Talks between Rangers and the Scottish Premier League broke-up yesterday without agreement, leaving the Ibrox side still without Scottish Football Association membership only three days before their first game of the season, away to Brechin City in the Ramsdens Cup.
Lawyers for both parties are currently assessing the implication of any agreement they are prepared to reach, and discussions will resume again today.
Early yesterday, Charles Green said in a statement on the club website that broad agreement had been reached with the SFA and the Scottish Football League, and that discussions were ongoing with the SPL.
All four parties, along with representatives of The Rangers Football Club plc, need to sign off on the transfer of the club's SFA membership to Sevco Scotland, who now own Rangers.
Two issues were delaying the agreement. Sky are believed to want to be able to broadcast some Rangers games in the third division as part of their broadcast agreement with the SPL, and the SFL were testing the market, to see how much other broadcasters would offer.
However, there was the threat that the SPL may be unable to pay the full annual settlement to the SFL if their own broadcast deal was markedly reduced.
It is thought some form of compromise has been reached, but Rangers are also believed to be taking issue with the SPL's insistence that any sanctions that might arise from their investigation into allegations of undisclosed payments during the club's use of Employee Benefit Trusts between 2001 and 2010 should apply to Sevco Scotland, the new holding company.
The SPL's initial investigation, by the law firm Harper McLeod, found that Rangers have a case to answer, and the league now wants to appoint an independent commission to judge the evidence.
Rangers would have a right of appeal, to the SFA, but the manager Ally McCoist said last Saturday that he would not accept the stripping of league titles, which is one of 18 sanctions open to the SPL. Rangers need the SFA membership to play on Sunday, to sign the players who are currently prepared to join the club in the third division, and even to play official friendlies.
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