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The Championship

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Portsmouth to meet taxman

Submitted by WG on Sat, 11/02/2012 - 08:37

A meeting is to be held between Portsmouth FC and Revenue and Customs next Friday to try and sort out a mutually acceptable way of dealing with the club's tax debt.   The calling of the meeting follows a favourable response from prime minister David Cameron at question time to Portsmouth North MP Penny Mordaunt.   She has been meeting with Treasury ministers to find a way forward.

Pompey on the brink

Submitted by WG on Tue, 07/02/2012 - 12:16

It''s not often that a question is asked at Prime Minister's Question Time in the House of Commons about a football club, but that is what happened last week.   David Cameron gave a sympathetic reply to one of the Portsmouth MPs, expressing the hope that talks could take place with Revenue and Customs about the club's tax debt and noting that he realised that Pompey fans could not switch their allegiance to rivals Southampton.

Forest owner dies

Submitted by WG on Sun, 05/02/2012 - 00:56

Nottingham Forest owner Nigel Doughty has died at the age of 54 from natural causes.  He was found in his gym at his home in Lincolnshire.


He bought the club in 1999, saving them from administration.   It is estimated that he put £100m of his personal fortune in the club.   He announced in October that he would be standing down as chairman at the end of the season.

Does moving stadium make sense?

Submitted by WG on Thu, 02/02/2012 - 10:33

A new research-based sports blog makes a careful assessment of the pros and cons of moving to a new stadium with particular reference to the cases of Southampton and Lincoln City.   Both push and pull factors may be involved.

Doncaster need new financial backing

Submitted by WG on Fri, 27/01/2012 - 09:19

Doncaster Rovers need new financial backing after two mult-millionaire directors stepped down from the board for unrelated reasons.   Dick Watson and Terry Bramall had matched the financial input of chairman John Ryan pound for pound in recent years and the onus is now on him.

West Ham cool interest in Olympic Stadium

Submitted by WG on Wed, 25/01/2012 - 13:00

West Ham are less enthusiastic than they were about a move to the Olympic Stadium and will need a number of reassurances before they submit a bid in the re-opened process.  The earlier tendering process had to be abandoned by the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) because of legal difficulties relating to EU state aid rules.

Winding up petition served on Pompey

Submitted by WG on Wed, 25/01/2012 - 08:57

The financial troubles of Portsmouth have continued with the serving of a winding up petition by Revenue and Customs.   The hearing is set for February 20th,   The petition relates to the PAYE for December which is approximately £800k (which gives some idea of the salary bill).  Since then a further £1m in VAT and PAYE has become due for payment.

Royals welcome Russian investor

Submitted by WG on Sun, 22/01/2012 - 08:56

Reading owner John Madejski received roars of approval yesterday when he took to the pitch to announce new investment in the club.     He has sold his 51 per cent stake in the club to Thames Sports Investments owned by Russian timber tycoon Anton Zingarevich.

Sicilian in for Pompey

Submitted by WG on Sun, 15/01/2012 - 11:14

Joseph Cala, a little known Sicilian businessman who also has business interests in the United States, has emerged as the front runner to take over Portsmouth.  He was introduced to the club by former owner Balram Chainrai.


Cala has said that he would invest £20m before floating the club on the New York stock exchange.  The logic of this move is unclear as the recent trend has been for clubs to go private and it is unlikely that there would be much appetite for buying shares in a Championship football club in the United States.

Chainrai puts extra funds into Portsmouth

Submitted by WG on Fri, 13/01/2012 - 08:17

The former owner of Portsmouth, Hong Kong-based businessman Balram Chainrai, has put almost £1m into Portsmouth to ensure that the players' wages are paid this month.   This brings the total he has loaned to the club to around £19m.


Convers Sports Initiative (CSI) to whom Chainrai sold the club went into administration in November.  The administrator has been in talks to sell Portsmouth over the past few weeks but if a deal cannot be reached soon is likely to try and find other buyers.   A new owner is likely to roll over rather than pay off the debts.