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This time last year (actually in the last week of July), some "in the know" board posters were making cryptic comments about an amazing imminent takeover at QPR. Their posts were greeted by some derision! And then came the various reports and announcements during August 2007...
At the end of July, 2007 then Director Nick De Marco posted on QPR1st
"...here is now, however, some light at the end of the tunnel and a serious prospect of attracting new investment and putting these difficulties, and the ABC loan, permanently behind us. Many of us are working hard to secure this investment over the next few weeks. If it comes off, we will be able to consign the discussions and post mortems about ABC and all the rest to the musings of football historians and concentrate on what should be a very bright future. I am sure fans will understand if the Board concentrates on securing the new investment over the next period, rather than responding to every piece of speculation in the media. As soon as it is possible to make an official announcement one will be made." QPR1st
August 2nd 2008 - re Takeover/QPR Finances
Paddington Mercury, QPR Chairman Gianni Paladini told the paper: “If the deal doesn’t happen by the end of the month the club will go bust. I’ve been like magician Paul Daniels to this club but I can’t do it anymore, I haven’t got any more money to put in. I’m prepared not to take a penny for my shared if it means the club will move forward but we need to get new investors in. I’m crossing my fingers and toes everything really. “This deal if it goes through will be the best thing to happen to QPR in a long time,. I know the people involved but there is still a lot of negotiating to do, I’d be surprised if anything happened by the end of the week.” Reported
The Briatore (and possible Ecclestone) involvement became public in the press, the second week of August, as QPR fans then experienced a roller-coaster few weeks.
Friday, August 10, 2007
Daily Mail - Overtaking? No, taking over as Ecclestone and Briatore plan QPR swoop EXCLUSIVE: By MATT LAWTON -
Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone is set to buy Queens Park Rangers, Sportsmail can reveal.
Ecclestone, worth £2.25billion and the 20th richest man in Britain, has linked up with Renault F1 chief Flavio Briatore to acquire the west London club from Gianni Paladini.
The three men are understood to have shaken hands on the deal within the last fortnight. Paladini has been looking to sell for around £30million but has told friends he would accept substantially less if the deal was right.
Under the deal, Paladini would stay on as chairman, running the Championship club on a day-to-day basis, but Ecclestone and Briatore - a football-mad Italian - have the financial clout to transform a side with one of the wealthiest catchment areas in the country. Ecclestone, who has transformed the fortunes of Formula One with his tough management style, has no track record in football but was recently linked to a possible takeover of Arsenal.
Last night, Paladini denied that a deal had been completed, saying: "I wish it was true."
The move is unusual in that it involves a partnership between a British and a foreign investor and comes on a day when two of English football's most influential figures warned of the dangers of too much foreign money coming into the domestic game.
With Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Manchester City, Fulham, Portsmouth, Sunderland and West Ham all now having non-English owners, Bolton chairman Phil Gartside voiced fears that too much foreign investment will damage the Premier League.
He said: "The trouble is that the more foreign owners you get, the greater the danger of the balance of power changing.
"Football, as it has been regulated for years, could be in danger. If the foreignowned clubs gain a majority and decide to get together, they could start to dictate how the league is run....." Daily Mail
August 10, 2008 - The Times - Flamboyant Briatore on track to take over at QPR - Gary Jacob and Kevin Eason
Flavio Briatore is in advanced talks about taking control of Queens Park Rangers. The Renault team principal is believed to be considering a deal worth about £25 million for the club, including taking on the debt of about £21 million. The flamboyant businessman is not known for a love of football, although his shrewd brain has given him a unique place in Formula One. He helped to mastermind the transfer of a little-known Michael Schumacher and spotted Fernando Alonso, the world champion.
Briatore is the latest individual – including a consortium involving Ronny Rosenthal, the former Liverpool forward – that has been entertained by the Coca-Cola Championship club this summer in an attempt to ensure that do not fall into administration.
Briatore has promised John Gregory, the QPR manager, about £10 million to spend on players in Janaury and he is willing to repay the £10 million that is owed to the ABC Corporation, a loan that helped the club to exit administration five years ago, but has become a noose because of the hefty repayments. More than £7 million is still owed to club directors and the HM Revenue and Customs.
