Salford financial issues(again…)

[Red Willow]

14 minutes ago, Charlie said:

It won’t matter if we finish 11th we are going down, that’s how img works 

It won't matter where we finish, we will be relegated anyway. We could finish top, win the final but still have the lowest b grade anyway

[Gav Wilson]

1 hour ago, JohnM said:

Gemini version:

 

**Lots of AI slop**

 

[binosh]

20 minutes ago, Archie Gordon said:

Yeah.

Salford are being set up as the 2025 version of London. Crazy that we find ourselves here a few weeks out from the start of the season.

Doesn’t have to be doom and gloom, a reduced wage bill may make a takeover a more attractive proposition and could have a stumbling block for new owners, incremental signings could then be made a few months from now, Wakefield fans also though they were doomed when they went down but probably enjoyed the year and it helped build the foundations up better with the help of a new benefactor, it’s all ifs bits and maybe’s now but it doesn’t have to be all bad.

[JohnM]

5 minutes ago, Gav Wilson said:

It's better, more concise, more organised and much better than the original which was more "stream of consciousness" illiterate nonsense.

Publish the original in the national press and confirm the stereotype of northerners.

Edited January 15 by JohnM

[Charlie]

3 minutes ago, binosh said:

Doesn’t have to be doom and gloom, a reduced wage bill may make a takeover a more attractive proposition and could have a stumbling block for new owners, incremental signings could then be made a few months from now, Wakefield fans also though they were doomed when they went down but probably enjoyed the year and it helped build the foundations up better with the help of a new benefactor, it’s all ifs bits and maybe’s now but it doesn’t have to be all bad.

Maybe but it’s very unlikely. Why would anyone want to invest now 

[binosh]

On another note if this doesn’t give the likes of Bradford, York, London and Toulouse a kick up the backside to get their house in order NOW and find some IMG points from somewhere nothing ever will, could potentially see 2 changes to SL for 2026. 

[Gav Wilson]

5 minutes ago, JohnM said:

It's better, more concise, more organised and much better than the original which was more "stream of consciousness" illiterate nonsense.

Publish the original in the national press and confirm the stereotype of northerners.

No. Salford put out what they put out. 

[binosh]

1 minute ago, Charlie said:

Maybe but it’s very unlikely. Why would anyone want to invest now 

Who knows, why did Ellis buy Wakefield? Why are new owners buying London, why did someone buy Hull? 

[Charlie]

Just now, binosh said:

Who knows, why did Ellis buy Wakefield? Why are new owners buying London, why did someone buy Hull? 

We will have to see on London they’ve had a wealthy owner for years and not much has happened. Hull is a good investment sleeping giant. 
 

As a Salford fan myself I don’t see anything happening, expecting to drift to champ maybe league 1

[JohnM]

No. Salford put out what they put out. 

No. They should not have. A little effort was all that was needed. So unprofessional ...and they are not alone.

 

Edited January 15 by JohnM

[Josef K]

This is all very sad & depressing, i hope Salford survive and become stronger. 
I have been wondering how much cash would it take for Saints to pay them for taking Ben Davies & Konrad Hurrell off our hands. 

[Pie tries]

32 minutes ago, Impartial Observer said:

The majority of the reserve players are community players who are not being paid. They receive funding from the rfl to run women's, wheelchair, pdrl and ldrl if they have them

Few years ago Salford was just the men’s xiii. Regardless how - they have improved their footprint and have a very loyal fan base (they have to be)

[DG70]

Salford have been shuffling the furniture around on the titanic for too long, whole club needs a complete reset from top to bottom, probably in the championship, as a side note, will be interesting to see if Rowley sticks around, he's been possibly let down more than anyone connected with the club.

[Pie tries]

14 minutes ago, Charlie said:

Maybe but it’s very unlikely. Why would anyone want to invest now 

Cheap !

[Charlie]

Just now, Pie tries said:

Cheap !

Not necessarily 

[Charlie]

2 minutes ago, DG70 said:

Salford have been shuffling the furniture around on the titanic for too long, whole club needs a complete reset from top to bottom, probably in the championship, as a side note, will be interesting to see if Rowley sticks around, he's been possibly let down more than anyone connected with the club.

Probably not . I’d imagine at best it would be 5-10 years before they come back to sl look at Bradford and Widnes. 

[dboy]

I don't think anyone is looking to "buy" the club - there's nothing to buy.

It's a matter of how much a new owner has to put in to make the business work on a daily basis.

Any thing and any role that's not essential, or is deemed high value (players), is likely to be trimmed pretty quickly.

Edited January 15 by dboy

[Charlie]

2 minutes ago, dboy said:

I don't think anyone is looking to "buy" the club - there's nothing to buy.

It's a matter of how much a new owner has to put in to make the business work on a daily basis.

Any thing and any role that's not essential, or is deemed high value (players), is likely to be trimmed pretty quickly.

Depends if this new owner ( I’m not convinced) is happy to do what most sl clubs owners do so there wouldn’t be much trimming. Don’t forget every club runs on a massive loss. 
 

but again you’d have to fall on your feet to find someone like that 

[lucky 7]

5 minutes ago, dboy said:

I don't think anyone is looking to "buy" the club - there's nothing to buy.

It's a matter of how much a new owner has to put in to make the business work on a daily basis.

Any thing and any role that's not essential, or is deemed high value (players), is likely to be trimmed pretty quickly.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/salford-red-devils-super-league-34489466

[Henson Park Old Firm]

Talk about the silly season..

 

[Worzel]

1 hour ago, Pie tries said:

Worth remembering SRD have done some good stuff in recent years, set up academy, reserves, women’s team, wheel chair (I believe) - all on a shoestring.

