Lower league Pompey

[Acker79]

Portsmouth back on brink as extent of club's mishandling is laid bare | David Conn | Football | The Guardian

Someone really needs to make a flow chart or time line or something to make this ownership nonsense all clear

 

[severnside gull]

Portsmouth fans think they will still have a core attendance of around 8000. Pie in the sky!

But even at a more realistic 3000 to 4000 at home and 1000 away (given all games would be local) they are a massive financial attraction to clubs at that level who would probably queue up to welcome them into the conference south

 

[Driver8]

We have no idea what has been agreed. Agreed.




If Portsmouth have paid in advance, its probably been in nine pound notes.

What I meant was we may have insisted they pay in advance or we wouldn't release the tickets. They were 100% going to sell out so would have meant Pompey being £50k down for a few days.

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

Portsmouth fans think they will still have a core attendance of around 8000. Pie in the sky!

But even at a more realistic 3000 to 4000 at home and 1000 away (given all games would be local) they are a massive financial attraction to clubs at that level who would probably queue up to welcome them into the conference south

They have got a good core support. Bit difficult to say what attendances will be. A winning team will get a decent crowd regardless of the division.

 

[Mellotron]

They have got a good core support. Bit difficult to say what attendances will be. A winning team will get a decent crowd regardless of the division.

"Good" is subjective. They've done f*** ALL to save their club. Boycotts? Protests? Sit ins? Chasing the directors out the stadium?

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

"Good" is subjective. They've done f*** ALL to save their club. Boycotts? Protests? Sit ins? Chasing the directors out the stadium?

Good in numbers as well you realised.

 

[Mellotron]

Good in numbers as well you realised.

I know. Just any excuse for a dig really.

 

[Bold Seagull]

"Good" is subjective. They've done f*** ALL to save their club. Boycotts? Protests? Sit ins? Chasing the directors out the stadium?

That's a bit harsh I'd say. There is the potential for their Supporters Trust to raise enough to enable a community buyout for the club to be owned by the fans and the city, hopefully that is something that could happen.

 

[sten_super]

Portsmouth back on brink as extent of club's mishandling is laid bare | David Conn | Football | The Guardian

Someone really needs to make a flow chart or time line or something to make this ownership nonsense all clear

Nice dig in there by DC as well.

pointing to the long tradition and "loyal, passionate fans."

 

[Dirk Gently]

That's a bit harsh I'd say. There is the potential for their Supporters Trust to raise enough to enable a community buyout for the club to be owned by the fans and the city, hopefully that is something that could happen.

But that doesn't factor in the debt and liabilities hanging over them. The going price in cash to buy Pompey is probably zero - but as well as the club you get the debt.

 

[Dirk Gently]

I don't think its fair, a so called 'bigger club' should have a head start over a suposedly smaller club, but then I don't make the rules.

I'm inclined to agree - but as you say, rules is rules.

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

Portsmouth back on brink as extent of club's mishandling is laid bare | David Conn | Football | The Guardian

Someone really needs to make a flow chart or time line or something to make this ownership nonsense all clear

An interesting-I think, I' not sure I fully understand it-comment after that article is the following:

What happended to the £80m, worth of players sold towards the end of Gaydamak's tenure - that would have paid off most debts, but the money has disappeared.

The feeling in Portsmouth is that al-Faraj never actually existed, hence his nickname al-Mirage. The only proof that he exists is a grainy photo on the internet of an Arabic guy, who could quite frankly be anyone. And he passed the Fit & Proper Person Test. As for that fantasist al-Fahim, either he was duped into buying the club as a front for shady investors (eg former Thai PM) who than ran away when people started asking questions, or he really was a penniless chancer.

What the article above does not mention in the long-running business feud between Gaydamak Snr and Chainrai. Chainrai was owed £17m by Gaydamak the Elder and that's exactly the sum he 'lent' to al-Mirage. The loan was defaulted and Chainrai seized the freehold to the club as security. He immediately became a 'secured' creditor, as opposed to the unsecured creditor Gaydamak Jnr, who was still 'owed' money by the club, thus usurping Sacha. In effect, Chainrai got his £17m with a fictitious defaulted loan to a non-existent person to get the money owed to him (allegedly). Portsmouth FC was merely a square on a Monopoly board.

Then the club went into administration. Chainrai promised to pay for it...he didn't. He promised that small creditors and charities owed money would be paid in full...they have not received a penny (the shameful theft from charities is perhaps one of the lowest points in the entire history of the City of Portsmouth and deserves an article on its own). The administrator Andrew Andronikou (who also deserves a dedicated article) then announced that the club could come out of administration with a CVA and unveiled the new owner of Pompey as......Balram Chainrai! You could not make this up. So basically Chainrai keeps his debenture with a toxic £17m bounty for anyone wishing to buy him (the land is worth at most £3m) and has got rid of 80% of debts at a stroke.

