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Portsmouth FC in yet more trouble - administration again?


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  • 3 months later...

These dickheads could be liquidated at 3pm tomorrow...

 

Portsmouth face oblivion if they lose tax case - lawyer  

By Dan Roan

 

Portsmouth could go out of business if they lose their court case against the tax authorities on Thursday, according to the club's lawyer.

 

Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs says it is owed £13m more than the £24m claimed by Portsmouth's administrators.

 

Richard Sheldon QC says that if HMRC wins, the club will "not be able to give the Football League the assurances it needs to fulfil its fixtures".

 

"It will go out of the league. The club will probably be liquidated," he added.

 

High Court judge Mr Justice Mann, who is overseeing the tax liability case, will hand down his decision between 1500 BST and 1600 BST on Thursday.

 

 

Portsmouth's lawyer, Sheldon, added that if the club loses the case then it would prevent former owner Balram Chainrai, who put the club into administration in February, buying it for a second time.

 

Sheldon added: "If the club is not sold it will clearly be relegated out of the Football League.

 

"The administrators cannot give the assurances needed that this season's fixtures can be completed.

 

"It will then go out of the Football League and into some distant league, but the reality is that it will probably go into liquidation because the administrators will not be able to fund the continued business."

 

Earlier on Wednesday Sheldon claimed that Premier League clubs wanted Portsmouth to go bust last season when the full extent of their financial problems emerged.

 

Sheldon told the court that it was only the intervention of Premier League chief Richard Scudamore that saved the club.

 

The other clubs wanted "to boot Pompey out there and then", Sheldon said.

 

He added: "The clubs wanted Portsmouth to go to the wall and divide all the TV money among themselves."

 

That prospect was avoided, however, when Scudamore persuaded the clubs to give Pompey an early parachute payment, allowing them to complete the season.

 

Portsmouth, who remain in administration, were docked nine points for becoming the first Premier League club to go into administration and were duly relegated at the end of the season.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/p/portsmouth/8886009.stm

 

 

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Wish the Spanish revenue service had this kind of balls to be honest. La Liga clubs reportedly owe €600m in due taxes, but they are not going after the clubs since most of the smaller and medium ones would go the way of Pompey. Examples should be set, this money is owed to all the nation and it's not like we're swimming in budget surplus ffs.

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Would be a shame for the fans, but Revenue and Customs is hell bent on bringing a bigger name then Chester down to set an example.

 

And rightly so in this case.  Not sure why the 'public purse' should suffer.

nor am I, but you do have to feel for the supporters, and wonder if their is still away that they can reach an agreement to keep the club afloat.

 

I assume with the season only 2 days away from tomorrow it would be too late to "promote" another team, unless they delayed the KO of the first game to sometime during the season and started off from the following week?

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Why should the fans suffer when it wasn't their fault? Horrible mismanagement. I agree that the blame has to be pinned on someone though, especially in the 'current climate'.

why should the taxman suffer when in cases like this the taxman is normally at the back of the que while all players and other clubs get paid in full

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Why should the fans suffer when it wasn't their fault? Horrible mismanagement. I agree that the blame has to be pinned on someone though, especially in the 'current climate'.

 

Loads of people suffer whenever this happens, football isn't a special case. All the staff at Garlands and Freedom Direct in this region who lost their jobs weren't to blame either.

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Why should the fans suffer when it wasn't their fault? Horrible mismanagement. I agree that the blame has to be pinned on someone though, especially in the 'current climate'.

why should the taxman suffer when in cases like this the taxman is normally at the back of the que while all players and other clubs get paid in full

 

I should really have said 'it's unfair that the fans are suffering when in reality it isn't at all their fault'. I totally agree with you :thup:

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Would be a shame for the fans, but Revenue and Customs is hell bent on bringing a bigger name then Chester down to set an example.

 

And rightly so in this case.  Not sure why the 'public purse' should suffer.

 

Can't see the current government being particularly sympathetic atm.

 

Got to take the rough with the smooth. :)

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Would be a shame for the fans, but Revenue and Customs is hell bent on bringing a bigger name then Chester down to set an example.

 

And rightly so in this case.  Not sure why the 'public purse' should suffer.

 

Can't see the current government being particularly sympathetic atm.

 

Got to take the rough with the smooth. :)

 

Nor should they be when protecting what they believe is potentially a £37m debt.

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Would be a shame for the fans, but Revenue and Customs is hell bent on bringing a bigger name then Chester down to set an example.

 

And rightly so in this case.  Not sure why the 'public purse' should suffer.

 

Can't see the current government being particularly sympathetic atm.

 

Got to take the rough with the smooth. :)

 

Nor should they be when protecting what they believe is potentially a £37m debt.

 

Quite agree. :nods:

 

We're not talking about buttons and if every other club has coughed up then they should be made to as well. Fair's fair, they owe it so they should pay it.

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