SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS OF BILL KENWRIGHT MEETING
The Blue Union approached their recent meeting with the Everton chairman with an open mind, a list of questions and hope in their hearts; we left with an even greater sense of trepidation, disillusionment and bewilderment over what we had discovered.
Bill Kenwright loves Everton; a third of our meeting was taken up by the type of discussions you would hear at any game or in any pub, Bill would be everybody’s first choice as an Everton ambassador, a great raconteur he lives and breathes the club, his love of all things Everton is both unquestionable and unwavering; so what’s the problem?
A great ambassador, a great fan, doesn’t necessarily make a great chairman. Following our meeting the consensus we formed is that the problem isn’t just Bill Kenwright; it’s the whole board and their approach to running the club. Bill’s diary is indeed full with day after day of Everton related appointments but what exactly are the other members of the board doing? Bill’s efforts are commendable but effort does not necessarily equate to productivity. We’re all still wondering how the club benefits from Robert Earl and Jon Woods being on the board, are they working as hard as the chairman or are they just along for the ride?
Fans concerned that the financial situation is far worse than is being publicly admitted will derive little pleasure from Bill Kenwright’s admission that this is in fact the case. Having to hand over to the banks the proceeds of all the assets disposed of since the last accounting period, in addition to having to supply a document which prevents them from stopping the club from trading doesn’t sound like too many of our peers are envious of our position and would like to be an Everton.
The club hierarchy clearly holds the firmly fixed opinion that fans are incapable of understanding the business or the accounts. Isn’t it therefore amazing that the same fans accurately predicted the problems that were the downfall of Destination Kirkby and the current financial crisis?
Many Evertonians readily understand balance sheets and a profit & loss statements, it’s contemptuous to believe otherwise; many are only too aware that Everton’s negative balance sheet continues to deteriorate and will show -£35m in the next accounts. Fans readily understand that EBITDA has also steadily decreased in recent years and will be less than £500k in the next accounts. What fans don’t understand is why the current board and the hierarchy can’t admit to a complete failure to address the problems that besmirch our club and put in place a strategic plan for change. With a modest £3m increase in turnover predicted, the austerity measures applied to the squad last year, few additions to speak of, departures and mass loan outs have failed to once again to address the rising wage costs which have now escalated to 71%. Is it surprising that fans don’t understand the £24m operating costs when the chairman can’t give an explanation?
We wish to be pragmatic; we know we can’t change the disasters from the past that have come to haunt us, we’re even aware we can’t even change the present, no matter how hard they try you simply can’t get a quart from a pint pot, the ground and everything else is conspiring against us now and the situation is desperate.
What we can attempt to influence is the future; we need a change, not for the sake of change but a change that will bring about a real upturn in the club’s fortunes both on and off the field of play. Despite assurances from the chairman that he’s not worried for the future many Evertonians are worried; they’re worried that the board will sell to the wrong buyer; their track record on delivering what is best for the long-term prosperity of the club speaks for itself.
One immediate change must be to address the policy for selling the club. The reliance on individuals such as Keith Harris, of whom Simon Jordan once said, “delivers the square root of nothing” must be questionable to say the least.
The fact that he introduced a prospective buyer to the chairman who claimed to be the head of ICI should have been sufficient grounds to ensure his future exclusion from the clubs sale process, yet it appears that he is still welcome. Whilst the chairman’s actions over identifying the true circumstances behind this potential takeover were commendable, we find it remarkable that they managed to agree a price, proceed to due diligence and be on the verge of signing an agreement to sell the club. We’re not claiming to be experts, we’re just ordinary football fans, but with all the alleged experts involved wouldn’t at least one person have known from the onset that ICI ceased to be a business in 2008?
Despite what is said, effective communication within Everton and to its supporters is at an all time low. The chairman is explaining he doesn’t claim the interest payable on an £11m loan yet the CEO has said not one of the directors has invested a single penny; the director of communication, the CEO and the chairman give three different reasons why Everton Place is on hold, who are we meant to believe?
For any Evertonian reading the report on the recent meeting any support for the current regime and their policies must now be as rare as an Everton signing in a transfer window.
Our proposal is simple; we’re proposing change in the belief that new and more effective policies are introduced beginning with the club’s sale process. Failure this time is not an option. What we feel is needed is that a clear and visible commitment should be made to appoint an autonomous and dedicated group of professionals with a proven track record in business that can handle the sale of the club to a person or organisation with the best interests of the club and its future.
We hope the chairman accepts the situation is unacceptable, that change must take place and begins to honestly communicate with the fans through the media.
The People's Group 
excellent summary.
kenwright is more out of touch than i ever thought possible.
Great insight, great reading. I have a lot of sympathy for Jack the Jugglers comments, although I think the board have scored some classic own goals. I think ground share is the only wriggle room we have.
