JOHNSTON HAS THE ACUMEN TO MAX POTENTIAL
Return of former chairman to the board can only be a positive, says Dr Dan Plumey . . .
ALASTAIR Johnston can help Rangers to maximise their earning potential across the world and boost income after returning to the board of the Ibrox club six years after being ousted as chairman.
Johnston, the vice-chairman of IMG Worldwide, could also help bring an end to the ongoing and hugely costly standoff with Mike Ashley and Sports Direct over the terms of the merchandising agreement.
Those were the predictions of football finance expert Dr Dan Plumley today in the wake of the surprise decision to bring Johnston in as a nonexecutive director of the Ladbrokes Premiership club.
The news the 68-year-old Glaswegian was coming back in an official capacity was widely welcomed by Rangers supporters after a statement was made on their official website yesterday.
The lifelong Gers supporter urged then owner Sir David Murray not to sell his majority stake to Craig Whyte back in 2011 before being removed from his post and left with his reputation intact.
Johnston was accused of breaking the Companies Act during Whyte’s trial by increasing the notice period of former chief executive Martin Bain from 12 months to 39 months without the approval of shareholders in 2011.
But the widespread feeling among the Light Blues support is he is somebody who can help them reclaim their place as the dominant force in Scottish football after several difficult seasons both on and off the park and restore stability at Ibrox.
Dr Plumley, a senior lecturer in sports business management at Sheffield Hallam University, certainly believes this move will enable an institution which continues to wrestle with serious historical problems to make significant strides forward.
“When a club appoints a director they are looking for someone with an affinity to the club, with a sound business acumen, with a name and a profile and with the knowledge of how to run a big business and he would seem to tick all of those boxes,” he said.
“Both Rangers and Celtic are now considered big businesses. So having somebody who has worked at a high level for an internationally renowned company like IMG will be beneficial for the club in the future. Many of his skills will be transferable.
“The position that Rangers have been in in recent years has not been great. But they are back at the top table of Scottish football now and should be looking to operate in a more global market place like so many other clubs i n the modern game.
“The Premiership in Scotland isn’t one of the most followed leagues in the world, but if they have somebody in there at Rangers who knows how to raise that brand profile and develop their brand it will help them in the new markets which are emerging.
“A lot of football clubs are branching out into the global market by developing feeder clubs and franchise clubs and through ambitious pre-season tours in other continents. There are areas where money can be made.
“The Premier League in England is obviously hugely popular and is watched in over 200 countries around the world. But there are still opportunities for Rangers to raise their brand profile in different areas.”
United States-based Johnston, who studied accountancy at Strathclyde University before moving across the Atlantic and into sports promotion with IMG, has worked with the likes of Bjorn Borg, Michael Schumacher, Jackie Stewart and Venus and Serena Williams in a career which has spanned nearly 50 years.
He was also once described as the fourth most powerful man in golf when he was the head of his employers’ golf division and has been involved with the late Arnold Palmer, Gary Player and Tiger Woods.
Johnston has spoken of his concern about the lasting damage which the Ibrox club’s recent troubles have done to their brand – not least the refusal by many supporters to buy replica kit due to the poor return which Rangers make from the sale of any shirt.
IN an interview with BBC Scotland back in 2015 he said: “There is no question about the fact in my mind that the value of the Rangers brand has really gone downhill, has skidded downhill significantly in the last three or four years. The brand value of Rangers has certainly taken a big hit.
“Sports fans of today are not the same as the sports fans of 20 to 50 years ago.
“They have a lot of alternatives about how they spend their money, time, or expend their emotions or energy.
“I am concerned that there are a lot of Rangers fans who are not just not buying official merchandise or not having interest in watching it on TV.
They may have gone away and a lot of them may not come back.”
DR Plumley believes the Scot could help the Glasgow outfit, who have strengthened their firstteam squad during the close season by bringing in Bruno Alves, Ryan Jack and Dalcio, to generate increased revenue from untapped commercial sources and raise their profile in both their own country and further afield.
“Historically, football clubs have very much concentrated on their local market,” he said. “But having somebody with good business acumen, who has worked at a high level with IMG, will mean that he knows about global reach.
“If there is baggage with the shirt sponsorship deal with Sports Direct then he can examine how the brand can make extra revenue from different areas and different market places. He certainly puts them in a more positive area than they were before.”
It is doubtful that Johnston will be able to help Rangers reach an agreement with Sports Direct in their longrunning dispute over the terms of the retail deal which was struck when Charles Green was chief executive back in 2012.
But Dr Plumley said: “It won’t hurt having him at Rangers. He will know how to handle negotiations at boardroom level. The more proficient and influential people you can have at boardroom level the better. It doesn’t do their chances [of resolving the conflict] any harm at all.”