SPL title challenge effectively ended.

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Rangers Football Club has entered administration – meaning the club will be docked 10 points, effectively ending its Scottish Premier League challenge.

It follows an unsuccessful legal bid by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) at the Court of Session in Edinburgh to appoint its own administrator.

London-based firm Duff and Phelps was appointed by Rangers at 14:50.

It has now emerged that Rangers’ game against Kilmarnock on Saturday may not go ahead unless police can be paid.

In a statement, Strathclyde Police said it had a duty to make sure public resources were used appropriately.

SOURCE: BBC Sport

This is the start of what could well turn out to be a very dark chapter in the history of a club with a rich history. This all stems back to disputed tax bill that could end up costing the Glasgow club anything from between £49m and £75m and leaves Rangers some 14 points from leaders Celtic but still a comfortable nine points ahead of third placed Motherwell.

Mr Whyte is believed to be a secured creditor of Rangers and could collapse the club if HMRC block a creditors agreement.

The chairman could opt to pursue the legal routes of receivership or pre-pack administration to avoid paying any tax liabilities.

These routes would involve Rangers’ assets being transferred to a new company or companies and the old club – formed in 1873 – being left behind with the unpayable debts. It would, almost inevitably, be wound up.

Revenue impact

In these cases, HMRC, as an unsecured creditor, would receive very little if anything.

If Rangers was wound up, the ramifications for the Scottish game would be far-reaching.

It is likely that existing TV deals, which provide significant revenue streams for Scottish clubs, would be scaled back or in extreme cases cancelled.

The absence of Rangers fans at other grounds in Scotland would also reduce revenue to competitor clubs.

A rigorous debate is now likely to begin as to whether Rangers hypothetical absence from top-flight Scottish football would be a blessing or a bombshell.

SOURCE: BBC Sport

Indeed an SPL without Rangers doesn’t bare thinking about, whilst there is clearly a very real hate/hate relationship between Celtic and their local rivals the Bhoys are all to aware that the loss of the Ibrox side from the footballing landscape will have ramifications on Scottish football as a whole. We are after all talking about a club that was founded 138 years ago and has won the domestic title a record 54 times.

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