Look like there in trouble again just over a month to find a new owner or there out of the football league.
Makes me think of our own club and the fans singing "you greedy b'stds, get out of our club." Numptees, As if others are queueing up to take over.
Reading have got people wanting to buy but the owner isn’t responding. The EFL have banned him from being an owner and set a deadline to sell but he just seems to be ignoring them.
I would be interested to know how much Reading were losing in the seasons before Madejsky took them over. I think it’s great that someone cares enough to take on an ailing football club in hope of turning it around, and the likes of Madejsky & Whelan will always be remembered for that, which is fair enough in itself. Turning around clubs fortunes and running them sustainably isn’t in these peoples minds though. It’s always got to be ‘let’s reach for the stars, that’ll get everyone onboard’ - course it will, success is a sure way to pack em in. Hard to keep em when things aren’t so great, they’re only used to winning. Madejsky built the stadium with a view to expanding it to accommodate 38,000 fans. Twice they were relegated and both times he shelved those plans, if wiki is accurate. 15k stadium would easily do them now. When they were getting 4K they’d have killed to have their current gates. A few years ago they were paying out 210% of turnover in wages (might have been the covid season) and last season when we visited there, the fans were chucking tennis balls on the pitch. I bet Readings current problems dwarf the ones they had when still at Elm Park. All for 3 seasons in the top flight and a fancy ground. For me Madejsky has to share some responsibility for where they are now, same as Whelan at Wigan.
Don't have an exact figure; but for some reason commercial investment at the club dropped by £750,000 per year from 1988 to 1990. Then Madejski took them on. I must've seen us play Reading away on roughly fifteen occasions. Always enjoyed my visits there.
They have em queuing up to buy em. I get that. I should have made it clearer so apologies for that. I'm Just making the point we haven't, not in the past anyway. And I don't envisage a private investment consortium wanting owt to do with us, due to the club and stadium issues. Some deep conversations would need to be had. A fans group imo would be the only possibility. But would have to be run on a shoestring budget.
I think there'd be someone who'd take over, but would they be another Yongge, Lee, or Conway? The examples of poor owners are more numerous than good.
Not without complete control of the stadium the lease is not long enough imo. Ours was 30yrs. Man city's is 250yrs.
Excellent post, l always say clubs run the risk of financial ruin when they haven't got the infrastructure and support, living the dream for a couple of years and then it's all downhill. See also Luton and Blackpool, l actually posted on here a year ago when Luton were on the crest of a wave that they will be back in League 1 in a few years.
There are buyers looking to buy Reading, just as there would be buyers willing to buy us. People seem to think it's still 2003. Football has moved on.
In my opinion, the only obstacle to anybody potentially buying us is the fact that the current owners will want their money back, unfortunately due to their own mismanagement, the Club isn't worth what they've invested.Theyll have to sell eventually if they're haemorrhaging money year on year with no progress whatsoever. That's just my opinion.
Reading is a totally different proposition for reasons I've gone through in other posts. Our club don't own the ground. But rent. With only a 30 yr lease. We are not man city. Who as said b4 have a 250yr lease. With a rent of 3m + inflation each Yr. Peanuts tbh. As to why you think 2003 is in anyway relevant I'm not sure. Some clubs still fall into administration. If that's what you're referring to. What does football having moved on mean in this context. Genuine question As for people wanting to buy us. 1 was reluctant. Cryne. Doyle wasn't popular, fans wanting to know why he bothered. And the less said about Lee and Conway the better. Now is a different kettle of fish with the ownership of the club and Stadium split between different ownerships.
I remember someone saying summat along the lines of ‘Huddersfield are made for years to come’, either when they either reached the Prem or survived the first season, yet here they are, back in the 3rd tier with the possibility of being here again next season.
I always used to think their Elm park ground looked absolutely awful, like something from the early 1900's.