***Official Takeover Talk Thread***

[Guest smoggeordie]

The Belgravia Group has revealed discussions are continuing with Newcastle United about a possible takeover of the Premiership club.

 

The club confirmed they had been in talks with the Jersey-based firm but as yet had not received a formal proposal.

 

"Talks are continuing with Newcastle United and we are keen to do a deal," a spokesman for Belgravia told BBC Sport.

 

Reports at the weekend suggested that Magpies chairman Freddy Shepherd wants to assume sole control of the club.

 

Shepherd already owns 28% of the club, while former chairman Sir John Hall has a 29% share and his son Douglas owns a 12% stake.

 

The Newcastle chief has been under pressure to leave his post with fans blaming him for the club's current predicament.

 

The Magpies, led by manager Glenn Roeder, lie third from bottom in the Premiership having won just two league games this season.

 

www.bbc.co.uk/football

[Cronky]

Genuine query this.

 

This organisation must feel that there is some chance of making money out of the club, and naturally we hope it's through investment in the squad and getting the club into the Champions League / Trophy-winning places where the revenue starts to take off, and you can expect more from fringe commercial activities.

 

If this isn't their real agenda, how else could they make money out of a near £100 million investment? If they start selling players, the club would sink down the leagues, turnover would collapse and they'd end up deeper in debt. Are there any other saleable assets which could possibly cover the initial amount? Seeing we don't own the land of the ground, the only land that could possibly sold would be the training ground, but again, would it be worth their while? How feasible is an 'asset-stripping' exercise?

 

I guess what I'm driving at is that, from my perspective, the only possible way of making money out of a football club our size is to make them successful on the pitch. Or to put it another way, there's no way of making money if a team is unsuccessful. Assuming that Belgravia know what they're doing, should we be worried? Given that the current Board is already making money out of the club, do we really have anything to lose?

 

I'm not well-versed in financial affairs, so I'd really welcome other perspectives on this.

[Nobody]

good news after hearing about shepherd wants to buy the club. Please let this be happening.

[Guest]

good news after hearing about shepherd wants to buy the club. Please let this be happening.

 

Maybe Shepherd's just pushing them to make their move by saying he wants to take them over himself?

[Colos Short and Curlies]

Genuine query this.

 

This organisation must feel that there is some chance of making money out of the club, and naturally we hope it's through investment in the squad and getting the club into the Champions League / Trophy-winning places where the revenue starts to take off, and you can expect more from fringe commercial activities.

 

If this isn't their real agenda, how else could they make money out of a near £100 million investment? If they start selling players, the club would sink down the leagues, turnover would collapse and they'd end up deeper in debt. Are there any other saleable assets which could possibly cover the initial amount? Seeing we don't own the land of the ground, the only land that could possibly sold would be the training ground, but again, would it be worth their while? How feasible is an 'asset-stripping' exercise?

 

I guess what I'm driving at is that, from my perspective, the only possible way of making money out of a football club our size is to make them successful on the pitch. Or to put it another way, there's no way of making money if a team is unsuccessful. Assuming that Belgravia know what they're doing, should we be worried? Given that the current Board is already making money out of the club, do we really have anything to lose?

 

I'm not well-versed in financial affairs, so I'd really welcome other perspectives on this.

 

Basically you are correct, the only way to make money is to make the playing side a success and cash in when TV rights become negotiated on a club by club basis - potentially forming a NUFC channel at £100-£200 per year on top of season tickets.

 

It is likely that ticket prices will also rise slightly, but not so much as to price out fans.

 

I can only imagine they are looking to make a modest annual income (say 5% of the investment) but cash in on increasing the value to the next buyer in 5 years or so. Or possibly longer if the actual buyer (i.e. not Belgravia who are a fron it seems) is a sports fan.

 

There is the other option that it is a group of rich-ish blokes looking for a plaything that will give them a modest income for a while.

 

Personally I don't think there is much to fear, but there is not much to suggest that we will become any richer than we are now

[Kitman]

Genuine query this.

 

This organisation must feel that there is some chance of making money out of the club, and naturally we hope it's through investment in the squad and getting the club into the Champions League / Trophy-winning places where the revenue starts to take off, and you can expect more from fringe commercial activities.

 

If this isn't their real agenda, how else could they make money out of a near £100 million investment? If they start selling players, the club would sink down the leagues, turnover would collapse and they'd end up deeper in debt. Are there any other saleable assets which could possibly cover the initial amount? Seeing we don't own the land of the ground, the only land that could possibly sold would be the training ground, but again, would it be worth their while? How feasible is an 'asset-stripping' exercise?

