I'm encouraged more by this. The appointment of Rice in particular would suggest that there will be investment in our infrastructure and academy. It means this is a long term project.
It's like a real life game of Championship Manager. What fun is it starting at the top?
I thought Exeter's relatively remote catchment area helped with a successful academy? My understanding is that we were on the absolute brink financially when RC came along. I am not sure if there was anything in the suggestion box as to how to survive any longer self-funded.
I’m very curious as to the Academy side of things they are wanting to build. Is it going to be fundamentally different in some way to the established structure that other teams follow?
The Dan Rice appointment, attempts to buy the Reading training ground, and first statement etc all suggest a huge focus on an academy.
Makes me wonder if the fact we didn’t have an existing youth team structure is a key reason it’s us they’ve picked?
Interesting times ahead, nervous about what it means for us but time will tell. Certainly ‘Little Wycombe’ no more.
I'm positive about this takeover. My issues with the Couhigs were partly over the bullshitting, partly over the sense that it was a bunch of people playing Football Manager without knowing what they're doing but mostly about them never convincing me they had the finances to back the day to day running of a a League One club, let alone their professed ambitions.
Mr Lomtadze clearly allays my fear over the last point. I hope he brings in an experienced football administrator as CFO (Rob Couhig did similar when he took over only for the guy to last a month...) as Dan Rice may be brilliant but he's a football man rather than an accountant, I'm assuming.
It'll be interesting to see how Matt Bloomfield fits into the new structure. Gone are the days when the quid pro quo for Gareth bringing in his curtains and buying spare football nets was the right to treat the playing side of the club as his personal fiefdom. Hopefully Matt will work effectively with Rice but a bad start will make his job far more precarious than it was in January when my assessment was that Rob Couhig couldn't afford to sack him even if he wanted to.
There is also my long held fear that there's a total lack of transparency or accountability in this club, aided by a fanbase that prefers not to ask difficult questions of its overlords. Rob Couhig was able to exploit that for maximum advantage and I can't imagine the new owner will be any different. But that ship has sailed and I am bored of being almost a lone voice on that topic.
So overall a thumbs up for me. It'll probably all go tits up eventually but at least the ride will be a lot more exciting in the meantime.
We should remember that although he has billions he’s not coming to Wycombe with an open chequebook- it’s a new business investment to him.
The key thing is his interest and long term commitment to “the project”. I’m sure this is one of many financial investments and our long term future is now linked to how much he enjoys it and how it ranks in priority with his other commitments.
Rob Couhig alluded to him falling in love with Wycombe which implies he might have some emotional attachment. My issue is really that I don’t want football to be about club owners funds and means which seems even more the case now that it has ever been.
I very briefly scanned the SCMP Regulations and it seems owners are allowed to make cash injections without breaching the Regulations, provided that such money doesn't attract any interest payment or requiremt to repay.
There is also the possibility of renaming the stadium something like "the Kaspi KZ Stadium" which would allow a substantial payment.
Am sure there's something about sponsorships have to be market realistic.
Otherwise you'd just have had Newcastles owners pulling a similar trick and paying 200m a season when even the biggest clubs are getting say 80m over years.
No idea about league one, but I think there are rules in regards to owner based sponsorship deals in the Prem. I believe Everton were stopped from putting a 30m naming rights deal for their new stadium as an example.
Tbh, if there are no rules, this might explain why someone looking to invest in football is coming in lower down the ladder.
You mean like the Emirates or Etihad stadium sponsorships?
I think that loop hole has been closed and one of the reasons there’s discord between the big 6 that did this ages ago and other clubs that are now not allowed to
He may want to be remembered in posterity as an owner who achieved something special, liking getting us into the Premier League. If he had bought say Reading, Pompey, QPR for instance, they've all been there and done it. Elton John for instance will always be revered by Watford fans for achieving the seemingly impossible at the time.
The opposite side of that coin is the asset strip one with relatively little consequence to him personally as he has no connections to the area and probably won’t socialise with any Wycombe fans to give him a hard time after the deed is done.
To be clear though, I don’t believe he has those intentions at all. I’m a cynic but not that much.
i do think he’s a successful businessman and successful businessman will do what they have done there entire lives. Make investments.
This is an investment for him - and I’d ask him the same questions I asked Rob et so when they came on board. Because these are the sort of Q’s they neee to think of themselves (in the form of KPI’s) before committing to a purchase:
What does a successful investment look like to ML?
how many rounds of investment are they looking to put in?
Absolutely valid to have concerns about the future, what happens if he loses interest, prices, links with the community etc but probably not asset stripping.
