Tom Hicks And George Gillett Attempt To Oust Directors
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Hicks & Gillette try to force board members out.
A boardroom civil war has erupted at Liverpool, as controversial American co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett moved to oust two directors from the club’s board in an attempt to block two fresh takeover bids for the club.
Liverpool confirmed on Tuesday night that the board had received two ‘excellent’ offers to takeover the cash-strapped club, in a statement issued on the official website.
But the statement also confirmed that Hicks and Gillett attempted to remove two directors from the club’s board to prevent either of the offers from being accepted. The owners immediately hit back with a statement of their own insisting that they would not sell the club for a price they deem too low.
Ahead of the board meeting held on Tuesday to consider the two bids, the Americans sensationally attempted to replace managing director Christian Purslow and commercial director Ian Ayre with Mack Hicks – son of Tom – and Lori Kay McCutcheon, vice-president of Hicks Holdings.
One of the bids considered on Tuesday was from New England Sports Ventures, the owners of baseball’s Boston Red Sox led by John W Henry. The other is believed to have come from an Asian consortium, believed to be based in China.
Both offers are worth around £300 million, half the Americans’ valuation of the club but enough to wipe out all of the club’s long-term debt ahead of the October 15 deadline to repay £240m of loans from the Royal Bank of Scotland.
Liverpool announced that the matter is ‘now subject to legal review’ as Hicks and Gillett fight to block the sale of the club against the wishes of the two equity holders.
The three independent board members – chairman Martin Broughton, Hicks and Gillett – do not own any shares in the club but it is believed they have the boardroom voting power to sanction one of the bids.
A sensational statement on the club’s official website revealed the desperation of the clubs owners – in particular Hicks, from whose camp came the two people the Americans tried to add to the board to replace Purslow and Ayre.
The statement read: "The Board of Directors have received two excellent financial offers to buy the club that would repay all its long-term debt. A board meeting was called to review these bids and approve a sale.
"Shortly prior to the meeting, the owners - Tom Hicks and George Gillett - sought to remove Managing Director Christian Purslow and Commercial Director Ian Ayre from the Board, seeking to replace them with Mack Hicks and Lori Kay McCutcheon.
"This matter is now subject to legal review and a further announcement will be made in due course.
"Meanwhile Martin Broughton, Christian Purslow and Ian Ayre continue to explore every possible route to achieving a sale of the Club at the earliest opportunity."
On Tuesday night the two owners hit back in a statement of their own insisting that the two offers "dramatically undervalue the club".
The statement said: "In April, we confirmed our agreement to sell Liverpool, and appointed a new Chairman and advisers to oversee the process. At that time we and Martin Broughton stated our commitment to finding the right buyer for LFC, one that could support and sustain the club in the future. We remain committed to that goal.
"The owners have invested more than $270 million in cash into the club, and during their tenure revenues have nearly doubled investment in players has increased and the club is one of the most profitable in the EPL.
"As such, the Board has been presented with offers that we believe dramatically undervalue the club. To be clear, there is no change in our commitment to finding a buyer for Liverpool Football Club at a fair price that reflects the very significant investment we've made. We will however resist any attempt to sell the Club without due process or agreement by the owners."
Hicks has been trying for months to find a way to refinance the club’s debt and buy out his partner Gillett but has not been able to raise enough capital investment to push through his plans.
But both the directors and the Royal Bank of Scotland have insisted that they will block attempts to refinance the loans and will not allow next Friday’s deadline to be extended.
The ownership saga appears to entering its final stages, with some reports suggesting that the three non-American directors would choose to accept their favoured bid as soon as Wednesday.
The American owners are expected to make legal challenges in the face of a decision made by three people who own no shares in the club’s holding group, Kop Holdings.
But that will no longer be a matter should RBS call in Liverpool’s debts on October 15 and own the club themselves, at which point they could sell to a favoured bidder – although it is unknown whether the Reds would be forced into administration.