 

I guess what I'm driving at is that, from my perspective, the only possible way of making money out of a football club our size is to make them successful on the pitch. Or to put it another way, there's no way of making money if a team is unsuccessful. Assuming that Belgravia know what they're doing, should we be worried? Given that the current Board is already making money out of the club, do we really have anything to lose?

 

I'm not well-versed in financial affairs, so I'd really welcome other perspectives on this.

 

Possible avenues of increased profit over than those mentioned:

 

- sponsor SJP

- merchandising

- football rights & spinoffs

- restructure debts

- cost savings on directors salaries

- cost savings on players wages/transfer fees

- brand exploitation

 

The most effective & best way of increasing revenue is success on the pitch as you say.  More TV coverage & CL footy.  They'll have a plan to make money that's for sure, like the Glaziers, who knows if it's to the detriment of the club or not.  They may even have someone in mind to sell it on to for a quick buck

 

[Guest shaun11177]

They must think that if they buy the club at 70p a share they can sell it at 70p a share or more.So the initial investment is safe.

Nevertheless at the moment the club isnt making money and to get into the champions lge(the only place to make money) would require a huge investment?-20-30m.They would then have to make 20-30m to make that investment worthwhile-personally i dont think the sums add up.

Methinks this isnt going to happen.

[Colos Short and Curlies]

Genuine query this.

 

This organisation must feel that there is some chance of making money out of the club, and naturally we hope it's through investment in the squad and getting the club into the Champions League / Trophy-winning places where the revenue starts to take off, and you can expect more from fringe commercial activities.

 

If this isn't their real agenda, how else could they make money out of a near £100 million investment? If they start selling players, the club would sink down the leagues, turnover would collapse and they'd end up deeper in debt. Are there any other saleable assets which could possibly cover the initial amount? Seeing we don't own the land of the ground, the only land that could possibly sold would be the training ground, but again, would it be worth their while? How feasible is an 'asset-stripping' exercise?

 

I guess what I'm driving at is that, from my perspective, the only possible way of making money out of a football club our size is to make them successful on the pitch. Or to put it another way, there's no way of making money if a team is unsuccessful. Assuming that Belgravia know what they're doing, should we be worried? Given that the current Board is already making money out of the club, do we really have anything to lose?

 

I'm not well-versed in financial affairs, so I'd really welcome other perspectives on this.

 

Possible avenues of increased profit over than those mentioned:

 

- sponsor SJP- merchandising

- football rights & spinoffs

- restructure debts

- cost savings on directors salaries

- cost savings on players wages/transfer fees

- brand exploitation

 

The most effective & best way of increasing revenue is success on the pitch as you say.  More TV coverage & CL footy.  They'll have a plan to make money that's for sure, like the Glaziers, who knows if it's to the detriment of the club or not.  They may even have someone in mind to sell it on to for a quick buck

 

 

Potentially £5m a year for that, more if the team start being a top 6 and more again for regular champs league football.

 

If the buyers could also get some 5star hotels built in the city then you have the potential for UEFA finals and the World Cup in 2018 (assuming England get it)

 

Chicken feed in the scale of things, but its an automatic 5% return p.a on the initial investment

[Guest nufc_geordie]

Genuine query this.

 

This organisation must feel that there is some chance of making money out of the club, and naturally we hope it's through investment in the squad and getting the club into the Champions League / Trophy-winning places where the revenue starts to take off, and you can expect more from fringe commercial activities.

 

If this isn't their real agenda, how else could they make money out of a near £100 million investment? If they start selling players, the club would sink down the leagues, turnover would collapse and they'd end up deeper in debt. Are there any other saleable assets which could possibly cover the initial amount? Seeing we don't own the land of the ground, the only land that could possibly sold would be the training ground, but again, would it be worth their while? How feasible is an 'asset-stripping' exercise?

 

I guess what I'm driving at is that, from my perspective, the only possible way of making money out of a football club our size is to make them successful on the pitch. Or to put it another way, there's no way of making money if a team is unsuccessful. Assuming that Belgravia know what they're doing, should we be worried? Given that the current Board is already making money out of the club, do we really have anything to lose?

 

I'm not well-versed in financial affairs, so I'd really welcome other perspectives on this.

 

There was talk that a fast route to money making was to move the ground. If the ground is developed into lodgings, the area is prime city centre. The ground could then be moved outside of the city to a cheaper location. Initially this costs a bit but city centre apartments are going to bring in money quickly,

[Colos Short and Curlies]

Genuine query this.

 

This organisation must feel that there is some chance of making money out of the club, and naturally we hope it's through investment in the squad and getting the club into the Champions League / Trophy-winning places where the revenue starts to take off, and you can expect more from fringe commercial activities.