Born in Italy, Briatore ran Benetton’s operations in the United States, turning five stores into 800 branches. When Benetton sent him to Formula One to transform a moribund team he recruited the best – including Ross Brawn, who later became the technical director of Ferrari – and snatched a young driver from Jordan. Schumacher won two world titles at Benetton and a further five with Ferrari.
When Renault bought the Benetton team, Briatore who had briefly left Formula One returned, and spotted another brilliant talent, Alonso, who has won two world titles. Away from the track, Briatore, 57, lives a life reflected in the choice of title for his range of fashion and nightclub businesses, called simply Billionaire. He has yachts, a house in Sardinia and an apartment in London. The Times QPR Report
August 10, 2007 - QPR1st's Reported Reaction to Reported Takeover
-Sporting Life - QPR FANS WELCOME ECCLESTONE TALK
The QPR Supporters Trust believe it would be "good news" if Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone launched a takeover of the Coca-Cola Championship club.
A report on Friday linked Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore, who is in charge of the Renault F1 team, with a bid.
And Trust Co-ordinator Tracy Stent insists high-profile investment is needed to secure the club's future
Rangers took out a £10million loan from the Panama-based ABC Corporation to help them out of administration five years ago, an arrangement which has proved restrictive ever since.
She said: "If someone came in with a large amount of money, they would be saving the club.
"The club needs to find someone to re-finance the structure of the ABC loan. It is imperative that something is done about this.
"If these names are being mentioned, it can only be good news." Sporting Life
August 10, 2007 QPR Takeover Update - Interest Supposedly from Briatore but not Ecclestone
BBC - Briatore linked with QPR takeover
Renault Formula One team boss Flavio Briatore is reportedly interested in taking over Queens Park Rangers.
Reports from Italy have linked Briatore and F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone with a joint bid for the club, who narrowly avoided relegation last season.
"We are in the early stages," the 57-year-old was quoted as saying in the Italian press.
"We have had some discussions, but nothing has been signed," added the Renault F1 team boss.
Rangers only just avoided relegation from the Championship last season, and are restricted by the £10m loan they took from the Panama-based ABC Corporation to help them out of administration five years ago.
More than £7m is still owed to club directors and HM Revenue and Customs.
One report suggested that current chairman Gianni Paladini would be allowed to continue to run the club were Ecclestone and Briatore to assume control.
Paladini - who became chairman in the autumn of 2005 after a boardroom coup to oust former incumbent Bill Power - has been willing to sell the club for some time, but has yet to reach an agreement to do so.
When asked whether the deal had been completed, Paladini told the Daily Mail: "I wish it was true."
The QPR Supporters Trust, meanwhile, believe it would be "good news" were Ecclestone and Briatore to step in.
Co-ordinator Tracy Stent said: "The club needs to find someone to re-finance the structure of the ABC loan. It is imperative that something is done about this."
But former England and QPR striker Les Ferdinand, who would like to see Paladini and his board of directors removed, wants any prospective new owners to prove they have the club's future at heart.
"You don't want someone buying the club just because it is in the west London area, and they see it as an investment.
"That is my main concern. These people might have a lot of money, but how would they invest it?"
In July, Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore were linked with a possible takeover of Arsenal.
Eccelstone, who has amassed a reported £3bn fortune over the years knows former Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein, who left the club in acrimonious circumstances in April.
The 76-year-old said then: "If somebody offers me something I think is good value, I will have a go. I'm interested in anything if it's cheap enough." BBC
DAILY MAIL - Ecclestone U-turn: I want Arsenal, Flavio wants QPR!
Bernie Ecclestone has confirmed Flavio Briatore's interest in buying Queens Park Rangers - but told Sportsmail yesterday that his sights are on Arsenal.
The Formula One boss is keen to invest a sizeable chunk of his £2.25billion fortune in football and so, he says, is Renault F1 chief Briatore, who is believed to have agreed a deal with Loftus Road chairman Gianni Paladini.