Chainrai then sells to the CSI group who cannot afford to buy the club, so are paying interest to Chainrai for his £17m debenture. The main backer Antonov is arrested for alleged £250m fraud in Lithuania and is fighting extradition. CSI go into administration and who comes back? Yes - Andronikou. And apparently Pompey have a debt to CSI for £10m (leveraged buy outs will be the death of football). And who is Andronikou looking out for...yes, it's Chainrai. Chainrai even tried to 'persuade' the high court judge with a £500k sweetener if Andronikou was appointed administrator again. Luckily a coalition of the HMRC, Penny Mordaunt MP, Portsmouth City Council, other creditors and an anti-Andronikou movement by fans had Andronikou removed by the high court and Trevor Birch installed instead. Andronikou had refused to meet any potential owners (apart from a nutter called Joseph Cala who dreams of building underwater casinos and starting a worldwide chain of Pompey clubs) and even demanded proof of £100m funds from the Supporters Trust to even meet.

The appointment of Birch didn't stop UHY Hacker Young (Andronikou's handlers) from taking £2m out of Pompey's frozen accounts on their way out for 'future services' (£300k has still not been returned). Trevor Birch has unearthed several skeletons, is challenging Chainrai's debenture which is crippling the club and has now unearthed a potentially illegal deal to give all parachute payments to Gaydamak set up by Andronikou. You can see why Chainrai and Andronikou were so desperate for Andronikou to be appointed administrator again - the festering can of worms is being gradually uncovered on a daily basis.

But time is running out to challenge these deeds in the courts.



Can anyone who understands fully the ins and outs of the seeming skulduggery explain it in simple, easy to digest pieces for me? As I understnd it there is/was a long running feud between Gaydamark snr and Chanrai and through a succession of moves Chanrai has been able to get the money back that he was owed by Gaydamark snr with Portsmouth being the pawn in the middle.

 

[Boys 9d]

In the past both Leeds City and Port Vale were expelled by the Football League for financial irregularities (though Port Vale were re-elected at the end of the same season), surely their dealings were not worse than those that seem to have allegedly gone on at Fratton Park?

 

[Iggle Piggle]

Bit bored today. This is the simplest I can explain it from what I’ve read in an effort to make sense of it all. I get the gist of NAN’s post the other day about where the money came from for the cup win.

July 2006 – Milan Mandaric sells his remaining 50% stake in Portsmouth to ‘Sasha’ Alexandre Gaydamak for £32 million. Sasha tells the world he is a self made millionaire but appears to be bankrolled by his dad Arcady. Assuming he bought the other 50% for the same value, Portsmouth has been bought for £64 million. Mandaric believes that: "I'm dealing with a clean-cut, young man who is a good businessman.

"He loves football, wants to invest money, has the money to invest and there is nothing wrong with his reputation and his credentials - and that's all that matters to us here’’

Gaydamak bankrolls a series of high profile and expensive signings and the glory days start culminating in the FA Cup win in May 2008. At the time of his arrival, He is alleged to owe Customs and Excise £250,000 from a VAT bill, while French police have an international arrest warrant out for Gaydamak's father, Arcadi, over his alleged involvement in an arms-for-oil deal with Angola.

Nov 2008. Sasha’s dads Arcady’s bank accounts are frozen due to money laundering charges in Israel. The charge will eventually be dropped when he pleads guilty to a lesser charge. At the same time, the money at Portsmouth starts to dry up although Chief exec Peter Storrie does his best to suggest otherwise and keep the cash flow going.

August 2009 Sulaiman Al Fahim, the CEO of an Abu Dhabi based real estate company buys the club for £60 million from Sasha Gaydamak. Not much known about Al Fahim but he could be a front man for the Thai Government or other shady investors who get cold feet. Either way, he does not last long at the club (40 days). At around this time, Chainrai sues Arcady Gaydamak for £17 Million due to an ongoing dispute. A fire sale at Portsmouth is ongoing.

October 2009 Ali Al Faraj takes ownership of the club (90%) from Al Fahim after wages are not paid to players in October 2009 selling the club for either £0 or £70 million depending on what figures you believe. Al Faraj is believed to be a Saudi front man for Chainrai who essentially wants his £17 mill back which he is suing Arcady for. Al Faraj is never seen at Portsmouth or anywhere else for that matter. If, he exists or not Chainrai lends (or invents a loan) for £17 mill (same cost as which he is suing Gaydamak) which is defaulted upon almost immediately by the new mystery man. Chainrai seizes control of the 90% of the club which Faraj owns in Feb after feigned or real anger at Al Faraj’s non payment of the ‘loan’ to become the 4th owner of the season

February 2010 Portsmouth goes into admin. Andronikou is appointed administrator. Chainrai, though, is now a ‘secured’ football creditor which means he has a better chance of getting his money back. The £40 million in player sales and the millions related to the PL sky payments are gone with allegations of money transferring offshore even during this period. Lawrence and Kitson sign on £20K a week as Portsmouth pay over the odds in a quantity versus quality method of player recruitment instigated by Adronikou.

