Bungling SFA President Campbell Ogilvie has re-stated his belief that EBT payment by Rangers were above board and legal.
Ogilvie picked up a £95,000 tax free EBT when he left Rangers as a director in 2005 with that form of payment commonplace among players and staff.
Despite being widely acclaimed as the greatest footballing administrator ever Ogilvie had no idea that the tax free payments may be questionable.
HMRC are continuing their appeal for over £40m of backdated income tax and national insurance with the case likely to drag on for years.
Last year Rangers were found guilty of non-disclose of player payments to the SPL with Ogilvie a club director at the time and the football administrator when the scheme was introduced.
In a cosy interview in today’s Herald the SFA President again pleads his innocence that he was in the dark about the questionable legality of the EBT scheme.
If Ogilvie had no concerns about the scheme it’s incredible that he is seen to be a senior office bearer at the SFA- or maybe not.
Pleading his innocence the former Ibrox director said: “The EBTs were set up around 2001 at Rangers and I’ve never hidden from the fact that I was then a director at the club.”
Hiding the fact that you were a company director is a near impossible task.
Ogilvie continued: “But I didn’t get involved in the financial management of the club in that context. That’s not an excuse – that’s just a fact. I ceased being Rangers’ secretary in 2002 and I ceased being involved in the football admin at Rangers in 2002.
“But, yes, I remained a director until 2005, and that’s why in recent times I got sucked into the EBTs saga, especially in my role now as SFA president. Had I not been in this role, nobody would have been concerned with me.”
Exactly.
If Ogilvie wasn’t in the highly influential position of SFA President his role in the EBT issue would be as relevant as Christian Nerlinger, Dan Egan, Douglas Odam, Jerome Bonissel, Jesper Christiansen, Jose le Hir, Olivier Bernard, Stephane Wiertelak and Tero Penttila who picked up fortunes through the scheme.
Amazingly Ogilvie never questioned the legality of the scheme; surely if it was such an effective use of money he should have encouraged the SFA to use the scheme for the overall benefit of Scottish football.
On the legality issue he added: “Maybe as a director I should have asked more questions about it – I accept that now – but when things are signed off by legal people, by accountants, I tended to accept it. I’m not saying the EBTs were illegal. But, knowing all the hassle that they caused, with hindsight, if I could go back, I wouldn’t go down that road.”
And there is the crux of the matter ‘maybe as a director I should have asked more questions’. Indeed.
As a director with a duty to shareholders the current president of the SFA, widely acknowledged as a wonderful footballing administrator, really should have asked questions.
One of those questions would surely be why the football authorities weren’t informed of the EBT’s?
With that line on his CV Ogilvie should have had no further role in Scottish football, the fact that he was re-elected unopposed as President of the SFA earlier this year tells you all that you need to know about the competence of Scottish football.
In his report into the non-disclosure of payments to the footballing authorities Lord Nimmo Smith’s report stated: “Oldco through its senior management decided that such side-letter arrangements should not be disclosed to the football authorities, and the Board of Directors sanctioned the making of payments under the side-letter arrangements without taking any legal or accountancy advice to justify the non-disclosure.”
Perhaps in his next interview Ogilvie can explain his role in that and why he should remain as an SFA office bearer.
Two months after the turmoil of leaving Ibrox and collecting his EBT Ogilvie had the good fortune to join Hearts as their Operations Director and then become managing director.
As a Hearts director he retained shares in Rangers. In 2009 Brown McMaster resigned as President of the Scottish Football League shortly after an enquiry was launched into claims that the family of the then director of Stenhousemuir held shares in Partick Thistle.
At Tynecastle Ogilvie was Managing Director as coach loads of Lithuanians were sent over. In June Hearts were placed in administration.
Looking back at the influx of foreign players is another regret for the President of the SFA.
“I was at Rangers and I was thoroughly enjoying the signing of big-name players,” he told the Herald. “Everyone did but, looking back, I question it much more.
“In general, at Scottish clubs, young players didn’t get the opportunity. Players not getting the opportunity at Rangers and elsewhere – that is definitely a factor in our game’s decline.”