Paladini has been looking to sell for around £30m but has told friends he would accept substantially less if the deal was right.
Ecclestone said: "I think it is Flavio. I'm not in discussions with anyone. The only way I might get involved in football is if Arsenal is up for sale at a sensible price and I could take total control." Daily Mail QPR Report
Les Ferdinand on His Hopes for QPR
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FERDINAND ISSUES QPR CHALLENGE - Sporting Life/PA Sport - By Tom Collomosse, PA Sport
Former QPR striker Les Ferdinand has challenged any potential new owners to prove their commitment to the club if they take control at Loftus Road.
Reports have linked Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone and Renault team chief Flavio Briatore with takeover a bid for the Coca-Cola Championship club, who are in a troubled financial position.
But Ferdinand, who would like to see current chairman Gianni Paladini and his directors removed, wants any prospective new owners to prove they have the club's future at heart.
"Anyone who takes over has to show they want to take the club forward," Ferdinand said.
"It has to be someone who wants to go in there and do things the right way, which would mean investing money to take QPR back to the Premier League.
"You don't want someone buying the club just because it is in the west London area, and they see it as an investment.
"That is my main concern. These people might have a lot of money, but how would they invest it?" Ferdinand, who played for QPR from 1987 until 1995, has been dismayed to see the club's fortunes slide since they were relegated from the top flight at the end of the 1995/96 campaign.
Rangers only just avoided relegation from the Championship last season, and are restricted greatly by the £10million loan they took from the Panama-based ABC Corporation to help them out of administration five years ago.
One report suggested that current chairman Gianni Paladini would be allowed to continue to run the club were Ecclestone and Briatore to assume control.
But Ferdinand, 40, is keen to see more significant changes at boardroom level - although he is happy for manager John Gregory to remain in charge.
"I would like to see a restructuring at all levels, apart from the management team," continued Ferdinand, who was capped 17 times by England. "The manager (Gregory) has a decent track record.
"I want to see QPR taken forward, and that might mean a restructuring of the board.
"A lot of unsavoury things have happened at QPR, and there needs to be a lot of work done behind the scenes to get the club back to where it was."
Paladini - who became chairman in the autumn of 2005 after a boardroom coup to oust former incumbent Bill Power - has been willing to sell the club for some time, but has yet to reach an agreement to do so.
When asked whether the deal had been completed, Paladini told the Daily Mail: "I wish it was true."
The QPR Supporters Trust, meanwhile, believe it would be "good news" were Ecclestone and Briatore to step in.
Co-ordinator Tracy Stent said: "If someone came in with a large amount of money, they would be saving the club.
"The club needs to find someone to re-finance the structure of the ABC loan. It is imperative that something is done about this." Sporting Life QPR Report
August 11, 2008
Saturday, August 11, 2007
QPR-Flavior Briatore Takeover Update
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Telegraph - Flavio Briatore in talks to buy QPR - By David Bond
Flavio Briatore, the flamboyant boss of Formula One team Renault, said last night that he was in the early stages of talks to buy Queens Park Rangers.
The Italian businessman, who has close links to Bernie Ecclestone, is believed to be considering a £30 million deal to save the Championship club and help fund a push for promotion to the Premier League.
He said: "We are in the early stages. We have had some discussions, but nothing has been signed."
It is understood talks are set to continue over the weekend. Briatore did not reveal, however, whether Ecclestone, the billionaire ringmaster of F1, was involved in the deal.
QPR's chairman Gianni Paladini has been searching for months for new investors to prevent the club from going into administration.
They are losing around £2 million a year and are £21 million in debt with a £10 million loan to the ABC Corporation due to be repaid next year. A further £7 million is owed to directors and the taxman.
Any deal with Briatore would involve taking on those debts and investing around £10 million for manager John Gregory to spend on new players.
That price would nevertheless be expensive for a club outside the Premiership with no possibility of modernising their Loftus Road ground.
It is understood that one of the plans being discussed is a proposal to sell Loftus Road to property developers and move the club to a new site currently owned by the BBC at White City.
