Football Finance Expert discusses the £175m Ibrox takeover

Ibrox fans are seriously discussing a £175m takeover bid for their club.

Lending credibility to the yarn is Dr Dan Plumley, a lecturer in Sports Finance at Sheffield Hallam University.

Having racked up losses close to £100m in the decade from 2012 the club got close to break-even point in the year to June 2022 which featured a run to the final of the Europa League and the transfer of Nathan Patterson.

This season it has been business as usual with three separate share issues since the turn of the year, this hasn’t been new finance coming in but existing shareholders being repaid in shares for writing off loans.

No outside investment has come in, should anyone feel that way inclined it is very likely that within six months their stake in the club will be diluted. In 2017 Club 1872 owned 11% of the shares, today they have just over 5% of the club shares.

Regardless of that sober assessment popular fan site Ibrox News reports:

We’re delighted to welcome football finance expert Dr Daniel Plumley as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at Rangers…

Dan Plumley has insisted that a full acquisition or the long game is possible when it comes to a potential Rangers takeover in the near future.

The Heart and Hand Podcast have shared rumours that are swirling around forums and Whatsapp regarding a potential sale of the club, something which could be difficult given the numerous shareholders.

Plumley admitted that a £175million valuation is realistic right now, with multiple ways of getting a deal done if investors were to come in and thrash out talks.

“I think it depends on the people you are dealing with,” he exclusively told Ibrox News.

“There are multiple ways a takeover could happen, you can have full acquisition outright, everybody is dealt with at that time. You could start to build up a minority investment and turn it into a majority in the future as you start to buy people out of their shareholdings along the way.

“It depends on the negotiations with that one, the valuation is often more clearer than not, and I’ve said this before, if it is £175million, that’s a decent valuation for Rangers right now, but the models aren’t bulletproof.

“Then it is down to the investor, the owner, the shareholders and the stakeholders to thrash out what that looks like, whether that is a full acquisition and everyone is dealt with or it is staggered, it would be in the negotiations because, at that point, you’re dealing with people and their motives as much as the financials of it.”

On his Sheffield Hallam University profile, Dr Dan describes himself:

My main teaching and research interests are in the finance, economics, and governance of professional team sports. My PhD focused on measuring financial and sporting performance in English professional football. I regularly present at major international sport business conferences and have a number of peer-reviewed publications in the sport business field that focus on various aspects of sport finance. I also contribute to numerous media pieces discussing the finances of football with local, national, and international media outlets including corporations such as the BBC and Sky News.