Takeover bid assembled before Allardyce took Hamers job

29 August 2011 10:27
Consortium still interested in City bid Even though the Gary Hoffman led bid to take control of Coventry City failed, he says the consortium is still interested in taking over the club. The consortium offered to buy the club for £1 to take on the club debts, invest further money in the team and set up a fund to buy part of The Ricoh Arena, but the offer did not include paying off Sisu's own debts. After the bid was withdrawn amid acrimonious recriminations and accusations of breach of confidentiality surrounding the identities of Hoffman's investors and that one of those involved with the bid was West Ham manager, former Sky Blue player Sam Allardyce, whose inclusion broke Football League rules. Hoffman explained hat the bid was assembled before Allardyce took the West Ham job and if the takeover was successful he would sever his links with the company liked with the proposed takeover. The company in question and which was a major component of the takeover consortium, is the internet company CUJU8 where Sam Allardyce is a director of their parent company, Game8 Hoffman said last night, “It clearly is dead between these two parties but the investors have said that they have not fallen out with Coventry City, the city of Coventry or me. They said they’ve only fallen out with these people, so let’s see what happens.” However the deal, although dead, is not yet buried and could be resurrected if Coventry City go into administration, but that is an option that Sisu and the current board are eager to avoid.  Hoffman rejected the claim that his bid was contrary to Football League rules even though Allardyce is a director of the parent company of CUJU8, Game8 mainly because when the consortium was being assembled, Allardyce was not employed by West Ham, but he would have been required to  to resign his directorship had the takeover succeeded.   Hoffman said, “Of course we understood the Football League rules and would have complied with those. It is ridiculous to think that we would be that naive not to." “Coventry City fans should be delighted that I have the contacts that would enable that sort of person to be helping in the background or be involved as an investor." “The fact that people of that stature were involved and there were others, should give the fans lots of heart that there was a real prospect of what is turning into a tragedy, to being transformed into stability and success for Coventry City.”  

Source: FOOTYMAD