BUDGE FACES WRATH OF RIVALS

ANN BUDGE’S threat of a potentially lengthy legal battle with the SPFL has angered rival clubs — who have warned her not to put next season’s kick-off at risk by challenging any losing vote on reconstruction. The Hearts owner reacted to yesterday’s decision to award season 2019-20 places on a points-per-game basis, condemning the Tynecastle side to relegation, by doubling down on her bid to expand the Scottish Premiership to 14 teams. Budge chaired the SPFL’s own Reconstruction Task Force, whose work was rendered moot when Premiership clubs killed the idea without even seeing the outline proposals. The Hearts chairman says she has been encouraged by positive discussions with some of those teams since. And she’ll now put forward a resolution for all 42 SPFL clubs

to vote on her own plan, believed to be a temporary fix and open to review after two seasons. But she warned of dire consequences if the leagues aren’t remodelled to keep Hearts among the elite, saying: ‘As previously intimated, the club has been taking legal advice throughout this process and we are continuing to do so. ‘We hope that the resolution being prepared will avoid the need to go down this route. ‘Legal action would be both timeconsuming and expensive. However, the cost to the club of relegation would outweigh these considerations. ‘We will continue to fight against what we believe is an unjust outcome.’ Season 2020-21 is due to kick-off with the Betfred Cup in July, while the new league campaign — complete with a new £160million Sky deal — is scheduled to start on August 1. The prospect of a court battle further jeopardising hopes of restarting football on time has not gone down well with a number of the clubs now being asked to support Budge. In a statement yesterday, she revealed: ‘Hearts will shortly submit a member’s resolution that we believe is a pragmatic solution to the issues the game currently faces and a way forward that the clubs can unite behind. ‘It is our belief that this resolution, if supported, will provide an opportunity to avoid disproportionately disadvantaging — financially and otherwise — any club. ‘It was previously indicated that league reconstruction would not generate enough support to pass a vote between member clubs. ‘In recent days, a number of positive talks have been held with both the SPFL and member clubs, and this topic is currently being revisited.’ Meanwhile, Hearts boss Daniel Stendel is officially a free agent following yesterday’s events, according to the German’s agent. And Stendel, whose contract contains a relegation get-out clause, hasn’t received an offer to stick around for the Championship promotion push. Timo Rodewald told that he considers his client a free man, saying: ‘First of all, let me say that Daniel now does not have a contract with Hearts. ‘His contract is only valid for the Premiership, so that is the direct consequence. Does that mean he’s leaving? Not necessarily. But from now, it just means he is out of contract. ‘In order to stay, the two parties need to find a new contract, a new solution. ‘That obviously depends on the two parties, whether they want to continue or not. That needs to be decided in the next step.’