[RedDevils] FA fuming over Ferdinand's missing records
FA fuming over Ferdinand's missing records Daniel Taylor Monday October 20, 2003 The Guardian Manchester United found themselves fighting rearguard actions on two fronts over the weekend, neither of them on the pitch. First United's lawyers blocked News International from serialising a warts-and-all book written by the club's former security chief Ned Kelly, a dispute that will go to the high court this week. The club, however, was unable to prevent details of Rio Ferdinand's mobile telephone bills from being published yesterday. "Rio: His Mobile Was On" said the News of the World, an allegation that will alert the Football Association which has still not received the phone records a week after requesting them and is rapidly losing patience with United's failure to do so. The FA is now considering charging Ferdinand with wilfully evading a drugs test with out waiting for the phone records to be produced. Considering that United are sponsored by Vodafone, the delay is baffling and their publication will make interesting reading for the FA's investigators, headed by its compliance officer Steve Barrow. United are likely to launch an investigation into how the phone bill came to be leaked before it reached the FA. The records appear to show that two hours passed between Ferdinand leaving training and getting in touch with either the club's doctor Mike Stone or the drug-testers. But they also show Ferdinand interrupted his shopping to ring Stone once and the FA twice, three calls that seem to corroborate the evidence he supplied to his initial disciplinary hearing a week ago. Where it might harm his case is if Ferdinand, as has been widely reported, claimed his mobile was switched off. United had certainly not disputed that story but now there is a subtle but crucial difference in their version of events. The club's line is that Ferdinand's phone was not off but switched to the "silent" setting. The FA had asked Ferdinand to supply copies of his mobile phone records to help establish whether his failure to provide a sample was accidental or the more serious offence of wilfully missing a test. Stone is said to have told Ferdinand about the test on September 23 as soon as he finished training, and then asked another player to remind him. United fear that Ferdinand faces a ban over either charge, with the FA apparently determined to make an example of him. United would then consider either appealing to the FA or taking the matter to the international Court of Arbitration for Sport, based in Lausanne. A civil action could also be a possibility. Yahoo! Groups Sponsor -~--> Buy Ink Cartridges or Refill Kits for your HP, Epson, Canon or Lexmark Printer at MyInks.com. Free s/h on orders $50 or more to the US & Canada. http://www.c1tracking.com/l.asp?cid=5511 http://us.click.yahoo.com/mOAaAA/3exGAA/qnsNAA/tsUolB/TM -~-> *** Reply to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe from the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
Re: [RedDevils] Reds on Oz TV
Make that 10.30 PM on SBS Thursday night David Marshall Brisbane Australia 03-04 10 Yahoo! Groups Sponsor -~--> Rent DVDs Online - Over 14,500 titles. No Late Fees & Free Shipping. Try Netflix for FREE! http://us.click.yahoo.com/Tq9otC/XP.FAA/3jkFAA/tsUolB/TM -~-> *** Reply to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe from the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
Re: [RedDevils] UNITED FEAR ON BOOK ON STARS
--- helene blatte <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: - >As an active campaigner for Shareholders United >Against Murdoch, it was Ned Kelly who frogmarched >Richard Briers and myself from the forecourt in >front of OT before that year's AGM as we were >handing out leaflets urging fellow shareholders to >vote against the proposed Murdoch takeover. It is interesting to see that MUTV are now actively interviewing members of IMUSA and SU, giving them publicity and credibility where at one time they were shunned. They even had a crew at the venue for IMUSA meets last week chatting to Chairman Mark Longden. The fact that there are rumblings of takeover activity and the plc getting worried clearly has no connection?... Paul Want to chat instantly with your online friends? Get the FREE Yahoo! Messenger http://mail.messenger.yahoo.co.uk Yahoo! Groups Sponsor -~--> Buy Ink Cartridges or Refill Kits for your HP, Epson, Canon or Lexmark Printer at MyInks.com. Free s/h on orders $50 or more to the US & Canada. http://www.c1tracking.com/l.asp?cid=5511 http://us.click.yahoo.com/mOAaAA/3exGAA/qnsNAA/tsUolB/TM -~-> *** Reply to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe from the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
[RedDevils] Are there more hints at being a rubbish plc?
