Leeds United’s liquidator misses out on nearly £5m

The liquidator of Leeds United has missed out on a payment of £4.75m after the club failed to be promoted in the 10 seasons since chairman Ken Bates put it through a pre-pack administration in May 2007.

The weekend’s 3-3 draw against Norwich has made it all-but impossible for the club to reach the Championship play-offs, which results in one of the four qualifying teams win promotion in the Wembley final.

Despite achieving the club’s highest Championship points total since 2005-06, it needs to close a 14-goal gap on Fulham with just one game left to play.

The liquidators had agreed a deal with Bates that a performance-related payment would be due if Leeds United re-joined the Premier League at any point before the 2017/18 season.

However Leeds United’s best league performance in 11 seasons has not been sufficient to avoid refunding more than 12,000 season ticket holders 25% of their ticket prices.

The Championship club had said it would refund season ticket holders if they bought their tickets before May 31, 2016, and the club then missed out on the play-offs.

The club has not confirmed how many season ticket holders will benefit or what the cost will be to the club. However it is estimated to be in the region of £750,000-£1m.

Adult season ticket holders will receive a refund of between £89-£139.

Leeds United had sold 12,000 season tickets one day before its May 31st deadline, which it marked by sacking the then head coach Steve Evans.

The club had offered a 50% refund if more than 15,000 season tickets were sold before its May deadline but fell well short of its target.

However the club’s on-field success – which saw it win 14 of its 23 home matches – helped increase its average attendance by 23% to 27,697.