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The fate of Coventry City now lies in the hands of its main creditor, the Co-operative Bank. It is understood that £18m of the club's £38m debts are owed to the bank. The Inland Revenue is also said to be owed £3m. So far the Co-operative Bank has refused to say whether they want to put the club into administration, but Coventry sources saying that they have been 'knocking on the door of the Ricoh.' One of the problems City faces it that it does not own the impressive Ricoh Stadium with its hotel and conference facilities, but pays £1m a year to play there. The stadium is jointly owned by Coventry City Council and the Alan Higgs charity. The latter was established through the will of a wealthy individual who left nothing substantial to his family. It was supposed to help youngsters in Coventry with sporting interests. A training arena was built with the money, but the spare cash was then put into the Ricoh.
The lack of ownership of the arena was thought to be a stumbling block for Manhattan Sports Capital Partners who were in Coventry recently, staying at the Combe Abbey hotel, in what turned out to be make-or-break negotiations. As a charity, it would not be straightforward for the Higgs trustees to dispose of their stake even if they wanted to, while the City Council is naturally concerned with the continued success of a facility that has aided the regeneration of North Coventry. There have been claims that a revised offer from another investor has been received, but these have not been confirmed. Multi-millionaire Coventry Labour MP Geoffrey Robinson stands to lose a large slice of his fortune if the club goes int administration. A major shareholder in the Sky Blues, he's invested more than £10m and stood surety for another £8m of loans. Asked by the Coventry Evening Telegraph about his substantial investments being at risk, the former government minister said, 'I don't want to talk about it - all the more for that reason (having invested money).' Unless a white knight appears, it would seem likely that Coventry will go into administration and be deducted ten points, effectively ending their promotion hopes.
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