 

If this isn't their real agenda, how else could they make money out of a near £100 million investment? If they start selling players, the club would sink down the leagues, turnover would collapse and they'd end up deeper in debt. Are there any other saleable assets which could possibly cover the initial amount? Seeing we don't own the land of the ground, the only land that could possibly sold would be the training ground, but again, would it be worth their while? How feasible is an 'asset-stripping' exercise?

 

I guess what I'm driving at is that, from my perspective, the only possible way of making money out of a football club our size is to make them successful on the pitch. Or to put it another way, there's no way of making money if a team is unsuccessful. Assuming that Belgravia know what they're doing, should we be worried? Given that the current Board is already making money out of the club, do we really have anything to lose?

 

I'm not well-versed in financial affairs, so I'd really welcome other perspectives on this.

 

There was talk that a fast route to money making was to move the ground. If the ground is developed into lodgings, the area is prime city centre. The ground could then be moved outside of the city to a cheaper location. Initially this costs a bit but city centre apartments are going to bring in money quickly,

 

Its a possibility, and not completely debunked by the fact that the council own the land under St James.

 

My local Rugby team (Llanelli Scarlets) are looking to move grounds, they are in debt of £39m and ther new stadium is costing £20m.

The council own the land under Stradey park but the proposed deal wipes out the debt and covers the new stadium as the procedes of the land sale are strucutred to go to both parties.

 

Remember the club owns the land over the metro station as well, this too could be developed

[Kitman]

Genuine query this.

 

This organisation must feel that there is some chance of making money out of the club, and naturally we hope it's through investment in the squad and getting the club into the Champions League / Trophy-winning places where the revenue starts to take off, and you can expect more from fringe commercial activities.

 

If this isn't their real agenda, how else could they make money out of a near £100 million investment? If they start selling players, the club would sink down the leagues, turnover would collapse and they'd end up deeper in debt. Are there any other saleable assets which could possibly cover the initial amount? Seeing we don't own the land of the ground, the only land that could possibly sold would be the training ground, but again, would it be worth their while? How feasible is an 'asset-stripping' exercise?

 

I guess what I'm driving at is that, from my perspective, the only possible way of making money out of a football club our size is to make them successful on the pitch. Or to put it another way, there's no way of making money if a team is unsuccessful. Assuming that Belgravia know what they're doing, should we be worried? Given that the current Board is already making money out of the club, do we really have anything to lose?

 

I'm not well-versed in financial affairs, so I'd really welcome other perspectives on this.

 

There was talk that a fast route to money making was to move the ground. If the ground is developed into lodgings, the area is prime city centre. The ground could then be moved outside of the city to a cheaper location. Initially this costs a bit but city centre apartments are going to bring in money quickly,

 

IIRC the stumbling block is that we don't own the land at SJP, just the stadium

[Dokko]

Genuine query this.

 

This organisation must feel that there is some chance of making money out of the club, and naturally we hope it's through investment in the squad and getting the club into the Champions League / Trophy-winning places where the revenue starts to take off, and you can expect more from fringe commercial activities.

 

If this isn't their real agenda, how else could they make money out of a near £100 million investment? If they start selling players, the club would sink down the leagues, turnover would collapse and they'd end up deeper in debt. Are there any other saleable assets which could possibly cover the initial amount? Seeing we don't own the land of the ground, the only land that could possibly sold would be the training ground, but again, would it be worth their while? How feasible is an 'asset-stripping' exercise?

 

I guess what I'm driving at is that, from my perspective, the only possible way of making money out of a football club our size is to make them successful on the pitch. Or to put it another way, there's no way of making money if a team is unsuccessful. Assuming that Belgravia know what they're doing, should we be worried? Given that the current Board is already making money out of the club, do we really have anything to lose?

 

I'm not well-versed in financial affairs, so I'd really welcome other perspectives on this.

 

There was talk that a fast route to money making was to move the ground. If the ground is developed into lodgings, the area is prime city centre. The ground could then be moved outside of the city to a cheaper location. Initially this costs a bit but city centre apartments are going to bring in money quickly,

 

Its a possibility, and not completely debunked by the fact that the council own the land under St James.

 

My local Rugby team (Llanelli Scarlets) are looking to move grounds, they are in debt of £39m and ther new stadium is costing £20m.

The council own the land under Stradey park but the proposed deal wipes out the debt and covers the new stadium as the procedes of the land sale are strucutred to go to both parties.

