiver, they receive a 12-point deduction, but the league has not yet determined whether that penalty will be imposed in this case."

Seems pretty clear to me assuming The Guardian have interrupted the rule correctly. From what I remember though the league make up rules relating to their own rules. Seem to remember them being flexible with their own rules and applying a points deduction to Leeds at the start of a new season rather than at the end of the previous season which if implemented would have seen Leeds relegated.

 

[Mark Colling]

I have little doubt that the Football League will deduct points - and wouldn't put it past them to deduct more than 12 as they did with Luton.

However, putting aside their fans understandable emotions, this is an ownership dispute and, if anything the club has suffered from the owner extracting cash from it rather than benefiting and I haven't seen anything to suggest that the sacred (if legally dubious) "football creditors" have been disadvantaged so I would much rather there wasn't a deduction.

What I particularly dislike (and there has been quite a lot of this on Twitter from a variety of clubs) is the "we were deducted points so they should be attitude". There were plenty of things that went on that felt like the authorities were against us but the deduction of points wasn't one of them under the circumstances.

 

[Gary Wills]

Must confess to having little interest in sports finances, just as not caring much how the finances of the local supermarket or theatre function; but here, seems a case of someone going along to the casino, winning, and walking out with some fingers raised. And all the sports folks at the trough, sports press included, are pretty mad at these evil strangers who flout the unwritten rules, because the money for nothing club is a pretty well protected one. So a points penalty, if only to spite the headlined bad guys, does seem rather likely.

 

[Lundan Cabbie]

For me they have to have a points deduction just line Argyle suffered from when we went into hard times. It's only fair

I am not sure it is a similar set of circumstances but I find it hard to articulate why. I know what I want to say but cannot quite find the right words. Basically our demise was caused by over-reaching ourselves, neglect and stupidity. Oyston has put Blackpool in this position through being bloody-minded.

I know there were reports that after they got to the Premier League the Oystons transferred money from the club to their private businesses. Maybe the EFL should have stepped in then.

Just found this from 18th October last year.

Yet nearly a year on Oyston remains in charge despite the ruling he “illegitimately stripped” the club of £26.77m after its one jackpot season in the Premier League, and must pay that huge sum to Belokon, plus the Latvian’s original £4.5m investment and costs.

The problem is though, as owners of the club this was something they were quite entitled to do. Where they went wrong was they “illegitimately stripped” Belokon's proportion of the Premier League windfall. Of course we as fans say they shouldn't be able to take money out of the club but legally they can. The common fairytale of "a club belongs to the fans and owners are just custodians" doesn't wash in the real world.

 

[IJN]

You're right Paul, but as proved by many, many clubs, cross us fans and you'll pay the price.

The Blackpool fans 'Not A Penny More' campaign hurt the rapist in the wallet and was brilliantly executed. The fans will enjoy their football club after that creature has long gone.

 

[German Shepherd]

Argyle & Blackpool's situations are vastly different. Argyle weren't paying staff, players, local contractors & the pitch installers. Basically because they were skint.
Blackpool are paying all their football obligations. The receivers were called in by the judge because of the debt owed between one owner to another. No outside companies are affected. I think it would be unfair if they were docked points (& I've got a top half finish bet ).
I work with diehard Blackpool fans who haven't been for 5 years. Their resilience in numbers has been amazing. It will be great to see them back.

 

[Lundan Cabbie]

You're right Paul, but as proved by many, many clubs, cross us fans and you'll pay the price.

The Blackpool fans 'Not A Penny More' campaign hurt the rapist in the wallet and was brilliantly executed. The fans will enjoy their football club after that creature has long gone.

Absolutely Ian but when the question is asked why the EFL didn't step in, there wasn't really a point when they could have.

I heard Blackpool's Trust representative on the radio warning that victory isn't quite secured because she wouldn't put it past Oyston to raise the money and settle the bill. Although that seems unlikely at such a late stage you can understand the distrust and anxiety there must be amongst Blackpool fans who wont believe their nightmare is completely over until that family have gone and it has been underlined twice..... or probably even three times.

 

[Vampires11]

If they were in the Premier League, what has it to do with the EFL? Are they not two entirely separate bodies???

 

[saffronwalden green]

The Wikipedia item about Owen Oyston makes interesting reading.