CLICK HERE for the BBC’s EBT list.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing….but to not even have the decency to accept full responsibility for HIS actions / inactions is taking the P
Ogilvie should have stood down, no-one can convince me he did not influence Sandy Bryson to come up with some grey area they could use to explain away the registration debacle, a ruling which would never stand up under proper examination in ANY Football complaint.
Ogilvie clearly doesn’t feel that bad about things as he hasn’t bothered to pay back his “loan” £ 95,000 to him is just a good night out…but to the creditors it means a lot more.
He shouldn’t be given any opportunity to fall on his sword – he should booted out NOW in total disgrace for the shambles that is currently Scottish Football – Maybe then we can make a small start in moving forward.
Stupid hun like all huns devoid of any semblance of honour nor any semblance of dignity despite proclaiming to be the last bastions of both. They are the scum of the Earth and are Satan’s peepil, that’s what they must mean by their ridiculous, hypocritical chant.
Scottish football is corrupt at the top of the game and that is the reason why the game in this country is in decline. The entire administration of the game is corrupt from top to bottom. The entire administration of referees and the referees themselves are corrupt from top to bottom. Both need to be overhauled for the game to improve and progress. Too many people only interested in holding onto power, bias in the favor of the huns and their agenda, and their own self agenda is the reason for Scottish football’s decline.
I think the timing of the Heralds piece stinks to the lowest. In an effort to establish some form of moral authority for the position of president when, clearly there is none. CO has been compromised for 10 years. The SFA continue to be compromised, one of the oldest associations in the world.
CO should be removed, the the role of President abandoned until some form of credibility can be returned to the discredited SFA. AnD not some shoe of some other quislng.
CO should be removed.
All creeping out from under their slimy rocks now ,in house wars , looks like the proverbial about to hit the fan …….again ! Yaaaasss
It seems everywhere this guy has gone he has left a trail of corruption in his wake; leaves Rangers & they crumble, then on to Hearts who are soon to fall by the wayside followed by the SFA which is still corrupt to the core – even in its current guise of the SPFL.
What I would like to know is; What went on at Rangers Pre SPL? As its becoming clear that each time the SFA change the league format it is for no other reason that to bury the corruption that went on in the previous regime – especially when you consider that there hasn’t been a change in Personnel (surely the biggest problem with the game in Scotland?).
it should have had a board of all spl club chairmen ,every month differet chair person
Masonic…Establishment set-up…..Simple.
It was always thus.
Something tells be Oglivie knows something is about come out that will expose him as the snivelling little cretin that he is.
It beggars belief that this shyster is still involved in Scottish football. Him holding the position of SFA president is scandalous, it tells me all I need to know about Scottish football.
Rotten to the core.
When you are a member of a secret society that is hell bent in controlling a small country .So you lie and cheat knowing that now one will stop you What the hell is taking money from a corrupt foot ball club It is alright because we are in charge of this country And we have people in very hight places of power
PROVEN lying, cheating, thieving, corrupt, benefit cheats.
Dignty ?
Integrity?
Don’t make me laugh. These scumbags STOLE money intended for the treatment of children dying of cancer and should never be allowed to forget it.
If they want to keep their history let them, but make sure they, and everyone knows what the despicable bastards did to get it.
Scum of the most degrading disgusting vile order.
Shameful!
HH
Well said mate, couldnt have put it better myself. And believe me, ive tried. Lol
Ogilvie is the epitome of all that is wrong within Scottish football.
Playing the hindsight card is a cop out and a convenient way of portraying himself as some unsuspecting subordinate. Let me get this right here, a supposedly astute individual was a member of a board of directors sanctioning the signings of big name players on massive salaries yet at no time did he ever question where the money was coming from or what methods were being used to pay them, do me a favour!
He either knew exactly what was going on both as an Ibrox director and later as SFA president, allowed it to happen and knowingly concealed it from his current employers, therefore he is corrupt and should be removed from his position or he was completely oblivious to what was going on around him to the point of incompetency which should therefore discredit his credentials and again see him removed from his position. I know which one I would put my money on!
Whichever way you look at it he should be gone but as this is Scottish football and the See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil mantra is employed where the Ibrox club or any of their cronies are concerned he will probably be here for some time to come. God help us!
Hail Hail.