Coventry City docked ten points as liquidation looms

COVENTRY City Football Club is set to be liquidated after an eleventh hour attempt to get Ricoh Arena owner Arena Coventry Limited (ACL) to sign a CVA agreement so the club could exit administration failed.

The failure to reach a settlement that would bring the club out of administration triggered a deduction of ten points from the Football League.

A ten minute meeting on Friday morning between administrator Paul Appleton, creditors and the club failed to reach agreement and liquidation is almost certainly the result.

It is understood the football club and the Alan Higgs Centre Trust accepted the administrator’s CVA but the city council rejected it. ACL runs the Ricoh Arena on behalf of the trust band the council.

A statement on Coventry City FC’s official website said: “It is with great regret that a proposed Company Voluntary Agreement (CVA), which would have brought CCFC Ltd out of administration and would have recovered a substantial sum of money for its creditors, has been rejected by Arena Coventry Limited (ACL).

“It means CCFC Ltd is likely to be put into liquidation which is expected to result in a points penalty for the club going into the new season.

“The football club and the Alan Higgs Centre Trust accepted the administrator’s CVA, but the City Council, through ACL, have chosen to reject it – leading to possible liquidation and the risk of a 15-point deduction.

“The club will hold urgent meetings with the Football League this afternoon to go through the next steps for the football club.”

ACL released a statement saying that it was unhappy with the proposals in the CVA put forward by administrator Appleton.

“This decision was based on ACL’s twin aims,” a statement read. “First, to keep Coventry City Football Club playing in Coventry; and second, to ensure that Coventry City Football Club is financially viable for the next few years and beyond.

“This last point is especially important given that CCFC has been the subject of a ‘catastrophic insolvency’ in the hands of its previous owners.

“The CVA proposals put forward by Mr Appleton simply do not address these obvious concerns. And these concerns are not only the concerns of ACL – they are the concerns of all Sky Blues supporters, and should be the central concerns of both The Football League and The Football Association.

“Mr Appleton has the ability to put forward new proposals, and we would welcome these as soon as possible.”

In response to ACL’s statement, Appleton said: “We do not understand the comments being made by ACL with regard to the ability to put forward new proposals. The proposals ACL required simply did not comply with the law.”

The Sky Blues went into administration in March triggering a ten point deduction last season.

The football club’s owners and ACL are locked in a dispute over unpaid rent at the Ricoh Arena.

And ACL has appealed to the Football League to stop the club groundsharing with Northampton Town for the next three seasons while a new ground is developed in the Coventry area.

Coventry City lost its first game of the season on Saturday, 3-2 away at Crawley Town.