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Anonymous
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Hi All
Received 30 seconds ago............
Chris
Received 30 seconds ago............
Chris
Chris,
Thank you for your letter.
We note what you say on the matter but at present The League can only deal with applications from the preferred bidders selected by the administrator, as the administrator controls the assets of the Club. If that bid meet our requirements then we will proceed in line with our established practice. If the bid does not meets our requirements the administrator will be notified and he will then have to determine his next steps. It is at the discretion of the Administrator who to position as its next preferred purchaser.
Since receipt of your letter we have also spoken with the City Council who expressed the view that whilst they do not entirely agree with the position you attribute to them in your letter, they do recognise the need for a ‘plan B’ to be considered should the current bid fail.
At this time The Football League has met with the current proposed purchasers of the Club but has not approved any application for membership of The League going forwards. Whilst there has been a lot of discussion in the local press about the third party purchaser, we have made it absolutely clear in all discussions with the administrators that we will expect full transparency on all aspects of the exit from administration and we await further updates in that respect.
Any proposed transaction of the club will be examined closely against our requirements before being submitted to the Football League Board for its consideration. Where the proposal is that the assets of the club, including its League membership, should be transferred to a new owner (which is the standard way in which a football club emerges from administration), then the Articles again give The League absolute control over that proposed transfer of The League share to a new owner, allowing it to refuse to permit such transfer, or to permit it but only on such conditions as The League sees fit. Unless The Football League Board is satisfied that the exit arrangements provide the Club with a firmer footing going forwards it is unlikely that it will be in a position to approve any exit from administration as a continuing member of the Football League. It has refused permission in other cases, it reserves the right to do so again if the circumstances are appropriate.
We thank you for contacting The Football League on this matter, however we cannot provide a running commentary on this process and are unable to add further at this time. Updates that we do give will be made available on http://www.football-league.co.uk and you should check there for any further updates.
Regards,
Andy Williamson
Chief Operating Officer
The Football League Limited