Livingston chief finds relief funds

LIVINGSTON chairman Robert Wilson has handed the club a six-figure sum to help them navigate the coronavirus crisis.

The interest-free ‘contingency fund’ is in place to mitigate the absence of gate receipts and commercial revenue, with Livi determined to honour their contracts in full for as long as possible.

However, Wilson has admitted that it would be ‘financial suicide’ to rule out cost-saving measures – whether wage deferrals or placing staff on furlough leave – if the current hiatus drags on.

Livi this week posted profits of £367,530 for the year ending June 2019 and vowed to honour their contracts in full – albeit chief executive John Ward later warned of a £600,000 black hole due to the Premiership shutdown.

“We have guaranteed players and staff that will meet their wages in our we full meantime,” explained Wilson. “However, that in itself is a very fluid situation and it would be financial suicide to entertain the idea that this is sustainable indefinitely.

“What we can guarantee every single supporter is that we will always put the club first.

“The club is facing a period of uncertainty. I have every confidence in our business model, and so I have provided a six-figure sum to the club as an interest-free contingency fund to assist in underwriting any unforeseen consequences of the current pandemic.”

“It is a very fluid situation, and anyone claiming to be able to predict the outcome is simply not living in the real world.

“Our success in recent years is built on taking a pragmatic approach, and we will survive by applying the same pragmatism to every decision we take. The toughest of those challenges and decisions may still lie ahead of us all.”