How can the chairman of a multi million pound company not know what is going on at it, his responses are either carefully presented bumblings or the response of someone who has been out of their depth for the duration of their tenure. He claims to not even know what his Director of Communications and his CEO have responded to people about questions they have been asked about his company, thats abysmal
I agree with many of your sentiments but this is in no way a summary of a meeting
Lets be honest we are shite from top to bottom.We laughed at the redshite with the two yanks and revelled in their demise, they were still ahead of us then, but theyre laughing at us now. I wish we could spend 10 mill never mind 100 mill on players, we were catching them with the yanks now they are so far ahead of us it will take us years to just even get level with them and they are shite, just shows what we are.
Come on you blueboys. Get out Bill youre just a lovey !!!!
Your work has been truly brilliant, I can’t imagine how nerve wracking this has been you got much more than I thought possible both directly and indirectly.
All the suspicions are confirmed – he really is inept.
Again, well done lads – all thinking evertonians owe you a huge debt of gratitude.
Your even more financially screwed that us at the villa! Good luck for the season ahead…
Thanks gh, same to villa, a proper football club!!
As a Charlton fan, I sympathise. We never quite found out where a huge chunk of our money went as we slid down the league. I wish you all the best and hope it works out – you’ve got a set of fans who deserve much much better.
Thanks GHViIla for support and to the lads for time and efforts.
To BK, please go, now.
To all Evertonians at Goodison on Saturday. There should only be one chant between 15:45 to 16:00 “KENWRIGHT OUT”. Otherwise, COYB!!!
Well done on what you’ve found and producing it so clearly. Most insightful. Thoroughly demoralising, yet sadly not surprising.
As Haircut 100 so succinctly said: “where do we go from here? is it back to the lake I fear?”
Oh, hang on.
hey guys, Reds fan in peace. just hang in there guys. sanity will eventually prevail.
YNWA
I want Kenwright out as much as the next bloke but only in the interests of our (and his) beloved football club. I don’t want to see him skulking off with tail between his legs, that would be simply undeserving – his crime ? not enough money of his own and possibly having a beast that he is unable to control.
I am a little less enamoured by the efforts of the other directors though and would love to see them coming from behind the smoked glass windows and front up.
Keep up the good work folks.
Sad situation really, but where do we go from here ?
only one way gaz! and it aint up!!
Mmmm read this three times, cannot find any meeting summary? This is predictable in its content and reflects preconceptions of the author’s. There is nothing new, nothing tangible and it bumbles along in the style you have assigned to BK.
Great report, it looks like Bill has really lost the plot, or making a lot of money out of the club.
I agree a complete new board now !!!!
I’m scared. Really scared.
I’ve said it beforeon BLUEKIPPER and I’ll say it again I’m really worried about the future of EVERTON FC particularly the next three years if we don’t find a buyer soon I fear,dare I say it ” we could go into administration” I don’t pretend to know what goes on at boardroom level but it seems that as a ONCE GREAT CLUB we are in a DOWNWARD SPIRAL unless some investment is forthcoming in the near future. ” A very concerned Fan”. Eddie. Northwich.
I have read with interest & sadness at the apparent ineptness of the people in charge of our wonderful club and have often wondered about the business acumen of Bill Kenwright where the running of a Football Club of our stature is concerned.He is clearly not the man for the job and evidently never has been
The pride we Evertonians feel at the mere mention of our club is what really hurts when we realise our demise in the current game.
Look at Man City and their somewhat parallel fortunes (at times) with us over the years under the shadow of the success of their neighbours.They havent got a sniff of the success of our history but look at where they are now and I wonder how we have been left so far behind
On the pitch,I believe David Moyes has done wonders with his meagre funds – Oh I often wonder what he could have achieved given the backing he deserves – even though I reckon we will still give Man City a good game(s) this season
We need someone at the helm who can ‘do the business’..ie understands the finance,negotiate with suitable suitors,plan for the future etc etc – and sadly ,I believe that until that happens we are on a slippery slope over the coming seasons
Is there no one out there who considers Everton a wonderful investment ? Im sure there is !
COYB
My summary of the meeting would be:
1) Everton is in the premier league and has a massive wage bill and infrastruture that sucks up cash.
2) Transfer fees are only a small part of the cost of a new player, wage demands and agents fees dwarf the transfer fees.
3) KPMG sign off the accounts every year, if any money were “missing” they would report it as fraud
4) Bill doesn’t want to sell the club to someone who is scraping together the purchase price, he wants to hand it over to someone who can pump in £300m for the playing staff, with another £300m for a new ground.
5) the world wide recession wiped billions off world markets, and those who still have money have alot less than they used to and those who still have the cash are being very choosey about how they spend it, and a football club is a massive drain on anyone’s resources. There are very few that generate a profit every year.
6) Anyone showing an interest in Everton FC would sign a non disclosure agreement and EFC would have to honour that and ensure their anonymity.
7) Bill is the chairman of the club, not its CEO – the two roles are separate for a reason, he doesn’t get involved in the minutae of the accounts.
8) Most boards have a spokes person and that spokes person is usually the chairman. That is why you do not heard much from the other board members.
