RANGERS TAKEOVER: AS USUAL, MEDIA IGNORES THE REAL EGM STORY
- BY LIAM CARRIGAN
- Jun 24
- 3 min read
There were no shortage of puff pieces in this morning’s newspapers and online following yesterday’s Rangers EGM.
However, in their desperation to stay “on task” the Scottish mainstream press either missed, or more likely chose to ignore the biggest takeaway from yesterday’s heavily stage-managed event.
Rangers Takeover Cash Isn’t What The Media Claimed
From when the Rangers takeover story initially broke back in February, until the deal was finally completed a couple of weeks ago, the Daily Record, the S*n and all the other usual suspects have subtlety shifted the narrative, hoping to shape fan expectation ahead of the inevitable backlash once reality sets in.
First it was “The San Francisco 49ers are buying Rangers”.
Then it was “a wealthy American Businessman, and the 49ers are going to buy Rangers”
In the end, what they actually got was Andrew Cavenagh, a millionaire to be sure, but a man of relatively modest wealth compared to most other sports franchise owners in the US, with a couple of execs from 49ers Enterprises advising him.
The truly ridiculous numbers that were thrown around earlier this year for transfers and “putting Rangers back in their rightful place” were quickly revised down to £20 million total investment once the deal went through.
Again, this is a lot of money, but when you consider that Celtic could recoup more than that tomorrow, simply by selling one or two players, it’s not the transformational investment that we were led to think it was.
This point was hammered home again yesterday, by Andrew Cavenagh himself. The running assumption in much of Rangers fans media has been that the 20 million would form the much fabled “transfer war chest”.
Cavenagh made it clear yesterday that’s not going to happen. He also in a none-too-subtle way reminded Rangers fans of the consequences of the becoming a private company again, no longer subject to the kind of transparency they should have had, but seldom did, when they were a publicly listed entity.
When asked directly about the spending plans for this much-vaunted £20 million, Cavenagh’s response really should have been the headline on every piece written about the EGM today.
He said: We will be transparent where we can be, but we will be opaque in other areas and this is one."
In other words: “I don’t tell have to tell you anything, so I’m not going to.”
I had to laugh when a friend of mine remarked “I wonder how many Rangers fans had to Google what “opaque” means?”
Personally, I’m just impressed they didn't mistake it for “a pape” and go on a hate-fuelled rampage.
Anyway, I digress, back to Cavenagh’s statement.
If the Scottish press actually did their jobs, this is the point they should be drilling down on. They should insist on transparency and detailed accounting for how that money will be used.
But of course they won’t, because as this morning shows yesterday’s meeting was never about transparency. It was about distraction, it was about illusions of power projection, it was, as usual about continuing to project the myth that Celtic and Rangers are still on the same level as businesses.
We aren't. Celtic are light years ahead of Rangers at the moment, even if on the pitch performances occasionally don't fully reflect this. The figures don’t lie. Rangers will have to spend several magnitudes above this initial £20 million just to draw level with Celtic.
As we’ve already discussed, UEFA rules prohibit that level of investment without a sustainable business model, and revenue streams to match the investment.
Rangers don’t have that, and the only way they’ll get that is by enduring several years of austerity-driven mediocrity.
We all know the ever-loyal, true blue Ibrox diehards would never stand for that. Any position other than supremacy is an athema to them.
In the meantime, Celtic will continue to prepare for the coming season. I expect some new arrivals this week and next.
As for Rangers, well, I say get the Jelly and Ice Cream ready. Because when it finally does dawn on them that they’ve allowed themselves to be sold down the river yet again, the meltdowns will be absolutely glorious.
We welcome the chase. Let the games begin.