United marooned in eye of legal storm By Oliver Kay The Times October 20, 2003 David Gill has been sufficiently involved in the evolution of Manchester United plc into more than just a football club to have known that his introduction to the role of chief executive would not be a simple matter of making himself comfortable in Peter Kenyons chair. What he could not have imagined was that his first six weeks in the job would see him preoccupied with drugs tests, a public dispute with the FA and High Court injunctions, not to mention the threat of a takeover. On his appointment on September 2, Gill said that his first job would be to establish a working relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson. As it has transpired, most of their exchanges so far have been conducted through Fergusons solicitor, who is negotiating his new contract. Solicitors, in fact, have played a prominent role in the workings of United of late, whether over Rio Ferdinands failure to take his test and the subsequent fallout with the FA, or the efforts to block a series of unsavoury revelations by a former employee. Ned Kelly, the one-time head of security, had threatened to lift the lid off Old Trafford with the serialisation of his forthcoming book, Manchester United: The Untold Story, charting his 12 years working behind the scenes at the club. United succeeded on Saturday in winning an injunction to block the books serialisation in a Sunday newspaper, but Gill and his fellow directors will have been fully aware that keeping United off yesterday mornings front pages would be an impossible challenge. Specifically, the headlines focused on Ferdinand and a series of revelations concerning his mobile telephone bill, which is a central piece of evidence in the FAs investigation into his failure to attend a drugs test on September 23. Two newspapers reported that he had contacted Dr Patrick O Reilly, a consultant urologist, within ten minutes of forgetting about the test. Another claimed that he had called a woman who was not his girlfriend. Either way, the publicity was unwelcome. The FA is due to start scrutinising that same bill today as it ponders whether to charge Ferdinand with wilful failure to attend an anti-doping test, which would carry the threat of a lengthy suspension. After his earlier lapse of memory, he is said to have contacted Mike Stone, the United club doctor, within half an hour after leaving the training ground on that fateful afternoon, but, even if it decides that his was an innocent mistake, the FA is still expected to charge him with a lesser offence this week. Through the whole episode, Gill has been in regular conversation with Maurice Watkins, the clubs solicitor, in a bid to establish what rights to appeal United would have in the event of a suspension to their £30 million record signing. If, as they fear, Ferdinand is banned, they are prepared to launch legal proceedings against the FA, whether through the international Court of Arbitration for Sport, which is based in Lausanne, Switzerland, or a civil action in this country. In the past week, Gill and his legal team have also had to handle a compensation battle with Sunderland over David Bellion, the young French forward who moved to Old Trafford when his contract expired in the summer. Rather than allow the matter to go to a Football League tribunal, United settled on a deal that could cost them more than £3 million, a figure said to have alarmed Ferguson. He expected Bellion, a 20-year-old with minimal first-team experience, to cost less than £1 million. For good measure, Ferguson is due in the FA dock today to answer charges of misconduct relating to his behaviour during the match against Newcastle United at St James Park on August 23. If found guilty, the manager could receive a touchline ban in addition to a fine. Two of his players, Ryan Giggs and Cristiano Ronaldo, are also awaiting hearings into misconduct charges relating to their involvement in a brawl after last months ill-tempered match against Arsenal at Old Trafford. And, as if that were not enough, Gill and his fellow directors have been unsettled by the speed with which certain investors are accumulating shares in United. The 23.15 per cent now held by the Cubic Expression Company aka the Coolmore Mafia of John Magnier and J. P. McManus, the Irish horse racing tycoons is a source of considerable concern, but so are those of others such as Malcolm Glazer, the owner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers American football club. Even without the furore over Ferdinand, these would be anxious times at Old Trafford, with the future of the company so uncertain. Maybe it is just as well that their next assignment on the pitch is away to Rangers, their most eagerly awaited Champions League fixture of the season. More than just a football club they may be, but occasions such as Wednesday serve as a necessary reminder that football is the crux of Manchester Uniteds business.
