'How to buy a football club' - Ch4 Mon 8pm

[Stuart]

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2015875/Bryan-Robson-caught-dodgy-deals-sting.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footba ... sting.html</a>

Caught on camera: Former Manchester United and England midfielder Bryan Robson

Money talks: Robson made his claims at meetings in Thailand



Former England captain Bryan Robson has allegedly been caught telling would-be investors how to break FA rules by buying two football clubs.
Robson, secretly filmed by undercover reporters posing as businessmen, talks about loopholes that can apparently allow the money men to cash in.
The Manchester United legend, who won 90 England caps and captained his country, was filmed saying: 'Football's a business.'

Robson says the key is to buy a club on the cheap, win promotion and then sell within a few years.
He adds on the programme: 'Build it up from nothing and say it was worth £3million when you bought it and now you can sell it for £150m - that's great business by you.'
Robson is employed by the London Nominees Football Fund - a group 'investing in football clubs, players, franchises, merchandising and sponsorship in this outstanding growth industry'.
But an investigation by Channel 4 programme Dispatches, to be screened on Monday night, apparently shows Robson and members of the fund explaining ways to break the strict rules governing football club ownership.
And the 54-year-old lists a string of clubs to target including Birmingham, Leicester, Sheffield United and his 'big-money' punt Sheffield Wednesday.
Robson adds: 'But it's how you name it, because you're only allowed to own one club.'

Reporters pretended to be representing Indian and Chinese businessmen and were told by Robson that he could use his relationships with former team-mates and managers to help with transfers.
Robson, London Nominess chief executive Andrew Leppard and lawyer Steve Burkill attended meetings in Thailand where the former West Bromwich boss was managing the national side until last month.
As seen in the programme, Leppard apparently explained that one club could be bought through the fund and another club hidden in a sub-fund.
Football League chairman Greg Clarke, who was also interviewed for the programme, said: 'We don't want people having the ability to affect results, squad selections, source of managers across a number of clubs - and that's why multiple club ownership is beyond the pale.'

Asked if he is confident that he knows who the true owners are of every club in the Football League, he added: 'No I'm not. There's a process of validation that lets the Football League know who the owners are. Who the owners of the owners are gets more difficult. And who the owners of the owners of the owners are gets even more difficult.'
Joe Sim, chief adviser to the Thai FA and a friend of Robson, says in another meeting: 'Once you have put £5m into the fund, I'll arrange for you and me, we have dinner with Sir Alex Ferguson, then Sir Alex Ferguson will tell you that he is going to lend me the players.'
Lawyers for the Manchester United manager confirmed Sim is a friend but said: 'He has never discussed the possibility of loaning any Manchester United players.'
A spokesman for London Nominees said: 'Any suggestion Bryan Robson would participate in any breach of League rules is strongly denied.'


A great Ambassador for the club...

HAHAHAHAFUCKIN'HAHAHAHA

 

[Sheik Yermoney]

For those of you who haven't seen it you can catch the programme on the Channel 4 on demand website.

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.channel4.com/programmes/dispatches/4od" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.channel4.com/programmes/dispatches/4od</a>

 

[MCFCTrick]

Wow, this thread is pretty embarrassing. No wonder we get called giddy by the rags.

Exactly.

No idea why everyone is getting so carried away with this. Robson may lose his ambassador role, but that hardy means the beginning of the end does it. This will all be forgotten about in a day or two.

No, nothing concrete against anyone else other than Captain Twunt, but mud sticks and this will hurt Fergie, make no mistake.....and reckon the media will stir this fut=rther than a day or two....

 

[fishwick]

Surprised how little there is in the morning papers about this. Conspiracy?

 

[cookster]

Surprised how little there is in the morning papers about this. Conspiracy?

I'm not! If it was City the press would have been all over it.

 

[Pigeonho]

Ah, the paranoia begins. Knew it would at some point.
There were no clubs involved, so to say 'if it was City' is wrong. It wasn't 'United', it was Bryan Robson and his crooked team of investors. United were just unfortunate enough to have their brand involved, but it isn't United as a club who did anything wrong, Fergie included for that matter. The way people were going on this thread last night was like Fergie had been caught with his pants down, eating Sushi off of a 12 year old Thai hooker. It was like a frenzy at times, when in reality the only one in the wrong was Robson and his twatty mates.

 

[Yaya_Tony]

eating Sushi off of a 12 year old Thai hooker..

Joe Sim would have sorted his 'brother' out.. Just like he got sorted out rubbish betting tips ;)

 

[BELFAST_BLUE_BOY]

Fergie had been caught with his pants down, eating Sushi off of a 12 year old Thai hooker.

Thats good enough for me....going to tweet this.....keep the frenzy going! :)

 

[bronco]

robson should have known it was a sting when they suggested that the useless twunt would manage the english club when the thais bought it ! the phrase "could not manage a wank " was never more apt !

 

[Pigeonho]

robson should have known it was a sting when they suggested that the useless twunt would manage the english club when the thais bought it ! the phrase "could not manage a wank " was never more apt !

Robson came across as a sad, desperate little man trying desperately to cling onto anything remotely to do with football. He is washed up, a nothing in the game and appears to be living the high life off of his name. The telling sentence for me was when he said he couldn't afford to have his name linked to a club who were bought and then folded, so in other words he did not give a shit about the fans of the potential club he bought, but if his pockets were lined that would be ok. Robson was a complete **** on that last night and any respect he had left I would imagine is no longer there.