9) we haven’t got the money at the moment to buy new players, buy finch farm, buy a new stadium. Its not a conspiracy, its a fact of life for most clubs in the premiership.
Football is now a business, if a business told all its customers that they were going cap in hand to the bank every week then its creditors would start shutting down lines of credit. So communication of every problem the club has and every potential solution is not going to happen. The club is vague about its issues for a reason.
We have a certain level of income, it is lower than most of the other big clubs, it is not something you can increase without significant investment, but all our spare cash is spent on the playing staff and the existing facilities.
Within these financial constraints we have consistantly punched above our weight for several seasons in a row.
The club is trying to do something about it; finch farm being the main solution. If we cannot afford to buy £20m players every other year, and meet their wage expectations, and pay their agents fees, then maybe we can produce some home grown talent for a fraction of the cost?
Yes it would be nice if we could all be involved in every decision the club made, if we could solve the club’s problems just by changing the chairman or the manager, but our main problem is a lack of cash for investment in playing staff and the ground.
This will not change over night not will it change by changing the board, finch farm is part of the solution, but the only real way forward is to increase our ground capacity and invest significantly more in our playing staff.
A new buyer will need not tens of Millions, but Hundreds of Millions for the ground and the playing staff, and that’s not including the money needed to buy the club itself.
Not pretty reading, but realistic rather than expecting the board to magic investment out of a hat.
“..produce some home grown talent…” and sell them at a knock-down price to the highest bidder to keep this inept, incompetent, 1930s-style Board in power
Total bollocks
excellent thoughtful read Mr. Juggler. Unlike most on here I am actually looking forward to the new season.
Thank You Juggler – At last a meeting summary and someone talking sense from a business point of view. I agree with the points you lay out. I shall be at Goodison on Saturday lending my support to the team I love singing full voice COYB.
On a legal standpoint, the author(s) of the transcript is on dangerous ground publishing what was agreed to be confidential conversation at the outset of the meeting. Everton Football Club has every right to proceed with action against you, especially if it is damaging to their business. I guess your thought process was that he (BK) wouldn’t dare sue some Everton fans expressing their views – different when it comes to the club perhaps.
Well I’m not impressed. I’ve made some comments as I’ve read through the first link.
1. Derek Hatton has not got a good reputation and I’m surprised he’s named as an ally. That’s not good and I don’t think and reputable company would want to buy Everton if Derek Hatton was in the picture.
2. Why don’t they involve someone reputable like BBC pundit John Parrot instead.
3. Paras 13, 14 – Man City were also sold. Also, taking over a debt is part of a sale. Liverpool owners bought the club which includes taking over any debt. Not sure why Kenwright is saying this. It’s a stupid thing to say.
4. He keeps saying he doesn’t know why the club isn’t sellable and yet he says he’s the best person to sell it. This is a huge contradiction and a stupid thing to say. A man at the head of a business knows why his business won’t sell better than anybody. It’s common sense.
5. He’s saying he won’t give exclusivity. But that’s exactly what he’s doing by doing everything himself, which I think is very little. He’s hanging on to his shares until they increase in my opinion. Also he can get his mortgage money back immediately he resigns his directorship. He may have mortgaged his house but did he lend the club any of the money? Where did it go? If he did then when he sells or resigns Everton will have to repay the loan to him, probably with interest.
6. ‘Theres a guy in Italy and Abu Dhabi’. It says nothing. Who do they represent and who are they? What’s the value being put on the club. Is it too high?
7. By saying there’s no money out there is utter rubbish.
8. He then evades the shares question.
9. EBITDA is an accounting model I don’t think a football club should be using. It’s more aligned to telco’s who have to invest millions in hardware for networks for example which take years to complete before they can use the network and get a return on their investment. Footballs not like that, it’s much more short term. I think Kenwright is trying to baffle them with science and he’s unclear of the mechanics himself.
10. When he says I’m not going to get angry means he is getting angry. When people get angry it’s often because they feel guilty and go on the defensive.
11. Re the cash flow statement I think it’s nonsense. He needs to re finance the club with another bank. There are loads of banks out there who would help. If the current bank won’t help then move. The whole statement is full of contradictions. Why would sky money be anything else but a positive. I don’t see what that’s got to do with borrowing.
12. I think Bills going a bit mad. He’s obviously feeling threatened and making very awkward remarks and statements. He’s meeting someone at 8 tonight ……….. his doctor …. And so on. He’s gone mad!
13. Next it’s a disgraceful answer to say he doesn’t know what Other Operating Costs are … it’s just a heading .. that’s incompetence. A chairman should know what every entry is in the clubs accounts particularly when its £20m!
14. He’s very defensive and they’re right he should know what this money is. He is now becoming threatening. Not good.
15. I’d have asked who audits the accounts. Who are the accountants and who are auditing the entries to ensure they stack up? If the money is going to the board under operating costs that’s all legal so possibly that’s where it’s gone. But of course he won’t say.
