Green requests Regan summit as punishment row rumbles on

Thursday 31 May 2012

PROSPECTIVE Rangers owner Charles Green has written to Scottish Football Association chief executive Stewart Regan asking for a meeting about how the club should be punished.

Charles Green attended Hampden yesterday

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Michael Grant and Richard Wilson

Rangers are preparing themselves for various eventualities after the Court of Session ruled that the SFA's appellate tribunal exceeded its power by imposing a year-long transfer embargo on the club. That was welcomed as a victory by Rangers, but it may come at a heavy price if the punishment is extended.

If the tribunal, under Lord Carloway, decides to increase the punishment, one of the sanctions available to it is to suspend Rangers' SFA membership and prevent it from playing matches anywhere, perhaps for a year. The SFA tribunal is still considering its position after the legal ruling by Lord Glennie at the Court of Session, but the sanctions it can impose on Rangers are now very defined. The club can be fined £100,000, expelled from the Scottish Cup, or its SFA membership can be suspended or terminated entirely.Green is understood to believe that Rangers and his consortium of potential owners could endure a year without football, but that expulsion for a season would have a ruinous effect on other clubs in Scottish football because of the impact on broadcasting income and gate receipts.Any attempt by Green to influence Regan may be futile given that the appellate tribunal under Lord Carloway was set up to act independently of the SFA, and therefore cannot be guided by Regan. It remains to be seen if the SFA will raise a separate charge of bringing the game into disrepute against Rangers simply for challenging the governing body in an ordinary court, which contravenes FIFA statutes. FIFA, the world's governing body, has warned that it is monitoring the situation between the SFA and Rangers and will expect the governing body to act.Meanwhile Green was at Hampden yesterday as part of Rangers' delegation as the Scottish Premier League's 12 member clubs met for the third time to discuss newcos and rules on financial fair play.No fixed sanctions were set for clubs who attempt to join the league as a newco, as Rangers might if their current Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) proposal fails. Instead of imposing a ten-point penalty or cutting 75% of SPL income – both of which had been on the day's agenda – the 12 clubs will consider any newco application as and when it arrives, and will also decide if any points penalties or other sanctions should be attached.Neil Doncaster, the SPL chief executive, defended the league against suggestions that they had fudged key decisions. He highlighted a new rule which means a club which goes into administration will be docked either ten points or a third of its preceding season's points total, whichever is greater. A club which is late in paying its taxes will be subjected to a transfer embargo until that debt is paid, and being late with payments to players will also become a disciplinary issue."That unequivocally demonstrates how clear the clubs are that teams must live within their means," said Doncaster. "If they fail to do so they will be appropriately punished."They have come up with a comprehensive set of proposals that deal with different circumstances. They have dealt with it [a newco scenario]. The clubs have taken the responsibility. Should there be any application in the future, the clubs will deal with it and sanction appropriately. It is important to stress that we are not anticipating a newco at this point. The CVA proposal has now been sent out to Rangers' creditors and we have no reason to believe that it won't be accepted."The SFA are currently taking legal advice following Lord Glennie's judgment to uphold Rangers' challenge against the 12-month registration embargo. The association is seeking clarification from FIFA and their own legal advisors before deciding whether to appeal the verdict or reconvene the appellate tribunal and charge them with imposing a different punishment on Rangers.

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Green requests Regan summit as punishment row rumbles on

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