Rangers administrators and Ticketus heading for dispute over £24.4m season ticket deal The London firm is believed to be confident its deal with the Ibrox club will withstand any legal challenge or liquidation. Rangers administrators and Ticketus are heading for a major dispute over the season ticket deal that funded Craig Whyteâs takeover. Mr Whyte sold around 100,000 future season tickets to the London firm for £24.4m to effectively finance his takeover of the Ibrox club. He used the money to wipe off Rangersâ £18m bank debt to Lloyds Banking Group, while administrators said the rest of the money did not go through the club's books. Duff and Phelps are believed to be looking into the validity of the season ticket sale to Ticketus and whether it would be possible to remove Rangers from the deal, potentially leaving Mr Whyte to deal with the firm directly. However, STV understands Ticketus has taken legal advice on several occasions about the validity of the deal and the company remains confident it will withstand any future court challenge from the administrators. The firm, which has long experience in deals with football clubs in severe financial difficulty, believes that the arrangement would stand regardless of whether Rangersâ assets are sold to a new company and the old one liquidated. It has stated it has already bought the season tickets from Rangers FC Plc, not loaned the club money, and it is therefore the legal owner. Ticketus has this week been in discussions with administrators as well as some of the parties that have registered an interest in taking over crisis-hit Rangers. Last week the company owned by Octopus Investments said it had "an obligation to its investors to pursue all avenues to ensure that the ticket purchase agreement it entered into with the club is honoured, and we are committed to going to the lengths necessary to ensure that the future of the club is preserved and its agreement with Ticketus fulfilled". No legal action has been initiated by the administrators as of yet, while they have previously stated that Mr Whyteâs secured creditor status has "no value" as the owner does not appear to have invested any money in the club. Five-way battle Both Ticketus and the administrators are involved in the five-way court battle over £3.6m that was seized from the account of Collyer Bristow, Mr Whyte's lawyers who brokered the takeover deal. Two of the companies also laying claim to the cash, Merchant Turnaround and Jerome Group Pension Fund, are linked to Mr Whyte. The case is scheduled to call for a four-day sitting at the High Court in London on March 30. Mr Whyteâs secured creditor status relates to his floating charge over the assets of Rangers as a result of wiping their bank debt using the Ticketus money. Last month the owner, who has not returned to Ibrox since administrators were appointed more than three weeks ago, claimed that he is "personally on the line for £27.5m in guarantees and cash" in relation to his dealings at Rangers, including the Ticketus deal. He also said in a statement that the sale of future season tickets to Ticketus at a reduced price was "without any shadow of a doubt, the best deal for Rangers." http://news.stv.tv/scotland/west-ce...ading-for-battle-over-24m-season-ticket-deal/
Don't spoil it Dev. Tom english tweeted today that there is good news for Rangers fans, the ticketus deal is about to unravel..... That is right bares. It can only be good
Seems to be continuing confusion (on my part at the very least) as to who struck the deal. Was it Whyte, who then used the money to pay off Lloyds and half inched the rest, or did "Rangers FC PLC" strike the deal?
Listen Gammy, just let the tims **** each other as if they are at a kids b/day party, we don't do walking away. No Surrender WATP GSTQ VIASP
Ah'll gammy you ya ****. No. Wait. I won't gammy ye. Let's just forget I said that and move on shall we?
Don't quite get why he thinks this. If Ticketus actually bought the season tickets then surely they are theirs to sell and the only difficulty that would arise for Ticketus would be if liquidation occurred - in which case Mr Whyte's alleged 'guarantees' would be called in?
I'm bored to **** of the whole "Rangers in administration" drama. I was hoping for "24" but it's all a bit "Downton Abbey".
