Larry Cafiero: Clearly the fiscal malfeasance by Rangers/The Rangers has been documented and outlined in the press – whether it is documented enough is another story – and in publications like the book, “Tangled Up in Blue” by Stephen O’Donnell, among others. However, one of the mysteries that needs solving is how Rangers/The Rangers were granted a UEFA license, possibly under the most dubious circumstances, and who misplayed this, so to speak: UEFA or the SFA?
Auldheid: Before the 2019 AGM, a forensic report from a neutral professional accountant, which will be made available on social media in due course, was asked for. It finds that Rangers failed to report the £2.8 million liability properly in their accounts (a breach of FFP in itself) and that, along with the “proof” of a “liability under discussions” rather than a payable (overdue or not) provided by RFC auditors helped mislead the SFA. However, the report goes on to blame the SFA for failing to meet the requirements of scrutiny required by UEFA FFP rules.
The SFA were either complicit or negligent but regardless of either it is behaviour that shareholders believe Celtic should be compensated for and reflected in their shareholdings which gives us the right to ask questions, no matter how uncomfortable.
Larry Cafiero: One thing that would need explaining to those outside Scotland is how a club like Rangers/The Rangers could be liquidated, and yet the SFA allows them to retain their claim to honors and trophies of the liquidated club. How is that possible?
Auldheid: Commercial expediency under a 5 Way Agreement that possibly breaches UEFA Article 12, the basis on which the Head of UEFA Club Licensing called the current applicant for a UEFA license from Ibrox a NEW club/company with emphasis on NEW! (8 June 2016 Source at https://www.res12.uk/timeline-2-part-2/ )
UEFA did not recognize the discretionary transfer of SFA Membership from RFC to Sevco/TRFC under the 5 Way Agreement as conferring continuity which is why TRC had to wait 3 years to be considered eligible by UEFA to apply for a UEFA License not having been a member of the SFA for 3 consecutive years from 2012.
UEFA Article 12 is there to protect the integrity of UEFA competitions. The 5 Way Agreement arguably has destroyed the integrity of Scottish football and should be revisited for the good of the game, as should the LNS Decision that legitimizes 10 years of paying Rangers players by unlawful means not open to member clubs and at UK tax payers expense.
Larry Cafiero: Simply put, in the most American of terms, did the SFA, the SPL – and maybe the Old Firm partners at Celtic – think that Rangers were “too big to fail”?
Auldheid: Probably, right up to the bank crash in 2008 when banks ran out of the money loaned to bad debtors. That was the game changer. No industry can afford to lose 50,000 pay-at-the-gate customers, especially when other income from TV, etc., bears no comparison to other European leagues. In an interdependent industry which is football, Rangers going bust threatened the existence of other Scottish clubs, and even if Celtic were financially secure enough to stand the loss, they were at risk from having less opponents of reasonable quality to play if the SPL collapsed.
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