Paladini recently added Kevin Steele, a property lawyer from Mishcon de Reya, to the QPR board to advise on redevelopment options, with Hammersmith and Fulham Council believed to be in favour of the plans. Telegraph
The Times - August 11, 2007 - Ecclestone on verge of launching Arsenal bid - Kevin Eason
Bernie Ecclestone is counting down the days until he can secure control of Arsenal in one of English football’s most astonishing takeover deals. In an exclusive interview with The Times, the Formula One impresario revealed that he would be “interested in buying the club today”, if it were on the market. ...
Ecclestone had been linked with a takeover of Queens Park Rangers in concert with Flavio Briatore, the principal at the Renault Formula One team and one of his closest allies. But he emphatically ruled himself out of the deal yesterday, saying that Briatore was acting alone. Instead, Ecclestone’s eyes are fixed on Arsenal and transforming the club into a mirror image of his huge Formula One empire.
Briatore’s appearance at QPR is more mysterious. The flamboyant Italian confirmed yesterday that he was in talks with the club and QPR are desperate for a buyer with cash. The Coca-Cola Championship club are staggering under the weight of a £10 million high-interest loan and have spent months trying to satisfy creditors. At one point this year they even faced a winding-up order from the St John Ambulance service over an unpaid bill of £18,000.
It is thought that Briatore would probably get the club at a price below the £30 million regularly quoted, because of the debt burden. But he would still be faced with financing a reconstruction plan capable of getting QPR back into the top flight for the first time in 11 years.
Briatore, who is thought to be worth about £70 million, is said to have pledged £10 million for transfers, but more would be needed and he is not in the wealth class of someone such as Ecclestone. However, he is one of the best connected men in Europe and could find backers easily to help to broker a quick takeover. The Times
DAILY MIRROR - FLAVIO IN POLE FOR QPR
Formula One tycoon Flavio Briatore last night played down claims he was on the verge of taking over troubled Queens Park Rangers.
The Italian billionaire was said to be ready to buy out Rangers chief Gianni Paladini in a £25million deal, which could also have seen his close pal Bernie Ecclestone being involved.
Paladini and partner Antonio Caliendo own 47 per cent of the cash-strapped Loftus Road club and are desperate to find a buyer ready to invest in the Championship side. But while Briatore confirmed he had received an approach through intermediaries, he explained: "It is something that has been brought to our attention and there have been some superficial preliminary talks.
"There is nothing concrete so far at all, nothing signed or discussed beyond a very preliminary stage." Mirror QPR Report
AUGUST 12, 2007
Former Juventus Director, Antonio Giraudo for QPR?
-Channel 4 - Ex-Juve chief Giraudo to run QPR?
Former ‘Triade’ Juventus director Antonio Giraudo could join Flavio Briatore in his bid to buy out Queen's Park Rangers.
It has been widely reported that the managing director of Renault’s Formula 1 team and millionaire businessman Briatore is interested in taking over the Championship club.
There are now additional rumours in Italy that the man to help him run the West London side is ex-Juventus chief Giraudo.
A member of the notorious ‘Triade’ of directors along with Luciano Moggi and Roberto Bettega, the general manager left the Bianconeri in the wake of the Calciopoli scandal.
Of the three Bettega was the only one to still work for Juve until recently, when his contract as a consultant was not renewed.
It was claimed that this decision was made by Marco Tardelli, who wanted a clean break with the pre-Calciopoli administration.
Giraudo has kept his silence over the scandal that saw Juventus demoted to Serie B amid allegations of pressurising referees and authority figures.
He went to London to work in real estate and it is rumoured he could be tempted back into the football world by Briatore’s ambitious plans for QPR.