When RC was asked about asset stripping he asked if people were talking about the stapler or the photocopier as there wasn't much else on the balance sheet. ML doesn't own the stadium or the training ground, and the "business" currently runs at a loss, should things not go well it's difficult to see how he'd even get back what he has spent to takeover, whatever that might be..
Depends how the investments are done. You load the club with debt to build stuff.
You sell the club “clearing all the debts” you built up, pocketing any profit and leaving the club with huge overheads to keep the things you have bought running.
Wasn’t that basically Hayes plan while telling us “don’t worry about the loans I’ve given the club” as he wanted to build a new stadium. His plan failed and “graciously” didn’t call in all his loans straight away.
Owners can donate as much as they want to the club under the SCMP rules and it counts as football fortune, so no need to mess about with fake sponsorships.
I’m not convinced it’s an investment aimed at making money. There are significantly easier ways of making money than by buying a football club. It’s likely just another fun thing for a billionaire to do, like buying a yacht, or perhaps aimed at increasing his reputation and legitimacy.
In terms of asset stripping, why would he bother? He’s got so much money a few million for him has as much significance as finding a penny on the ground.
Yes no need to engage in any of those shenanigans in League One, owners can just put money in unconstrained if they wish.
In short under SCMP clubs can spend 60 per cent of turnover and 100 per cent of what’s called Football Fortune Income.
Donations or Equity are included within the definition of Football Fortune Income, along with things like transfer fees received.
So if he wants to put new money in he can without being limited.
This obviously has its dangers though in instances where wealthy owners build unsustainable business models and then don’t keep the funding up. As per our friends in Berkshire.
Comments
Badabing :-).
Nice one.
It’s called SCMP (Salary Cost Management Protocol).
https://www.efl.com/supporters/faqs/rules-and-governance/
I'm encouraged more by this. The appointment of Rice in particular would suggest that there will be investment in our infrastructure and academy. It means this is a long term project.
It's like a real life game of Championship Manager. What fun is it starting at the top?
Championship manager starts in our mum's basement according to the forgotten Couhig.
The return of Dobbo as Academy Guru?
Dan Rice definitely feels like a big coup.
So, the only question remains, as we secure the League One title with six games to go, is who will fill the second automatic promotion spot?
Trebles all round, as they say in Private Eye.
Penny for GA's thoughts - he felt like he had taken us as far as he can and then a billionaire comes along a year later!
I thought Exeter's relatively remote catchment area helped with a successful academy? My understanding is that we were on the absolute brink financially when RC came along. I am not sure if there was anything in the suggestion box as to how to survive any longer self-funded.
GA brought back.
Bloomfield told he can't leave Centre Parcs because his booking has been paid for the next five years.
(Making it the most shit remake of The Prisoner ever)
ISWYDT
I’m very curious as to the Academy side of things they are wanting to build. Is it going to be fundamentally different in some way to the established structure that other teams follow?
The Dan Rice appointment, attempts to buy the Reading training ground, and first statement etc all suggest a huge focus on an academy.
Makes me wonder if the fact we didn’t have an existing youth team structure is a key reason it’s us they’ve picked?
Interesting times ahead, nervous about what it means for us but time will tell. Certainly ‘Little Wycombe’ no more.
Not sure even a Georgian billionaire could afford to pay for a five year stay at Centre Parcs.
I'm positive about this takeover. My issues with the Couhigs were partly over the bullshitting, partly over the sense that it was a bunch of people playing Football Manager without knowing what they're doing but mostly about them never convincing me they had the finances to back the day to day running of a a League One club, let alone their professed ambitions.
Mr Lomtadze clearly allays my fear over the last point. I hope he brings in an experienced football administrator as CFO (Rob Couhig did similar when he took over only for the guy to last a month...) as Dan Rice may be brilliant but he's a football man rather than an accountant, I'm assuming.
It'll be interesting to see how Matt Bloomfield fits into the new structure. Gone are the days when the quid pro quo for Gareth bringing in his curtains and buying spare football nets was the right to treat the playing side of the club as his personal fiefdom. Hopefully Matt will work effectively with Rice but a bad start will make his job far more precarious than it was in January when my assessment was that Rob Couhig couldn't afford to sack him even if he wanted to.
There is also my long held fear that there's a total lack of transparency or accountability in this club, aided by a fanbase that prefers not to ask difficult questions of its overlords. Rob Couhig was able to exploit that for maximum advantage and I can't imagine the new owner will be any different. But that ship has sailed and I am bored of being almost a lone voice on that topic.
So overall a thumbs up for me. It'll probably all go tits up eventually but at least the ride will be a lot more exciting in the meantime.