16. I do accounts with my accountant with my company and it’s not rocket science. The only government obligations are that accounts should be presented to Companies House (completed by a qualifed accountant) once a year, 3 months after the end of year closes. As director, I am obliged to know what all the figures are. It’s also a legal requirement that all entries are supported by adequate records which must be kept for 6 years I think it is. To say he doesn’t know is bordering on illegality (if he said that to a government inspector).
17. You don’t need to be a shareholder to get hold of any company’s accounts so not sure why he is saying that. It costs a pound to get them from the government centre based in Cardiff. You can also do due diligence on Dunn and Bradstreet. Don’t have to be a shareholder and it’s too expensive anyway. Everton shares are about £1,500 each (nominal shares).
He is an actor and this interview is pure theatre, that’s all.
well done Juggler- thats more like it for the ‘business’ to run you work on facts, not emotions.
Astounding that Everton is being ruined by this board and that the Chairman is still in place. The club needs change right now.
Agree pretty much with what the SackTheJuggler says. It’s petty clear that while Bill may spend a considerable amount of his time working on behalf of Everton Football Club, that the day to day running of the club and it’s finance and accounting are not his responsibility.
One thing that struck me though was his assertion that LFC wasn’t ‘sold’ but that the new owners simply took over the debt. If he’s looking to ‘sell’ EFC whilst articulating such a dire financial situation – no wonder there isn’t a buyer out there!
For once I agree with Gavram! It is incredible that BK is prepared to admit he does not understand the Club`s accounts.On this matter I just do not believe him as ten minutes instruction from the CEO would give him the basic knowledge he claims to be lacking.How on earth can he head a multi-million entertainment business without some understanding of basic accounting? It was probably just easier to make a claim of ignorance than try to explain where this money is swallowed up.
Colin Huntington`s assertion that this document is in no way a summary of a meeting is also spot on,but whatever was said,merely `sacking` Blue Bill without establishing a proper line of succession will achieve nothing but chaos and the man will continue to have my tacit support until a better option emerges.
This analysis from April 2010 is well worth a read:
http://swissramble.blogspot.com/search/label/Everton
And here’s one executive’s (perhaps unapalatable but necessary) strategy to get out of this mess:
http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/everton-fc/everton-fc-news/2011/02/10/sean-mcguire-lack-of-strategy-has-left-everton-fc-facing-bleak-future-92534-28145325/
Hear hear, Richard Dodd.
Attempts by fans groups to ridicule Bill and have protests at the ground aimed at ousting him will have a negative effect on the club. It will certainly alienate the manager and players who appear to have a good relationship and respect for Bill.
What we need is a plan and until we get one nothing positive is going to happen. Strategically we appear fucked. If there actually is a plan it is not visible and as such we fans feel alienated. The Club need to act quickly as well, otherwise any bad news will result in an uprising. To this point the fans have been respectfully silent but call me a detective if you like but a slow start, the loss of a key player and/or no positive additions to the squad by September and the swell of anger will spill over.
I really respect the work of all these independent fan groups and the united front of the Blue Union but in essence they offer little in terms of exit strategy for the Chairman. They also have not made any strategic proposals of their own as obvious ways to move the Club forward. Yes I understand that they are here to challenge the existing regime and help bridge the void that has grown in recent years between the Club and our Fans (and thank God for their initiatives) but in essence what difference does it make.
I’m not a City type and know little about IPOs but has anybody drawn up plans to create wealth by increasing Public share holdings within the Club, look at how Man Utd intend to create cash to draw down against borrowing on the Singapore markets, Yes, I know we’re not such a pull but we nevertheless still have fans worldwide ready to put the their cash into the Club.
I guess the Union now must be considering their next action, having drawn a blank here, and if that is their intention I explore them to stop micro managing the Club’s activities and draw up a macro view of the proceedings necessary over the short and medium term. That way we can present logical alternatives that could offer new thinking or a clearer strategic motion that stands up the scrutiny and cross examination. Plans that, if it were me, would include somehow speaking directly with David Moyes. (I spoke with him at a change meeting at Gleneagles and he came across as having canny business acumen as well as football intellect).
Thanks for your considerable efforts to date, without which we would still be facing a blank screen, even if it means identifying we actually do have Cancer as a Club.
jayiomSack the Juggler absolutely spot-on with every point.
What seems to be clear is that if we got relegated then we would be highly likely to go into administration.
David Moyes remains the best proven premiership manager that we could hope to have, given our finances, and therefore our best bet to remain in the Premier league.
I personally believe that changing the chairman to a more ‘knee’jerk’ chairman may result in the loss of our best option as a manager and therefore increase the potential of relegation. Better the devil you know.
My only suspicions of the club focus on the operating costs that are disclosed but not explained in the accounts. This is the club’s right, but equally they have to expect fans to ask the question.
As it is, whilst staying in the Premier league can be our only realistic aim, it leaves us with the reality of biding our time in hope, not belief, that things will improve somehow. Nobody has the answers and a new chairman and/or manager will have the same problem.