 

Remember the club owns the land over the metro station as well, this too could be developed

 

I thought we DIDNT own the land?  blueconfused.gif

[Colos Short and Curlies]

read it again, I've acknowleged that - and added a curren texample where this hasn't prevented a club getting income from a redevelopment where the council own the land.

 

From what I gather we do own the Metro land though

[Dokko]

The current board have about 20 members of their family on the payrole, all bleeding the club dry of something like £10m a year.

 

This would be gone, so the club realistically could make 10% of its worth per year even in this shit mess.

 

So for the 1st 2/3 seasons you pump that money directly onto the field in sensible summer purchases and the after tat you start making your money.

 

 

[Parky]

As an investment vehicle, they aren't really big enough to do us much good.

[Mick]

Knocking the ground down will not happen and I don't care what is happening in Wales.  Newcastle City Council would not allow the club to move to cheaper land as the city would lose revenue which match day brings.

 

The Tyne Brewery site which is next to the ground was sold for £40 million so why would any company now buy the club for the land?

 

If any company worked like this they’d go out of business.

 

[Toon Amy]

Can anyone translate what this means

 

I think it's connected with those million shares (about 1%) that was traded last week, but I'm not sure or what the implications are. 

[OzzieMandias]

To the fact that the club don't own the land, add the fact that redevelopment would also be limited by the preservation order on Leazes Terrace, and that they'd have to pay off the loads taken out to build the stadium before they knocked it down again.

 

At the very least, any investor intending to redevelop would need guarantees from the city that they were allowed to do it -- so that possibility would be there on the table in advance of any takeover.

 

Can't see it meself.

[Guest pont-toon]

give Matthias Bolliger a call and he will be able to explain further 

 

[Mick]

give Matthias Bolliger a call and he will be able to explain further 

 

 

Ring him on 01624 676716 or e-mail at [email protected]

[Toon Amy]

So no one knows then?

 

I just wondered if it was an existing shareholder or someone new.

 

anyway, maybe this explains why Belgravia or anyone else might be interested.

 

Premier's jackpot on overseas rights

 

The premier League are on course for a staggering total broadcasting bounty of more than £2.7billion after the start of their overseas rights tender went even better than expected.

 

The Premiership negotiations have secured foreign deals so far with only four territories — the Middle East, Scandinavia, Hong Kong and Italy — out of the 90 contracts to be signed.

 

But the massive early numbers, especially in the Middle East where interest in English football is such that the money has doubled, have made the Premier League optimistic about bringing in at least £500million from the overseas market, taking the combined media rights mountain to unprecedented heights.

 

Sports marketing giants IMG were confident enough about the phenomenal global interest in the Premiership to have considered offering $1bn to sell the rights themselves. But the Premier League broadcasting team were committed to doing individual deals and IMG had some doubts about their American TV backing for this venture.

 

The super success of the Premiership selling programme will only add to the considerable pressure on the FA when they begin their TV rights tender soon.

 

It is likely that they will sell the FA Cup and England matches as separate packages for the first time in their attempts to match the Premiership's 60 per cent increase in revenue across the range of media rights.

 

from the Daily Mail (2nd article down

 

 

 

 

[Yorkie]

OK - i know absolutely nothing about takeovers and shareholders and the stock market, cos i'm only little and it's not in the curriculum and i don't watch the news. Can someone please tell me in a nutshell - what are 'Belgravia' doing/hoping to do?

[Guest FlapjackJoe]

Re Northcote...

 

Look at their webpage : http://www.northcote.co.im/

 

One postal address, one business address, one e-mail address, one phone number, one fax number and one company registration number.  And nothing else.

 

Matthias Bolliger is probably an Austrian lad doing work experience for a secretive company in the Isle of Man.

 

And they own more than 1% of the club.  Maybe it's just me, but I'd prefer to see the club in the hands of FFS and the Halls than unknown people with unknown intentions.

[tmonkey]

Isnt the TV money effectively doubling from the season after next according to the new multi-party deal?

 

That is what was reported as being the case with this new broadcasting rights package, and must be why there are so many interested parties now wanting to take over Premiership clubs.

[Dogmatix]

I could be wrong,but I given to understand that large structures could not be built above the Metro station ,due to the fact that there are bloody big tunnels down there.No where for foundations or piles.It was the old stadium manager who told me this ,but I can't remember his name now.In addition NUFC have the land on a 99 year lease -don't know if there is a get out ,but what would be the point.

If any new owner chopped out the deadwood  and improved ANY parts of the club they would be on a winner straight away.Lets face it ,could anyone do as badly as the bunch of cowboys we have got now?

And on top of everything else someone bought 1.5 million shares today and it wasn't an existing shareholder because they would have to declare to the stockexchange - it's getting interesting !!!