[RedDevils] Reds on Oz TV
Hi Oz Reds, Rangers match is Thursday morning bright and early at 4.30AM on ESPN . Replays on ESPN at 8.00PM that evening and, if you don't have cable access, on SBS at 10.00PM. The reason we did not get the scheduled Leeds game live last Saturday was so that Fox could show the rugby league test from NZ - and it was a replay!!! Bastards. David Marshall Brisbane Australia 03-04 10 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Yahoo! Groups Sponsor -~--> Rent DVDs Online - Over 14,500 titles. No Late Fees & Free Shipping. Try Netflix for FREE! http://us.click.yahoo.com/Tq9otC/XP.FAA/3jkFAA/tsUolB/TM -~-> *** Reply to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe from the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
[RedDevils] US tycoon ups Man Utd stake
Man Utd made full year profits of £39m American sports entrepreneur Malcolm Glazer has increased his shareholding in Manchester United to nearly 10%, the UK Premier League club said. Mr Glazer owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Florida-based winners of the Super Bowl American football championship. Man Utd said Mr Glazer has raised his shareholding to 9.66%. It is the second time in a fortnight Mr Glazer has bought more Man Utd shares - earlier this month he raised his stake from 5.9% to 8.94%. Takeover talk Rumours of a takeover have swirled round Man Utd in recent weeks, as several sporting entrepreneurs have increased their shareholdings. Takeover speculation was sparked by satellite broadcaster BSkyB's decision to offload its 10% stake in the football club. Irish horse racing tycoons J.P. McManus and John Magnier snapped up BSkyB's stake in early October, taking their joint holding to 23.15%. That triggered a flurry of speculation that the Irish duo might be preparing a full-blown takeover attempt Mr Glazer has been named as a possible bidder for Man Utd, as has Dutch TV entrepreneur John de Mol, who took his stake from 3.5% to 4.1% in early October. Scottish mining entrepreneur Harry Dobson, and Dermot Desmond, the Irish millionaire who owns 21% of Celtic football club, have also been named as possible bidders. Institutional investors tend to steer clear of football clubs because their financial performance is unpredictable, and most do not make enough money. But analysts say Man Utd would make an attractive takeover target because, unlike many of its Premiership rivals, the club is free of debt and makes healthy annual profits. Man Utd's has turned its success on the pitch into a worldwide merchandising operation which generates hefty earnings. Yahoo! Groups Sponsor -~--> Buy Ink Cartridges or Refill Kits for your HP, Epson, Canon or Lexmark Printer at MyInks.com. Free s/h on orders $50 or more to the US & Canada. http://www.c1tracking.com/l.asp?cid=5511 http://us.click.yahoo.com/mOAaAA/3exGAA/qnsNAA/tsUolB/TM -~-> *** Reply to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe from the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
[RedDevils] Looking for the next move in the Glazer playbook
Looking for the next move in the Glazer playbook Times Business Columnist © St. Petersburg Times published May 12, 2003 You can say a lot of things about Tampa Bay Bucs owner Malcolm Glazer & Sons - and you have over the years. But thanks to new respect earned by the Bucs first Super Bowl win, the Glazers appear to be making a serious run at purchasing the Los Angeles Dodgers. And raising some interesting business strategies in the process. What's the endgame here? Do the Glazers want to rebuild the Dodger baseball empire in the undervalued Los Angeles TV market? Would the Glazers adopt the Wayne Huizenga/Florida Marlins strategy and unload the Bucs while the team is a hot and high-priced commodity? Or is this simply a move to leverage the rising value of the Bucs franchise and potentially run up the value of another professional sports team? If the Glazers played their business plans closer to the vest, they'd have sutures. Malcolm made his first millions selling mobile home lots near Rochester, N.Y., and the Glazers still have a streak for the odd venture. Consider Rochester's Zapata Corp., a onetime Houston company founded by President Bush's father and now controlled by the Glazers. It owns a major stake in Omega