To end on a slight positive, we have to be thankful for the stream of top quality youngsters and the odd brilliant purchase that Moyes has made. Anyone care to imagine where we’d be without the Rooney or Lescott money? And if things get worse at least we still have other players that other teams want. Sell-to-buy. Even Rednapp at big-spending Spuds is saying the same thing in today’s paper – “sell Modric and buy 3 or 4 top players…”
Well said jayiomSack the Juggler, sum up perfectly what I’ve been thinking about Everton FC. Yes I am frustrated about the status quo of our beloved club, but we only have to look around us to see we are in a global crisis.
To run a football club in todays world basically means throwing cash into a fire, the returns are very low. Can you really see the Arabs selling Man City as a profit (Man Utd, or Chelsea for than matter) they have even side stepped Platini and his fair play ideas by selling the naming rights of the ground for a cool £400m. The football we grew up with (I’m 39) is all but gone, it’s all Disneyland and pulling money out of magic boxes. As for those lot across the park, they are going down the Leeds Utd road of Champions league or bust for next season, as whoever put the their spending money up front will be wanting something back in return and I still don’t think they have heard the last from the Hicks and Gillette boys myself.
Again I am by no means happy with whats going on at out once great club, and it’s by no means the right approach but something has to eventually give with those clubs running up an even bigger debt than ourselves. I admire the way Blue Union got to the meeting with Kenwright something I believe is just incredible, sadly for Kenwright it does and could not have painted a good picture for himself or the club, well only if he’d come out and said “Oh by the way boys, meet Sheikh Hamdan with a cool half a billion burning a hole in his arse pocket” and that just ain’t going to happen now is it!!!!. So we’ll just have to hang on to those shoe string and hope that the old fashion way of bringing the youth through and that they step up to the mark will do it’s job. Yes that maybe counted as standing still (going back wards???) but football is a funny old game.
Richard…oh my God; no wonder the buffoon’s still in power with supporters like you
spot on shanks! clowns like dodd make my fucking blood boil!
Sadly it does seem that either BK is completely out of touch or that he is not revealing all, I lean to the latter. Either way, in any sort of business with Evertons problems there would be cost cutting and staff changes.The board appears to be relying on a white knight rather than getting off it`s comfortable backside and actively addressing it`s problems.
Kenwright flippantly said ‘“You wouldn’t want to buy Blackburn Rovers’, but clearly some investor chose to buy Blackburn rather than Everton – why? Why are clubs being bought left, right & centre but not EFC? Bill says he has no idea, but clearly something is scaring them off, what is it? It has to be the price or the terms of the sale. Bill is either asking too much or won’t relinquish full control.
I can’t believe the asking price and terms of sale weren’t asked in this meeting! ‘How much are you asking for the club?’ seems to me to be the most obvious question in the world!
Doddy, I’ve got a selection of ‘better’ options for you – Fred ‘The Shred’ of RBS, Bernie Madoff, That bloke who ran Enron, Hicks and Gillett, a turnip, etc.
Shall I go on with my list of ‘better’ candidates?
B
Totally pissed off with all the negativity that this bunch of so called Evertonians is branding about, who themselves sound like they couldn,t run a piss up in a brewery never mind a multimillion pound buisness.Time and energy would be much better being positve and getting behind the team
from what I can see there is only one top person at the club doing his job and that’s moyes, kenwright is relying every season on moyes to work miracles and the more he does the less he has to work with, this cant go on, lets get some savvy business men into the club to help run it. and another thing the banks wont lend because were already in too much debt and have too many loans and its not due to the current financial climate bill just tell the truth and don’t try to blame the current recession which admittedly is a factor but then how many other clubs in the premiership have come out and said the banks wont lend to them???
It is hard not to agree with all the comments above, however quite a lot of them show a level of naivety. Everton need a level of investment, into all aspects of the running of the club, from the players to the ground to our commercial income, that wasn’t likely pre-recession and is certainly less likely now. Bill Kenwright is the Chairman of the business, which in terms of the club’s governance is a crucial but largely ceremonial role, in that he will Chair, and be a front man for the Board.
What we need is to hear from the Board itself, especially the Chief Executive, on exactly what they have done, are doing and are going to do, to improve the fortunes of our Club in the next week, month, year and 5 years. Even this though will only have limited success as modern football clubs, as the new UEFA Financial rules are testament to, can’t live within their means if you include only revenue that’s generated through the day to day operational running of the business (match day revenues, sponsorship, TV money etc). The sad fact is Everton need a buyer willing to invest silly amounts of money in a club which has loads of potential, but is (let’s face it) outside of Liverpool seen as the poor relation to the wankers across the park.
I wish all this wasn’t so and understand completely the anger and frustration borne out the current plight, where our greatest asset is the manager and the togetherness of a good squad of players. All businesses need to develop and grow and we are being left behind by other more cash rich clubs.
The start of a new season normally bring hope and optimism and a sense of what might be – I just feel apprehensive and depressed. I really hope I’m wrong.