Current President Gianni Paladini is playing down the reports of an offer, but the club has debts of £21m, more than £7m of which is owed to club directors and HM Revenue & Customs. Channel 4
Also story in the Italian paper (in Italian), La Gazetta Dello Sport QPR ReportAM
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Flavio Briatore's 2005 Perspective re Successful Management
-The Guardian - Martin Rose Tuesday October 4, 2005
Ecclestone wanted to buy Chelsea, says Briatore
"Chelsea may never have been purchased by Roman Abramovich had negotiations to sell the London club to the formula one pair Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore moved at a faster pace. The Italian Briatore has revealed that he and Ecclestone had lined up Chelsea until the Russian arrived on the scene.
"We had a big programme to take over the club when Abramovich arrive by boat," said Briatore, the team principal of Renault. "He buy Chelsea from under our noses while me and Bernie are in the middle of negotiations to do the deal. It is funny. Abramovich and Bernie are very big friends - and I meet him many times. We were on our way with Chelsea, me and Bernie, and Abramovich put a stop to it."
Abramovich has ploughed unprecedented millions into Chelsea, an investment that helped them win the Premiership last season. But Briatore is convinced they would have enjoyed similar success had he got his hands on the club.
"The techniques of management are the same whether you run a clothing company or a football club. Management is the way you produce your product - your efficiency, your creativity, and the people you choose to make the dream come true," he said. "Now I stick to what I love for the moment - formula one. When I no longer have that love maybe I try football again. Guardian
See Also: Donald McRae - The Guardian - October 4, 2005
The life, loves and loneliness of formula one's champion maker
Flavio Briatore reveals the secrets of Fernando Alonso's success, the 'family' he feels closest to and how he almost bought Chelsea Profile QPR Report
AUGUST 14, 2007 - QPR Reportedly in Talks with THREE Different Consortiums-
Daily Mail - Two new parties join the talks to buy Rangers
Queens Park Rangers are in talks with three different consortiums about a possible takeover.
Sportsmail can reveal that two new parties are at the negotiating table with Rangers chiefs in addition to the consortium led by Renault F1 boss Flavio Briatore.
One is believed to be British-based and the other is made up of foreign interests but it is understood that the Briatore bid is still considered the most 'attractive' by the Rangers board.
Although it has been speculated that a deal with the flamboyant Italian businessman could be completed within days, negotiations are finely poised and no deal has been done.
Antonio Caliendo, the chairman of QPR Holdings Ltd, flew into London last night as talks with the various parties stepped up.
Privately, the QPR board have set a deadline for the end of the month for any takeover to be completed.
There is a diminishing enthusiasm among the Monaco-based consortium who own 62 per cent of the club and include Caliendo, chairman Gianni Paladini and Brazil manager Dunga to pour any more money in as the threat of administration continues to hover over Loftus Road.
The club are £21million in debt and struggling to meet their day-to-day running costs. Even the multi-million pound sales of Danny Shittu to Watford, Dean Parrett to Tottenham and Lee Cook to Fulham in the last 12 months have been unable to stem the cashflow problems.
Furthermore, directors are owed unsecured loans worth between £5m-£7m and this sum would have to be written off were Rangers to go into administration for the second time in six years. By comparison, the £10m loan to the Panama-based ABC Corporation is secured against the ground, which is Ranger's most valuable asset and worth over £20m.
It has been reported that any takeover of Rangers would cost around £30m, including around £10m to be handed to manager John Gregory to spend on new players.
Thoughts about a takeover will momentarily be put to one side tonight as Leyton Orient visit for their Carling Cup encounter... QPR Report
QPR Holdings Chairman, Antonio Caliendo "The Club Is Not For Sale"-
QPR Official Site - CLUB STATEMENT Tue 14 Aug 2007
Antonio Caliendo, Chairman of QPR Holdings Ltd, has made the following announcement:
"There have been many rumours spread in the newspapers recently about QPR.
"The Club is not for sale."
Antonio Caliendo
Chairman, QPR Holdings Ltd
[* Subsequent added line] "*The Club will be making no further comment at this stage."
QPR Official Site Q
August 14 The "QPR Not For Sale" Statement Picked up By the Press
-Sporting Life - QPR DENY TAKEOVER RUMOURS
QPR have scotched reports of an imminent takeover at the west London club by declaring they are "not for sale".
