LEAGUE BOARD CONSIDERS CLUBS IN ADMINISTRATION
The Board of The Football League, at its meeting today, considered the current circumstances of three of its member clubs - Luton Town, Rotherham United and AFC Bournemouth.
LUTON TOWN
In the case of Luton Town, the Board considered an application from a new company, called Luton Town 2020, which has applied to join League 2 in place of the existing club, which is in administration.
Luton Town was unable to agree a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) with its creditors and as a consequence is unable to satisfy the normal conditions of The League's insolvency policy for exiting administration. The Board decided, however, that it was prepared to exercise its absolute discretion under its 'exceptional circumstances' provisions in order to accommodate the new entity.
In accordance with recent precedent, the Board decided to include the following principle conditions of entry as a pre-requisite to the exercise of that discretion: -
The new company (Luton Town 2020) should pay the unsecured creditors the amount offered at the time of the CVA hearing (16 pence in the pound).
A 20 point deduction should apply in the 2008/09 season, which also takes into account the fact that this is the club's third insolvency event in the last ten years.
ROTHERHAM UNITED
Preliminary information was received from a new company that wishes to take Rotherham United's place in League 2.
The new company has not yet submitted a complete application to The League, although it has indicated that it would wish to play the club's matches at the Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield.
To assist the new company in completing its application, the Board decided to remind it that a club is ordinarily required to play its matches in its existing town. Clubs can be permitted to play in other locations on a temporary basis while a new ground is being built or developed.
In Rotherham United's case, if the new company were to confirm an application to play elsewhere on a temporary basis then before giving permission the Board would require it to agree to return to Rotherham within a period of four years and also to lodge an irrevocable bond of £750,000.
The new company is also reminded that all football creditors must be paid in full. In Rotherham's case, the Board was told that this includes an outstanding debt to the Football Stadia Improvement Fund.
The new company would also be required to determine its proposed course of action before the start of the coming season. In the event that the Board receives a complete application from the new company it reserves the right to impose further conditions.
AFC BOURNEMOUTH
The Board decided to defer discussion of issues surrounding the administration of AFC Bournemouth until all the necessary paperwork had been submitted.
COMMENT
Football League Chairman, Lord Mawhinney, said: "The Board's primary responsibility is to protect the integrity of its competitions. This often means making difficult decisions which require balancing the interests of fans, the club's creditors and the other teams in The League. We will continue to take that responsibility very seriously."