COYB
Fred Lawles- one problem is we are in Liverpool, but we ain’t Liverpool (Global PR Machine) FC. City got the state of the art Commenwealth stadium, if still at Main Rd they wouldn’t be who they are now. We have got a stadium that has wooden saets in 2011 and is aantiquated dilapidated mess. No stadium inmprovements have been made during the Kenwrights years. All we have to show for it is bye bye Kings Dock oh and of course a hole in the bloody wall! This supposed fan has started the rot to this once great football club. Now can people see why Rooney & Lescott wanted to leave?
Not great like but what did you expect?? Our operating costs have been rising at a ridiculous rate due to having to offer bigger contracts to players just to keep them. What you really need to ask is would you rather sell players and get in ones on less wages reducing the operating costs?? or would you rather us keep the better players and settle for not having money to spend. it is a business and is being run just about within its limitations the problem being that football is different to the real world because you can have a business like Man City run with yearly losses into hundreds of millions just because someone can underwrite it, does that make it right?? I’m sick of people being money jealous, it really isnt everything and we’ve stretched our club to its financial limit trying and mostly succeeding in keeping up with them until now (we think as we havent played a game yet!) Bill is in a lose lose situation. If we sell players to raise funds people moan about not having ambition, if we dont sign players to try and save money while things are tight then people still moan about no ambition. I’m sick of hearing …..oh sunderland are signing players, so are bolton, so are west brom, so are fulham etc etc etc, well them clubs have got shit players and we finish above them every year. shit players = low wages = low running costs = money spare to spend. They will all reach their limits just as we have at the moment unless some arab or yank bails them out or they realise where they are heading and slow down. We have a good squad of international players, we finish in the top 7 every year virtually, we have been built by a great manager with the full support of his board, we have some great young players coming through, we should appreciate what we have got. Unfortunately we have reached our financial limits at the moment and that may or may not hold us back? We’ll have to wait and see this season. One thing I know though is that i’ll be there every game once again and as the times get harder and the opposition gets richer and richer, my support and more importantly my pride in supporting this great club just gets stronger and stronger, because i take pride in the way we do it on and off the pitch, we’re not financial CHEATS like City and Chelsea we have to operate with the constraints of a normal business and yet we still go out and do it. 7 wins out of 8 against city since they got rich and i loved every one of them, Chelsea struggle against us all the time. We CAN compete, we CAN ride out this worldwide financial nightmare and then hopefully find new investors when things settle down. Until then let us just enjoy the football and stop protesting and complaining, all it does is create tension at the matches and that will end up affecting performances. Sorry i’ve gone on but i really think we need to put things in perspective. We are ok but have nothing spare for permanent signings. I just wanna go the game on saturday now and get the three points. Start of a new season, let us all unite behind the team, they are why we will be there on saturday.
Surely the asking price should be zero so long as you pay off the debts and give david moyes say £50m
Everton achieve above average gates,attain above average league position,maintain average salary outgoings,they are a carefully managed club with an exceptional team manager.Why are they in such a demise?Two possible explanations: is the problem intrinsic to the club,ie.something untoward going on,or is there a fundamental problem with the structure and model of the Premier league, for a club of Everton’s stature to be struggling? The Man city’s of the world are not the problem in the PL.which require questioning ,rather it is not why a solid institution like Everton who have reaped all the financial benefits of 20 yrs of Pl status plus £50 million from transfers to Manchester ,are unable to compete or even survive if the tone of this web-site is to be sensed. Sky blue ,merseyside .
A lot posters seem to have the mentality of Liverpool supporters, just hoping some money bags will come along and spend £600 million on our club as if by magic. Bill and the board have done everything in their power to give Moyes the backing he has asked for to pay the players top dollar and to buy players. Every avenue to create capital has been used to create cash to spend on the playing squad. The results speak for themselves our finishing position in the league is the envy of two thirds of the premier league, remember the matches against Man City, they have spent billions yet we hold are own against these clubs.
People ask why no one has come in to buy Everton the answers simple we have an old Stadium that needs replacing all the other assets have been sold to give Moyes money. Even Finch Farm has been sold, Liverpool council have hampered Everton every time we come up with a new scheme. Mainly because they have decided to back Liverpool FC as they have the name of the city and are much better know in the world, this is why foreign investors have not bought Everton. Moyes and Kenwright have done a marvellous job and should be congratulated not castigated.
I agree with a lot of the comments above – this is in no way a summary of a meeting.
Couple of other points: a) Most fans of football will not understand what EBITA is (this is not a slur at football fans purely it is a financial term and if you are not in finance why would you know), and those that do will recognise it is not always an accurate reflection on football club finanical health. Amortisation regarding players is as good as impossible as they are only worth what someone will pay, at the point of sale. b) You say a lot of Evertonians are concerned that Bill will sell to the wrong person. Your agenda driving the message “sell Bill you are a joke” etc will merely instigate the opposite effect of encouraging a rash sale.