June 2010 : Portsmouth exit admin. With a debt of £105 million they get agreement to repay 20p in the £1 over 5 years from 80% of their creditors despite objections from HMRC who are owed £24 million. Chainrai’s £17 million is safe due to the football creditors rule

June 2011 Chainrai sells the club to Convers sports initiative (or CSI) fronted by a Russian businessman Vladimir Antonov. CSI cannot afford to buy Portsmouth in its entirety so agree to pay large interest rates on the £17 million which Chainrai is owed to take control.

November 2011 : Antonov’s asset are frozen by the Lithuanian government accusing him of alleged fraud against the country. A warrant is issued for his arrest. A source at the football league says that Antonov had "at best" misled them at the time of his takeover in June 2011 and at worst had committed fraud.

February 2012 : Portsmouth go into administration again. Trevor Birch is appointed administrator over Portsmouth preferred administrator Andronikou. "There is no infrastructure," Birch said, "but, counting this administration and the last one, there is more than £100m of debt run up. How has that happened?" Chainrai claims he is now owed £29 million. Birch warns the club may not make it through their fixture list in 2012 disclosing that the latest parachute money will be diverted to Gaydamak as a result of the last administration deal.

 

[CliveWalkerWingWizard]

Cheers IP, reading this does make me think that pompey supporters deserve (a little) sympathy. When did guydamak buy the grounds around the stadium - any ideas why it wasn't sold with the club ? other than to hold the club to ransome. It also appears that if Chanrai bought the club to secure the 17 million it appears to be a risky stategy - the fake loan would not have been repaid by Guydamak it would be paid from PFC? and if Guydamak sold the club why is he stilled owed money that EPL are going to pay him ?

 

[Questions]

I asked my Pompey supporting mate a month ago if winning the FA cup was worth it ? He said it was because it was an amazing adventure especially the European bit when they played Milan at home. I asked him the same on friday when we were discussing which division they might find themselves in and he shook his head.
The penny is dropping.

 

[Triggaaar]

Wow. How can Andronikou have got away with it.

How do we know the £17m loan was made up/secured illegally, and why can't that just be wiped off if you're right?

Although our fans did more, it's difficult to imagine some protests would have made any difference.

 

[Iggle Piggle]

Cheers IP, reading this does make me think that pompey supporters deserve (a little) sympathy. When did guydamak buy the grounds around the stadium - any ideas why it wasn't sold with the club ? other than to hold the club to ransome. It also appears that if Chanrai bought the club to secure the 17 million it appears to be a risky stategy - the fake loan would not have been repaid by Guydamak it would be paid from PFC? and if Guydamak sold the club why is he stilled owed money that EPL are going to pay him ?

The 17 million coincidence / giveaway appears to be that it is the same value that he was sueing Arcady for at the same time. The rest is joining the dots from what i've read around today - the accuracy of which is must be up for debate (its the internet after all)

Where Antonov fits in (he must be connected one way or another), who owns what and why owning a football club is a way to get your dosh back is a mystery for my next slow work day - I find the whole tale interesting and one you couldn't make up.

Also, surprised this elicits sympaty for Portsmouth (not my intention). When the owner isn accused of dodging VAT and his father sells weapons to a country during a civil war, surely someone at Pompey should have rung an alarm bell? Evidently not.

 

[Not Andy Naylor]

When the owner isn accused of dodging VAT and his father sells weapons to a country during a civil war, surely someone at Pompey should have rung an alarm bell? Evidently not.

This is why the Portsmouth fans deserve no sympathy whatsoever. When the media started pointing these things out, we were accused of having an anti-Portsmouth agenda because they weren't a big London club. NOT ONE FAN ever questioned Gaydamak.

To join some dots - what was Arkady Gaydamak accused of in Israel (pleading guilty to a lesser charge?) Where had he made money in a deal for which he was wanted by Interpol (not the French police)? A bit of a grubby situation, wouldn't you say? Now, what sort of business brings in lots of less grubby money via, say, TV deals?

 

[CliveWalkerWingWizard]

The 17 million coincidence / giveaway appears to be that it is the same value that he was sueing Arcady for at the same time. The rest is joining the dots from what i've read around today - the accuracy of which is must be up for debate (its the internet after all)

Where Antonov fits in (he must be connected one way or another), who owns what and why owning a football club is a way to get your dosh back is a mystery for my next slow work day - I find the whole tale interesting and one you couldn't make up.

Also, surprised this elicits sympaty for Portsmouth (not my intention). When the owner isn accused of dodging VAT and his father sells weapons to a country during a civil war, surely someone at Pompey should have rung an alarm bell? Evidently not.

The sympathy is because pompey fans probably didn't know what was happening until the 2nd or 3rd dodgy owner.