The cash-strapped Hoops have been linked with a takeover by the boss of the Renault Formula One team Flavio Briatore and F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone.
Chairman Gianni Paladini is thought to be willing to sell the Championship club, but has yet to find suitable investors.
But a statement from Antonio Caliendo, the chairman of QPR Holdings Ltd, on the club's official website, www.qpr.co.uk, has contradicted recent reports.
It read: "There have been many rumours spread in the newspapers recently about QPR. The club is not for sale.
"The club will be making no further comment at this stage. Sporting Life
DAILY MAIL - QPR insist they are 'not for sale'
QPR tonight scotched reports of an imminent takeover at the west London club by declaring they are "not for sale".
The cash-strapped Hoops have been linked with a takeover by the boss of the Renault Formula One team Flavio Briatore and F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone.
Chairman Gianni Paladini is thought to be willing to sell the Championship club, but has yet to find suitable investors.
But a statement from Antonio Caliendo, the chairman of QPR Holdings Ltd, on the club's official website, www.qpr.co.uk, has contradicted recent reports.
It read: "There have been many rumours spread in the newspapers recently about QPR. The club is not for sale.
"The club will be making no further comment at this stage." Mail QPR Report
QPR 1st Statement Response to "No Sale" club statement
August 15, 2007
The Supporters Trust are extremely concerned and perplexed by the statement issued by the Club last night claiming that QPR is not for sale. This is a blatant contradiction of previous statements made by Gianni Paladini suggesting that not only were negotiations taking place but that if these negotiations proved to be unsuccessful then the Club would be plunged into financial ruin.
It is our understanding that a deal was on the table which would have rid us of our spiralling debts and brought us financial security. Unfortunately it is difficult for us to distinguish between fact and rumour because together with other supporters groups we are being increasingly marginalised and left in the dark about what is happening in our club. We have demanded an emergency meeting with the Club but so far our demands have been ignored.
The current situation is an embarrassment to the good name of Queens Park Rangers FC. We call on all large shareholders and board members to consider their positions carefully in terms of what is best for the football club rather than their own personal positions. QPR1st
AUGUST 16, 2007 QPR Chairman Warns of Administration in Two Weeks-
Mirror, Sun, Star and Telegraph
Daily Mirror Threat to QPR 16/08/2007
Gianni Paladini has warned QPR will be forced into administration in two weeks unless a rescue package is agreed.
The cash-strapped club need to pay a £1.3million bill to the Inland Revenue by September 1.
Rangers could otherwise face a 10-point deduction and be plunged into a desperate relegation battle.
Chairman Paladini is furious with his fellow board members after talks with F1 racing boss Flavio Briatore over a £30m takeover stalled.
Paladini said: "There is now a huge concern over the club's future." Mirror
Telegraph
"...Queens Park Rangers chairman Gianni Paladini has warned that the club could be forced into administration if a rescue package is not agreed. The club need to pay a £1.3 million bill to the Inland Revenue by the end of the month, and Paladini is disappointed that talks with Renault Formula One team principal Flavio Briatore over a £30 million takeover have stalled.
"There is now a huge concern over the club's future," Paladini said. "Flavio has made it plain that if one decimal point moves on the agreed price, he doesn't want to know. There is no one else ready to step in."
Antonio Caliendo, the chairman of QPR Holdings Ltd, has denied that the club is up for sale Telegraph
The Sun
GIANNI PALADINI has warned QPR will be forced into administration in two weeks’ time unless a rescue package is agreed.
The Championship club must pay a £1.3million tax bill by September 1 or face a winding-up order.
Rangers, who are £21m in debt, would then be hit by a 10-point deduction by the Football League.
Talks with Renault racing boss Flavio Briatore over a £30m takeover have stalled after directors Franco Zanotti and Antonio Caliendo refused to accept an offer of 5.5p per share.
