Those ‘ground improvements’ were certainly floated by RC and not delivered.
But if the club was losing £1m a year (not unreasonable in league one) then the Trust owning 25% of the equity would be liable to fund £250k of that loss annually. The move by RC from 75% to 90% shareholding relieved the Trust of that obligation. That was the key negotiation point as I recall. The profits from the Championship season bought us a bit of time, but those would quickly run out and the annual losses would start again.
I have always felt (and have posted previously) that the 25% Trust shareholding was unsustainable as the Trust could not fund 25% of the annual losses of a league one team. And I’ve been a Trust member for years.
Readings 2023 accounts have at long last been filed, they make pitiful reading with total accumulated losses now exceeding 200m & 2023 losses reaching £21.7m
i hope this is prelude to an actual sale completion...
Honestly, we all know we are going to beat Reading, be ahead by a point at the last weekend, and then they will go under letting Wrexham overtake us when the fixtures are expunged.
Just watched it and would like to hear what you Chairboys think of it. I found it informative, although I think I can take his aim to refurbish the Stadium etc. with a pinch of salt(?)
In case anyone wonders why the Cherries are mentioned at the top is, I believe, that the interviewer lived in Reading and moved to Bournemouth a few years ago and he now does a podcast for them. I do wonder what they think of their podcast having so much about the Royals these days., but I suspect that having gone through something similar they may not mind too much.
Yep, many Wycombe fans would argue that much of what RC says needs to be taken with a pinch of salt.
However, I do think he's eminently likeable to the many and is a very shrewd businessman who might, at least, sort out some of the issues regarding the day to day running and finances of Reading FC.
Regarding: taking what he says with a pinch of salt (and without listening to the podcast)
For me, Rob is and always will be what a (good?) CEO is and does, and that is be a visionary for where a club/business wants to be to and looking/planning for the future. If CEO’s are too stuck in the weeds of what is happening today, they are failing in what their role needs to be. Day to day business falls on other C level members of a board while they also work to implement the CEO’s vision going forward.
That’s why he was always ridiculously over optimistic in us getting promotion and all the plans and amazing things he wanted to put in place.
Some people will say he broke promises when he talked about what he wanted to do here. I don’t see it that way. For me everything is more:
“This is where I want to go. This is what I would like to do. This is our yard stick. It’s always moving forward because that’s how you drive a business forward”.
Will EVERYTHING he wants to do get done (like refurb a stadium)? Absolutely not.
Will he find quick wins? Yep.
Will he come up with ideas that seem outrageous/fanciful/wishful thinking? Absolutely. But that’s his job.
It’s better to aim for the stars and fall alittle bit short (learn from that and then re-aim) than aim for the top of a tree and hit it every time.
Ground improvements have never been what was asked for, maintenance and upkeep in exchange for the Trust charging the club a peppercorn rent - that was the deal all along and is still the deal.
The question of ownership is an entirely separate matter and in that respect the Trust having a stake in the club with no demand on its purse has greatly strengthened its position.
Comments
Those ‘ground improvements’ were certainly floated by RC and not delivered.
But if the club was losing £1m a year (not unreasonable in league one) then the Trust owning 25% of the equity would be liable to fund £250k of that loss annually. The move by RC from 75% to 90% shareholding relieved the Trust of that obligation. That was the key negotiation point as I recall. The profits from the Championship season bought us a bit of time, but those would quickly run out and the annual losses would start again.
I have always felt (and have posted previously) that the 25% Trust shareholding was unsustainable as the Trust could not fund 25% of the annual losses of a league one team. And I’ve been a Trust member for years.
Readings 2023 accounts have at long last been filed, they make pitiful reading with total accumulated losses now exceeding 200m & 2023 losses reaching £21.7m
i hope this is prelude to an actual sale completion...
Double the burger prices, set off some fireworks =£12M profit!
As @DevC will be quick to point out the accumulated losses of >£200m mean nothing to any future owner.
It's all about balancing the budget when any new owner arrives - or at least not exceeding what level of loss they can sustain.
Obviously there are implications to the club in relation to any FFP rules.
https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/mar/25/touch-and-go-reading-stuck-in-brinkmanship-battle-over-sale-as-deadline-looms
After Couhig and Ainsworth Just need Bloomfield to stomp on a kitten and today will be complete.
Honestly, we all know we are going to beat Reading, be ahead by a point at the last weekend, and then they will go under letting Wrexham overtake us when the fixtures are expunged.