We should remember that although he has billions he’s not coming to Wycombe with an open chequebook- it’s a new business investment to him.
The key thing is his interest and long term commitment to “the project”. I’m sure this is one of many financial investments and our long term future is now linked to how much he enjoys it and how it ranks in priority with his other commitments.
Rob Couhig alluded to him falling in love with Wycombe which implies he might have some emotional attachment. My issue is really that I don’t want football to be about club owners funds and means which seems even more the case now that it has ever been.
Is there anything to stop Kaspi being our new main sponsor and paying for eg £10m per year and therefore effecting the SCMP?
I very briefly scanned the SCMP Regulations and it seems owners are allowed to make cash injections without breaching the Regulations, provided that such money doesn't attract any interest payment or requiremt to repay.
There is also the possibility of renaming the stadium something like "the Kaspi KZ Stadium" which would allow a substantial payment.
Am sure there's something about sponsorships have to be market realistic.
Otherwise you'd just have had Newcastles owners pulling a similar trick and paying 200m a season when even the biggest clubs are getting say 80m over years.
No idea about league one, but I think there are rules in regards to owner based sponsorship deals in the Prem. I believe Everton were stopped from putting a 30m naming rights deal for their new stadium as an example.
Tbh, if there are no rules, this might explain why someone looking to invest in football is coming in lower down the ladder.
You mean like the Emirates or Etihad stadium sponsorships?
I think that loop hole has been closed and one of the reasons there’s discord between the big 6 that did this ages ago and other clubs that are now not allowed to
He may want to be remembered in posterity as an owner who achieved something special, liking getting us into the Premier League. If he had bought say Reading, Pompey, QPR for instance, they've all been there and done it. Elton John for instance will always be revered by Watford fans for achieving the seemingly impossible at the time.
Sure, that’s a possibility.
The opposite side of that coin is the asset strip one with relatively little consequence to him personally as he has no connections to the area and probably won’t socialise with any Wycombe fans to give him a hard time after the deed is done.
To be clear though, I don’t believe he has those intentions at all. I’m a cynic but not that much.
i do think he’s a successful businessman and successful businessman will do what they have done there entire lives. Make investments.
This is an investment for him - and I’d ask him the same questions I asked Rob et so when they came on board. Because these are the sort of Q’s they neee to think of themselves (in the form of KPI’s) before committing to a purchase:
What does a successful investment look like to ML?
how many rounds of investment are they looking to put in?
what are the time scales?
what’s the exit strategy?
I found this article online
https://www.pwc.com/kz/en/pwc-news/what-new/talk-with-interesting-people.html
I wonder if our friends in nearby Berkshire and Oxfordshire are cursing that ML didn't choose them over little Wycombe!
Absolutely valid to have concerns about the future, what happens if he loses interest, prices, links with the community etc but probably not asset stripping.
When RC was asked about asset stripping he asked if people were talking about the stapler or the photocopier as there wasn't much else on the balance sheet. ML doesn't own the stadium or the training ground, and the "business" currently runs at a loss, should things not go well it's difficult to see how he'd even get back what he has spent to takeover, whatever that might be..
Depends how the investments are done. You load the club with debt to build stuff.
You sell the club “clearing all the debts” you built up, pocketing any profit and leaving the club with huge overheads to keep the things you have bought running.
Wasn’t that basically Hayes plan while telling us “don’t worry about the loans I’ve given the club” as he wanted to build a new stadium. His plan failed and “graciously” didn’t call in all his loans straight away.
Owners can donate as much as they want to the club under the SCMP rules and it counts as football fortune, so no need to mess about with fake sponsorships.
I’m not convinced it’s an investment aimed at making money. There are significantly easier ways of making money than by buying a football club. It’s likely just another fun thing for a billionaire to do, like buying a yacht, or perhaps aimed at increasing his reputation and legitimacy.
In terms of asset stripping, why would he bother? He’s got so much money a few million for him has as much significance as finding a penny on the ground.
Maybe he’s just a big Akinfenwa fan?
Yes no need to engage in any of those shenanigans in League One, owners can just put money in unconstrained if they wish.
In short under SCMP clubs can spend 60 per cent of turnover and 100 per cent of what’s called Football Fortune Income.
Donations or Equity are included within the definition of Football Fortune Income, along with things like transfer fees received.
So if he wants to put new money in he can without being limited.
This obviously has its dangers though in instances where wealthy owners build unsustainable business models and then don’t keep the funding up. As per our friends in Berkshire.
Now to get Alfie May on board! ( and in my dreams Paul Mullins )