[Football] Looks like MASSIVE are cooking the books...

[Easy 10]

https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...wner-not-commercially-active-dejphon-chansiri

Interesting article. In summary, their owner Dejphon Chansiri is currently bringing additional sponsorship into the club from several of his own businesses - which are not even currently trading. And he sold the ground to himself for £60m in June this year, but submitted it into the 2017-18 accounts, changing what would have been an FFP-busting £35m loss into a £2m profit, and thus swerving a hefty FFP penalty. They spent almost double their £25m revenues last year on wages alone, which rose to £42m.

Its all in dispute with the EFL and the lawyers (natch), but it would appear MASSIVE are betting the farm on going up this season and escaping the clutches of the EFL over all this with delaying tactics. If they get to the PL then all this goes away.

There's a big thread on the Wednesday forum about it. https://www.owlstalk.co.uk/forums/topic/286346-club-statement/#comments

From what I've read of it, predictably nobody on there see's any wrongdoing by the club, and are sticking two fingers up at the EFL. If they don't go up this season though, looks like it'll be popcorn time, just sit back and watch all the fallout....

 

[bhanutz]

They have been at it for years. I hope the EFL throw the book at them and punish them with relegation.

 

[blue-shifted]

Currently in the play off positions, but they are one of 11 teams within 7 points of each other from 3rd to 14th.

Here’s one for my moral compass. Do I want Leeds to keep winning, to deny Wednesday the chance to escape their misdemeanours via automatic promotion.

Meditate on this I will

 

[Palacefinder General]

Currently in the play off positions, but they are one of 11 teams within 7 points of each other from 3rd to 14th.

Here’s one for my moral compass. Do I want Leeds to keep winning, to deny Wednesday the chance to escape their misdemeanours via automatic promotion.

Meditate on this I will

I’d have Wednesday promoted tomorrow and a shoe-in for the PL title for the next 20 years solid if it kept Leeds in the Championship. No brainier for me, in spite of our priors with Wednesday.

 

[Dick Swiveller]

i’d have wednesday promoted tomorrow and a shoe-in for the pl title for the next 20 years solid if it kept leeds in the championship. No brainier for me, in spite of our priors with wednesday.

SHOO. For the love of God. SHOO.

 

[blue-shifted]

I’d have Wednesday promoted tomorrow and a shoe-in for the PL title for the next 20 years solid if it kept Leeds in the Championship. No brainier for me, in spite of our priors with Wednesday.

What about a sense of natural justice for the ridiculous accounting as well as a concern for the overall health of football outside the Premier League. FFP must surely hold to stop us losing a couple of clubs per year.

Ahh it is such a difficult one

 

[Papa Lazarou]

In sure some dullard has mentioned this a few times [MENTION=31]El Presidente[/MENTION]

 

[El Presidente]

In sure some dullard has mentioned this a few times [MENTION=31]El Presidente[/MENTION]

In print and podcast too!

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I’d have Wednesday promoted tomorrow and a shoe-in for the PL title for the next 20 years solid if it kept Leeds in the Championship. No brainier for me, in spite of our priors with Wednesday.

Good grief, there's Brentford, Fulham (both great days out) PNE, WBA and Bristol to choose from and you choose them?

Keep the Owls and dirty Leeds down for me.

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

They made the fundamental mistake of not getting promoted.

 

[Notters]

Good grief, there's Brentford, Fulham (both great days out) PNE, WBA and Bristol to choose from and you choose them?

Keep the Owls and dirty Leeds down for me.

No, Leeds up please, I want a game I can walk to - though admittedly it's 9 miles - Bradford would be better at 6.

 

[Palacefinder General]

Good grief, there's Brentford, Fulham (both great days out) PNE, WBA and Bristol to choose from and you choose them?

Keep the Owls and dirty Leeds down for me.

They weren’t in the equation! Blue-shifted had it between Massive & the reigning European Champions, and I’d rather comedy outfit Wednesday than LUFC any day, otherwise I agree with you 100%.

 

[nwgull]

Nothing actually wrong with Chansiri sponsoring the stands, shirts etc. as the amounts paid are fairly modest and in line with market value - I'm guessing Amex paid us something similar, if not more, during our Championship years.

I think the main issue the EFL have is that the accounts for 17/18 are claiming income from sale of the ground to a company that didn't actually exist until June 2019.

 

[blue-shifted]

Nothing actually wrong with Chansiri sponsoring the stands, shirts etc. as the amounts paid are fairly modest and in line with market value - I'm guessing Amex paid us something similar, if not more, during our Championship years.

I think the main issue the EFL have is that the accounts for 17/18 are claiming income from sale of the ground to a company that didn't actually exist until June 2019.

Amex not owning Brighton and Hove Albion would be the difference here.

 

[LlcoolJ]

Amex not owning Brighton and Hove Albion would be the difference here.

And actually being a MASSIVE, international company.

Rather than a made up one.

 

[LlcoolJ]

Sensible Wednesday fans up here (yes there are some) reckon they're screwed.

The club is trying to spin this out for as long as possible in the vain hope that they get promoted and swerve it.

The bluster about the EFL agreeing the sale of the ground is just that. Unless they can produce land registry / stamp duty documents showing that it was sold when it wasn't (best get the Tippex out) then they have cheated and will get a pelanty (C. Waddle).

I guess 15 points. Relegation is too much to ask for but one can dream.......

 

[Guinness Boy]

Surely they could just have taken an extra quid off each one of the 35 million authentic working class Sheffielders that turn up week in, week out to see the biggest club in England do their stuff?

 

[nwgull]

Amex not owning Brighton and Hove Albion would be the difference here.

Doesn't matter. It still complies with EFL rules as long as any sponsorship is at market value. Star Lizard could sponsor Brighton as long as TB didn't take the piss with the valuation.

 

[Official Old Man]

The EFL & EPL set figures for sponsorship. So for instance, Man Utd shirts may be £10m a year whilst ours may be £1m. Having agreed those figures, Star Lizzard can't sponsor our shirts for £20m as that's not the market price. Didn't Man City get into trouble for this?
But Massive have stuck to the market value of sponsorship, it's just that they sold the ground in 2019 but put the cash into the accounts for 2018. Down side of this is that come 2020 when this years accounts have to be shown, there is no 'extra' income from a ground sale to cover the huge expenses.

 

[Easy 10]

Doesn't matter. It still complies with EFL rules as long as any sponsorship is at market value. Star Lizard could sponsor Brighton as long as TB didn't take the piss with the valuation.

I'd say the only reason the EFL haven't kicked off yet about Massive being sponsored by made-up companies is because the amounts are (at this stage) modest and fairly inconsequential. However, I wouldn't be surprised if this Chanisi character is "testing the water" with this, with a view to ramping it up later. After all, he can only sell the stadium to himself once can't he.

Leicester City did something very similar before they got promoted. They were sponsored by a newly formed company with no website and no phone number, which then forged "close links" to King Power, and immediately bunged them something like £15m, which helped massage the old P&L figures for FFP. If this herbert at Sheffield starts stepping up the "sponsorship" with these non-trading businesses then I think the EFL will take a closer look.

But they've already got enough to clobber them on this £60m Hillsborough sale anyway, so may as well hammer them on that.