I will get off my soap box now…….
The Blue Union have seriously damaged the future of this club. Well done lads. Idiots
I’ve just found out that you guys recorded your meeting without telling Kenwright. I can’t believe your stupidity! Do you really expect him to meet you again after doing that? You very cleverly opened the communication channel with the Chairman then very stupidly instantly closed it.
What you did was stupid and naive, not to mention illegal. Please don’t go around saying you represent EFC supporters, you don’t represent me!
You’ve achieved nothing here except make yourselves look stupid.
Agreed. Disgracefull
‘Im gonna bell Kenwright, ive got his number. Bet he wont meet us.
Ring ring
BK: Hello
KEIOC: Hello Bill, its Simon from KEIOC and I speak on behalf of ALL Everton fans and we want some answers.
BK: Sound. Meet me at ______ and ill speak to you.
KEIOC: Kinell lads, he said ye. Were meeting him on____ at ____
(On way down on the train)
KEIOC: Right, does everyone have their questions? Pienaar / Vaughan / Kitbag monies? Check. Finch Farm being leased, Robert Earl and Philip Green’s involvement? Check. DK and Kings Dock? Check. Right, we’re good to go.
BK: Hello fellas, how can I help?
KEIOC: Where’s the money for x, y and z? Why have Blackburn been taken over? Why wont you get someone to sell the club like Keith Harris did Newcastle? Etc etc
BK: Money goes to the bank cos we’re broke. Would you want Venky’s? Because theyll end up selling to someone like Ashley, Venky’s, H&G, Gaydamek, etc etc. Anything else?
KEIOC: Erm, why hasn’t Philip Green gave us all his Topshop money? He’s meant to be your mate isn’t he? EH? Explain that?!?!?
BK: He doesn’t want to. He doesn’t have to. He owes EFC nothing. Why hasn’t your mate next to you bought you a car? Cos he doesn’t want to.
KEIOC: What about this football quarter then? You know, where EFC and Liverpool build brand new stadia right on top of that fantastic infrastructure around Walton and we can have shops and restaurants and everything? I live in and around that area but thats not why im saying do it, I just think, if you’re club’s name is Everton, it should be in…Walton?
BK: Hmm, no hidden agenda there I see. But, seeing as you speak for ALL of our fans, ill humour you. So who’s going to pay for it?
KEIOC: Oh, I don’t know all that Bill, thats your job? You were planning on doing that in Kirkby!!!
BK: First of all, DK was mostly paid for by Tesco, FREE land given by Knowsley Council and by selling naming rights, Executive boxes, ticket sales, (which would have produced the £78m asked of by EFC). All of that was explained and it was not the ground that was turned down by the government, it was the retail size, which is probably something which you would encounter in such a built up area like Walton for this football quarter. ‘Go on, ask me more’.
KEIOC: Kings Dock?
BK: What about Kings Dock?
KEIOC: Well, what happened with that? That woulda been boss.
BK: Perhaps, but so would buying Messi but do you have £250m cos we don’t. We were clearly lied to by Liverpool Council who pulled out last minute.
KEIOC: Na, know what Bill. Er, umm, you’re spending our money on your trainset!
BK: What does that even mean?
KEIOC: Shut up Bill, you took ages to meet us and…just cos you’re a fan doesn’t mean you can…erm, I hate you!!!
P.S. Im well aware toffeeweb is set up and run by KEIOC. And before you bore me with your ‘he’s a red doing some trolling’ or that im a club plant, I would like to state that I speak on behalf of a lot more EFC fans than those that sit in the corner of the Winslow and bitch all day about us not keeping a clean sheet after we’ve won 7-1.
Carl you are talking shite – Toffeeweb has been going for over a decade try a little research – http://www.toffeeweb.com/site/history.asp
Disgraceful, you guys don’t speak for me and I have been following Everton and going to the match since I was four years old (over 25 yrs). Get real look at Portsmouth, West Ham and all the others, Blackburn will go down as well, new owners don’t mean anything other than broken promises. I read the transcript of the meeting and you come off as clueless idiots, I am truly embarrassed for you. You are also running the clubs name through the mud, releasing that information hurt the club now other clubs can play hard ball with us as they know we are hard up. You do not speak for the majority of Everton fans as the three of you are clearly living in a fantasy land; you want what Liverpool and Man Utd have? A soulless corporate shell whose fans jump off as soon as they lose two games, get with it!! Support the club don’t destroy it from within.
Agree Matt
jayiomSack the Juggler – Good Summary – I agree.
I would add, in the financial climate Everton are not going to find a buyer. As a business we are required to cut our cloth accordingly. You are not going to like this, but to balance the books EFC will need to remove the largest outgoing. In any business in trouble that is the staff. Staff are usually the highest cost. Therefore I contend that we need to sell three to four high salary players reducing the wage bill by about £300,000 / £400,000 a week, saving £15M and turning this financial mess around.