Protein, a business that sells fish oil as a commodity. Omega, in fact, rents its headquarters in Houston from Zapata. Like a lot of rich business families, the Glazers have plenty of legal disputes. Some more bizarre than others. One of the more recent is a March lawsuit filed by Robert Strougo, a shareholder of Omega. Strougo claims the Glazers, including Malcolm's son Avram (Zapata's chief executive) and daughter Darcie (a Zapata director), breached their fiduciary duties by not properly considering a so-called buyout offer sent via e-mail to Zapata. This tale gets twisted when it was disclosed that the supposed buyer, a Florida partnership, is run by Theodore Roxford, a self-described corporate con artist now playing the role of wannabe corporate raider. In the Glazers' pursuit of the Dodgers, none of these distractions really matter. The Dodgers are for sale because a giant media conglomerate called News Corp., owner of the Fox TV network and controlled by Australian billionaire Rupert Murdoch, wants to divest the money-losing team. Early betting even hints the Glazers, their brand strengthened by the rise of the Bucs, are an inside favorite to win the bidding. That's because the Glazers can leverage a proven track record with a pro sports team. And they only want the Dodgers. That franchise looks likely to be price-tagged at between $350-million and $400-million, maybe more if a bidding war emerges. It probably does not hurt that the Glazers recently invested $14-million to purchase a small stake in Manchester United. The premier British soccer club's majority owner happens to be Murdoch. The other reported Dodgers bidders? Emmis Communications Corp., an Indianapolis media company headed by former Seattle Mariners owners Jeff Smulyan, with 24 radio stations (including one in Los Angeles) and an eye on some Fox TV stations. An investor group led by David Checketts, backed by Los Angeles billionaire Eli Broad and global financier George Soros, has offered $600-million for the team, its stadium and cable channel Fox Sports Net 2 that airs Dodgers games (an asset Murdoch is not keen on selling). Another group is headed by Los Angeles real estate tycoon Alan Casden. In April, NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue added his blessing, saying it is possible for the Glazers to also run a baseball team without violating a league rule on cross-ownership. The Dodgers sale is, in fact, part of a larger sell-off of Major League Baseball franchises (pro hockey teams, too) by major corporations. The auction of the World Series champion Anaheim Angels has been in the works since last fall when owner Walt Disney Co. hired Lehman Brothers to search out a buyer. And struggling AOL Time Warner is peddling the Atlanta Braves, a team it acquired when it bought Ted Turner's business empire of CNN and Turner Broadcasting. Few of the bidders for these baseball teams are corporations. They are rich individuals. Like the Glazer family. Why this trend? Forbes magazine sums it up best: "Firms that buy teams tend to underperform." The Glazers' apparent infatuation with sports teams is long and deep. Sports reports over the past years say the Glazer family, at one time or another, had pursued ownership of the NFL's New England Patriots and New York Jets, as well as MLB's San Diego Padres and Pittsburgh Pirates. One scenario suggests the Glazers would buy the Dodgers, sell the Bucs - worth, for the moment, $600-million or more - and build a new L.A. stadium to accommodate their Dodgers team and a new NFL franchise that's been missing for years in the country's second-largest television market. Sound more like fantasy than reality? Maybe. Pro sports and billionaires dabble in both worlds all the time. One th
RE: [RedDevils] Looking for the next move in the Glazer playbook
I always maintained the Dodgers should have stayed in Brooklyn!!! Nancy Yahoo! Groups Sponsor -~--> Buy Ink Cartridges or Refill Kits for your HP, Epson, Canon or Lexmark Printer at MyInks.com. Free s/h on orders $50 or more to the US & Canada. http://www.c1tracking.com/l.asp?cid=5511 http://us.click.yahoo.com/mOAaAA/3exGAA/qnsNAA/tsUolB/TM -~-> *** Reply to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe from the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
