DONCASTER WARNS OF SPONSOR STRUGGLE

NEIL DONCASTER last night admitted that the SPFL faced an uphill battle to land a new sponsor partly because of the level of acrimony in the game. The league’s five-year deal with Ladbrokes expires this summer, with the bookmaker giving notice of its intention to move on long before the pandemic hit. Since Scottish football ground to a halt on March 13, the game has been gripped by infighting, with the dispute over the SPFL’s season-ending resolution compounded by the rejection of Rangers’ plea for an independent investigation on Tuesday. Despite the vote failing to deliver the 75-per-cent backing it required, the Ibrox club are just one of several disgruntled parties who have vowed not to let the matter rest. And chief executive Doncaster says the already difficult task of capturing a new sponsor is being made markedly more so due to the myriad public spats that continue to dominate the agenda. ‘Certainly any division doesn’t help the central exploitation of sponsorship assets,’ Doncaster said. ‘There has been so much division which has been really quite damaging to the league, to all of its 42 member clubs. ‘The reality is that we are in a

world where economies en masse — not just the football economy — are in real difficulty. ‘The discretionary spend for companies on things like sponsorship are clearly under pressure. ‘All of us are doing everything we can, both clubs and the league, to bring in any revenues we are able to. That remains the case.’ Speaking on the day that the annual Football Distress Report stated that Scottish football clubs were being pushed to the ‘brink of insolvency’ by the coronavirus crisis, Doncaster underlined the challenges specifically pertaining to clubs in this country. ‘I don’t think we should underestimate at all the scale of the financial challenges that face all of our member clubs,’ he added. ‘Unlike some leagues around Europe, which are very heavily based around broadcasting, our clubs’ revenues are far more based on revenues coming from fans — that comes through them coming through the turnstile. ‘We’ve made it very clear to government that the economics of the Scottish game are far more heavily based on fans coming through turnstiles at live games. ‘Unless we start getting fans coming into our stadia in the near future, I do expect there to be extremely challenging times for all our clubs.’ With the lower three leagues already called and the Premiership set to follow suit, there is an expectation that the three clubs who will be relegated with games still to play — Hearts, Partick Thistle and Stranraer — will receive enhanced parachute payments. But, speaking on PLZ Soccer, Doncaster warned: ‘A system of distribution within the leagues is one that clubs have approved. One hundred per cent of payments are based on league positions. ‘In the event that members decide to change the distribution formula… that’s a matter for them. We are very much servants of the member clubs. ‘If they decide on a different way of distributing the league’s money, that’s very much for them.’ The calling of the Premiership is thought to be imminent, with Celtic’s title and Hearts’ relegation now seen to be inevitable. Asked to clarify the process, Doncaster said: ‘That’s certainly what UEFA want (by May 25) — a steer as to where all the leagues in Europe are going with season 2019-20. ‘The resolution gave the SPFL board the express authority to curtail the season at some point in the future and the board have indicated that it will consult with Premiership clubs before any such decision might be made.’ There will be no reprieve for Brora or Kelty, though, with Doncaster confirming that Brechin City will avoid a play-off with either due to the resolution being passed. ‘The situation in which we find ourselves is that the Scottish Government has made regulations that prohibit the playing of football,’ he explained. ‘Those are in place until June 10 and they may extend beyond that. ‘The new season is due to commence with the Betfred Cup starting in the middle of July. ‘Clearly players need to train to be ready for that. And then the start of the new league season is scheduled to be the beginning of August. ‘That’s why the resolution passed by 81 per cent of SPFL clubs drew a line under the lower-league seasons and all play-off competitions.’