 

Those aren’t good things if you don’t have the money to do them. They’re ridiculous. I’d like a 6 bedroom detached house in Oxford, and a new Porsche 911. I’m not going to just go and buy them though knowing I don’t have the money. 

Those are things for the future, aspirational goals. They needed to do the work, or attract investors, before they did those things. 

This constant sulking that other clubs have “sugar daddies” as if life isn’t inherently unfair for everyone in some way is immature nonsense. It is what it is, and you deal with the world as it is today not as you’d like it to be. 

[LeytherRob]

20 minutes ago, DG70 said:

Salford have been shuffling the furniture around on the titanic for too long, whole club needs a complete reset from top to bottom, probably in the championship, as a side note, will be interesting to see if Rowley sticks around, he's been possibly let down more than anyone connected with the club.

With Brad Arthur non-committal on next year, the door to Leeds may be reopening for Rowley 

[lucky 7]

3 minutes ago, LeytherRob said:

With Brad Arthur non-committal on next year, the door to Leeds may be reopening for Rowley 

As soon as Brad Arthur get a half decent offer from a NRL club he will be off.

He's only at Leeds now to draw wages as he had no decent offers from NRL clubs.

[LeeF]

2 hours ago, Martyn Sadler said:

Wednesday 15th January 2025
Club Statement: the truth behind the rumours
Over recent months, there has been repeated media speculation on the Club’s financial position. We have purposefully maintained a level of silence since our last statement, not out of avoidance, but out of necessity due to the sensitive nature of our ongoing discussions with potential investors. Our discretion has been to maintain and ensure the integrity of those discussions, bound by Non-Disclosure Agreements, and to protect our Club, players and staff.
As the position stands, contrary to what has been reported, investor negotiations continued over the weekend as part of the lengthy, rigorous process to secure a takeover for the Club. This is still live and we are working to expediate, details of which we can’t disclose given the Non-Disclosure Agreement in place. However, the Club has been directed to sell players without delay; the position is the RFL have issued a sustainability cap of £1.2 million and until we reach that, we are now prohibited from registering players for the upcoming season.
Distribution Advance
We are grateful for RL Commercial’s agreement to provide an advance on our allocated 2025 distribution. This was a welcome bridge in December 24 towards achieving longer- term stability, whilst investor discussions continued at the Club and the Councils’ acquisition of the stadium was finalised.
The terms of receiving the advancement were that the Club be placed under ‘special measures’ requiring a reduction in overheads of £800,000. We were not given a clear timeline for compliance on required expenditure reductions, therefore the Club took the decision to hold our position for the short-term while investor negotiations are ongoing. During this time the Club has received offers for a number of players, none of whom have been available for sale until today.
It is important to add that the advancement monies were held by RL Commercial and payments administered directly from them – the Club have never been given the funds to manage directly.
  
Salford Community Stadium
On December 13th 24, Salford City Council finally announced that it had completed the acquisition of the stadium. Given the proximity to the festive period, we have been unable to contact the council to secure an immediate meeting and ascertain next steps in order to maximise Club revenue opportunities.
Prior to acquisition, one investor negotiation collapsed due to the investment risk of not having any confirmed position from the Council on when the stadium acquisition would be finalised; an example of the delicate negotiating position we find ourselves in.
Concurrently we have also been in a holding pattern with the Giant Advertising screen development alongside the M60 motorway, another critical enterprise and important contributory factor to drive the Club forwards towards financial stability. This project has been in abeyance for approximately 12-months awaiting the acquisition of the stadium. Additional income was due to be unlocked once the stadium deal had completed, which had been built into Club revenue planning.
As the local authority return from the festive recess, we are hopeful a meeting with the Council takes place sooner rather than later so we can move things forward.
Salford City Council Community Funding
In March 24 it was suggested by Salford City Council the Club could receive a subsidy control grant to support Rugby League and the rugby development pathway in the City of Salford and Greater Manchester. This is akin to other Salford community entities who have received similar funding i.e. The Lowry and RHS Bridgewater. The Club were notified in July 24 of a delay and again in September 24 with a further delay until November 24, again impacting financial forecasting.
In November 24, Salford City Council advised that the subsidy control grant was not available due to funding shortfalls elsewhere, the impact of which was that the Club had already committed funds to player and staff recruitment and paid for pre-season preparations including a warm weather camp in Portugal. Effectively, these projected funds had already been allocated.
To conclude, we believe we have acted in the best interests of the Club, players, staff and our fans, given the complex situation we find ourselves in with multiple dynamics in play. We empathise and understand the frustration of our fans and are deeply sorry to reach this position. Thank you for your continued patience and support.
Our focus remains in working to explore all avenues possible for the long-term stability and success of Salford Red Devils. Immediate next steps are to continue the potential takeover
   
process to secure investment as soon as possible, whilst now simultaneously selling players to meet RL Commercial regulations.
 

If that statement was an attempt to win support on the basis that we have been unlucky it completely fails.

Some of the decisions they have made; whether to spend money that wasn’t guaranteed or to not major reductions in overheads etc are frankly appalling and are down to the directors and them alone.

We’ve seen some fans blaming everyone from the RFL to the media to the council to other clubs and to fans of other clubs when the directors of the club are solely to blame for the current state of affairs.

All owners or managers of sports clubs should remember than they are merely custodians of that club and when they leave they need to ensure that the club is inna position to continue

[LeeF]

24 minutes ago, dboy said:

I don't think anyone is looking to "buy" the club - there's nothing to buy.

It's a matter of how much a new owner has to put in to make the business work on a daily basis.

Any thing and any role that's not essential, or is deemed high value (players), is likely to be trimmed pretty quickly.

I would guess that, if the potential investors are serious, they have been undertaking some form of due diligence with that identifying new, previously unknown, issues