I giggled, but it made me think of what a Seasonis Horribilis it has been for ex-Wycombe heroes from the Champo-promotion season:
Couhig - willingly jumped into Reading limboland and is looking like the bad guy to many.
Ainsworth & Dobbo - Only avoiding relegation with Shrewsbury by making a move that is enraging many and is not great optics on the surface.
Bloomfield - Got thoroughly Dan Rice'd and the 'Get Me Out of Here' wheel landed on Luton Town.
JJ - Got Beadle's-Abouted by the Reading circus.
Alex Samuel - Season-ending injury quite early on.
Wheeler - Could not get into the Wycombe team, went to a death-spiraling Shrewsbury only for GA to leave.
Gape - Joined a death-spiraling Shrewsbury only for GA to leave.
Kashket - at Welling United, looking odds-on to be relegated to the (checks notes) 7th tier.
Anthony Stewart - Playing for a bad Ebbsfleet team, likely to experience relegation.
Curtis Thompson - Limited to 16 appearances by injury, despite being popular at Grimsby.
Jason McCarthy - Retired (though landed on his feet) partly through being unable to get a match.
That burger van that closed down I vaguely read about this on Facebook
Bluey the Swan Last seen on a stag do in latvia
Most of the January signings MIA
I was going to say the powers that be won't allow any doubt.
Then i realised that sort of finish will be perfect for their tv show
Definitely can't label Gape stepping up 2 divisions any sort of bad year.
Ryan Reynolds already getting the crocodile tears ready, no doubt.
Great point, but it messes with my narrative, so I'll pretend you didn't have so much insight. 😂
It must be a mad day for Shrewsbury fans.
Already looking at an inevitable relegation - but loads of hopes Gaz would lead a glorious new era.
Instead they'll be patrolling the usual hackneyed uninspired lower league merry go round names and hoping they somehow stumble across a decent one.
All roads lead to League 2!
Won't be a fun return to Shrewsbury for him next season!
https://youtu.be/PuW8acbuNu0?si=N9KkAsSB3UgSdIKE
This interview with RC just popped up on my YouTube feed. Not watched it properly yet.
Just watched it and would like to hear what you Chairboys think of it. I found it informative, although I think I can take his aim to refurbish the Stadium etc. with a pinch of salt(?)
In case anyone wonders why the Cherries are mentioned at the top is, I believe, that the interviewer lived in Reading and moved to Bournemouth a few years ago and he now does a podcast for them. I do wonder what they think of their podcast having so much about the Royals these days., but I suspect that having gone through something similar they may not mind too much.
Yep, many Wycombe fans would argue that much of what RC says needs to be taken with a pinch of salt.
However, I do think he's eminently likeable to the many and is a very shrewd businessman who might, at least, sort out some of the issues regarding the day to day running and finances of Reading FC.
Almost anyone is going to be better than DY.
Your last line should read:- Anyone (even my neighbour's dog) is going to be better than DY.😀
Objection m’lud.
As a lifelong dog lover……
Regarding: taking what he says with a pinch of salt (and without listening to the podcast)
For me, Rob is and always will be what a (good?) CEO is and does, and that is be a visionary for where a club/business wants to be to and looking/planning for the future. If CEO’s are too stuck in the weeds of what is happening today, they are failing in what their role needs to be. Day to day business falls on other C level members of a board while they also work to implement the CEO’s vision going forward.
That’s why he was always ridiculously over optimistic in us getting promotion and all the plans and amazing things he wanted to put in place.
Some people will say he broke promises when he talked about what he wanted to do here. I don’t see it that way. For me everything is more:
“This is where I want to go. This is what I would like to do. This is our yard stick. It’s always moving forward because that’s how you drive a business forward”.
Will EVERYTHING he wants to do get done (like refurb a stadium)? Absolutely not.
Will he find quick wins? Yep.
Will he come up with ideas that seem outrageous/fanciful/wishful thinking? Absolutely. But that’s his job.
It’s better to aim for the stars and fall alittle bit short (learn from that and then re-aim) than aim for the top of a tree and hit it every time.
Spot on. I think history will look kindly on Rob and Pete (for us).
Ground improvements have never been what was asked for, maintenance and upkeep in exchange for the Trust charging the club a peppercorn rent - that was the deal all along and is still the deal.
The question of ownership is an entirely separate matter and in that respect the Trust having a stake in the club with no demand on its purse has greatly strengthened its position.