Formula One Pair Confirm £20m Offer For QPR - 03/09/2007

Formula One chiefs Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore have confirmed their £20m offer for debt-saddled Championship club Queens Park Rangers. Ecclestone had previously linked with a possible bid at Arsenal where there have been new developments. The new owners have pledged to try to get the West London club back to the Premiership from whence it was relegated in 1996. QPR's finances have been burdened in recent years by interest payments on a £10m loan from a Panamanian financier. The club's owners undertook the loan in 2001 to take the club out of administration. The new owners would pay off £13m of the club debt of £20m and loan the club an additional £5m. The deal also promises manager John Gregory £10m to spend on players. QPR attract an average attendance of about 20,000 to Loftus Road. However, the London football market is crowded with both Chelsea and Fulham also located in the London Borough of Hammersmith. Some Brentford fans see their future in terms of a ground share with QPR.