I would also add that Liverpool’s owners will have borrowed money against assets and revenue, based on the premis of Champions League football. The money from Torres will have helped balance things, but you can only think with the latest buys the wage bill has increased dramatically. Without CL football it is unsustainable.
It would be sad to loose Jags, Artie, Fellaini, Baynes – but it may be the sensible move for the club.
I’m a red, and we are fortunate to be on the other side of a potential financial meltdown. Your plight isn’t pretty, and the desperation for answers understandable. But beware of fans’ groups trying to represent what you are thinking, as they can do more harm than good. Kenwright is surely going to be once bitten, twice shy now, and I don’t expect anyone will hear much more from him… So what has been achieved by this? I genuinely wish you good luck in getting over this asap, but you might take care in presenting a solid support for the team and the club when it’s really needed, as the alternative may put investors and buyers off. Hopefully in a couple of years this will be behind you and we can make Merseyside the capital of British football again.
I know its early days but the early evidence suggests that Moysey shut get ready to cut and run now, there`s only so much the poor man can take surely. He`s a quality manager, any football fan, not just Evertonians will tell you that, he must have aspirations for success, just like footballers have, and he certainly isn`t gonna achieve anything with the Toffees. The best thing for this club that is financially challenged to put it politely, would be to aim for the relegation spots this season and opt for the funding we`d receive due to the drop.
Next step would be for Kenwright to do us all a favour and cut the strings from the club at long last, we need somebody to make the club look attractive to prospective buyers, I know there`s a saying, “You can`t polish a Turd” but Bill your time is up, you`ve tried and failed for years, step down treat yourself to a pint and one of Betty`s hot pots in the Rovers, stick to something that you`re supposedly good at.
Rant Over.
depressing
right lads,
ive read every word on this blog, some parts i agree with and some i dont. Firstly, Let me say that blue union DONT represent the opinion of every evertonian otherwise you would have MILLIONS of subscribers so I find you disrespectful in claiming so, in the bigger picture you are a minority.
I agree that it is time for change, yes we need a new owner and I cant understand how city, villa, birmingham all have new billionaire owners when in each season they were bought everton finished the season in a higher position and were the most likely to break into “the big 4”.
However, my own opinion is different, i believe that we only need a new owner for the reason that kenwright has taken us as far as he can and NOT because he is so called “clueless”, “going mad” losing the plot or anything, lets have it right lads the man brought us from the near the brink of extinction to one of the most respected clubs in the league, remember e is also the man that gave us moyes. Kenwright has only the good of the club in his heart and should not be spoken badly about. Beleive me, kenwright knows the answers to all the questions asked, he knows were every penny is. He didnt tell us the answers because he doesnt have to, why should he coz you have a season ticket costing under £500, this man is over £10million indebt and the answers to them questions would have damaging to the club. The mere thought that so called evertonians can suggest that kenwright is taking money out of the club is ridiculous and you should be ashamed.
Having said all that, nobody in the club can trade on past glories. Blue union you neverr asked the right questions, if you are a supporters forum then why didnt you ask the members of union what questions they would of liked to be presented and present them as well as those of your own ??????
This may sound like im here just putting down blue union far from it, fair play to you for standing up for what you beleive to right, respect.
I believe that kenwright is actually looking for too much for the club and to blame our ground as a reason why he cant sell the club is stupid, we own it so its 100% an assest and adds to our sellability.
Henry bought liverpool for the cost of the debts, so by that reckoning efc is valued at £50m.
I also believe that the everton board are busy fools and there for the ride, for example, green wont buy he club because he doesnt want to?? FUCK HIM OFF THEM!!! why is he still around, the man has done nothing. He buy because he thinks liverpool fans wont shop in topshop, SO WHAT, will evertonians not spend double !!!
I do agree with blue unions purpose, to set up a board with the sole purpose of selling the club, but also with kenwright, it must be to the right person/org. Lets have it right lads, we all laughed at the scum when gillette an hicks were there, Do we want to sell to them??? Maybe not, we want to sell to the likes of Ashley, has the money but wont spend it and wants to destroy the club???NO.
Kenwright needs to surround himself witht he correct staff and work unison, a complete overhaul of the board is needed. City was a once off and you wont see that happen every week so get that out of heads. QPR were taken over by a billionaire whe they were in the championship and then again now there in the prem??? why not us???
Personally, I think the more important question that kenwright needs to answer, which he is lying when he says he cant, is “why cant he sell the club?” and give the details of what he looking for.
Kenwright says there is no better salesman for efc than him – BOLLOCKS. Every salesman worth their salt will tell you, you cant have emotion, passion yes, but not emotion and kenwwright is only emotion.
Also, on the march that you have organised, POINTLESS !! your only walking 100 yrds at a time when the stadium is already surrounded and your marching to the directors entrance at 2pm, whats the point in that then??? the directors are already in the stadium so wont even see you??? may suggest that your next protest be at a time when the board can see you and how many people actually support your cause not jsut sheep following the crowd
Sorry for ranting on and wish you luck today
Joey COYB IMWT