Chairman Paladini said: "There is now a huge concern over the club’s future. Flavio isn’t desperate to buy into QPR and there is no one else ready to step in." The Sun
The Star (via BBC Gossip) "QPR will go into administration in two weeks unless a rescue package is agreed. (Star) BBC QPR Report
Analysis of the Paladini/Caliendo "Dispute" and Briatore Offer - Dave McIntyre/Ealing Gazette-
David McIntyre/Ealing Gazette - August 16, 2007
Paladini hopes for Flavio takeover But Caliendo keeps options open
Hopes of a takeover of QPR by a group which includes Renault boss Flavio Briatore have been raised – less than 24 hours after the deal seemed to be dead.
But major shareholder Antonio Caliendo, who will ultimately decide Rangers’ fate, is also in talks with three other interested parties.
A growing rift between Caliendo and QPR chairman Gianni Paladini descended into all-out war ahead of Tuesday night’s match against Leyton Orient.
The row has erupted as Rangers face meltdown unless a takeover or major injection of cash is agreed within weeks.
With Paladini trying to broker a buy-out by a group fronted by Briatore, and Caliendo unhappy with the proposed deal, a storm was brewing ahead of Rangers’ first home game of the season.
Two years after Caliendo and Paladini combined to take charge of the club, the pair were on course to fight each other for control at an all-important board meeting scheduled for later this month.
But the showdown took place earlier than expected, and on Tuesday, Paladini faced the prospect of being ousted.
Caliendo told his one-time ally that he was being dismissed as chairman and then released a terse statement on the club’s website declaring that QPR was not for sale.
Paladini is no stranger to this type of battle for control – it’s his third since he joined the board in 2004.
Later that year he teamed up with Bill Power to remove the then chairman Nick Blackburn, chief executive David Davies and company chairman Ross Jones.
But the Paladini-Power alliance descended into a bitter feud and a year later, Power, who had replaced Blackburn as chairman, was removed after losing a key boardroom vote.
Mark Devlin was promptly sacked as chief executive and Kevin McGrath, the largest shareholder outside the Italian group who collectively own Rangers, later resigned as a director.
That victory, and Power’s subsequent selling of his shares, gave Paladini and Caliendo ownership but their time at the helm has been blighted by problems on and off the pitch.
Earlier this year, Caliendo and his Monaco-based backers stopped covering Rangers’ ongoing losses.
They have loaned the club several million pounds, and repayment is a stumbling block to a possible takeover.
Paladini, who recently declared that he and his colleagues would sell their shares for the price they paid for them, wants Caliendo to agree to the Briatore offer.
Paladini is in line for a lucrative contract to run the club should the deal he favours go ahead, and he believes it will make Rangers one of the biggest clubs in London. Even Paladini’s enemies – and he has made several – who remain close to events at QPR privately admit that the Briatore-linked bid offers by far the best financial package for the club.
But it offers Caliendo and his backers relatively little, causing anger at the way negotiations have been conducted on their behalf.
There has also been anger among other interested parties, who say they have been given short shrift by Paladini despite him publicly declaring that the club may go bust inside a month if a takeover or fresh investment is not secured.
Scare stories about clubs possibly going under are common, and the threat to QPR’s existence has been exaggerated in the past. But now the threat is very real, and time is not on Rangers’ side.
A £1.3million bridging loan from ABC Corporation has been repaid, averting the immediate prospect of them acquiring the Loftus Road ground.
But around £1million must be paid to the Inland Revenue at the end of the month and as things stand, QPR have no ability whatsoever to make that payment and they face administration – or worse – unless a takeover is agreed.
So as Orient left west London on Tuesday hoping for a moneyspinning tie in the next round of the Carling Cup, Rangers’ future was in the balance.
An appparent breakthrough occurred on Wednesday afternoon, with Caliendo appearing to be willing to speak to the Briatore-linked group.
But while the champagne was back on ice within Loftus Road and hopes were again high that a deal may be imminent, Caliendo was in discussions with another interested party as he continues to consider his options.
A key issue for QPR is the troublesome £10million ABC loan, which a previous board secured prior to Rangers coming out of administration in 2002.
Interest payments of around 11per cent are a potential noose around the club’s neck and the terms of that deal were changed when the recent additional £1.3million loan was arranged.
Ominously, ABC can now acquire the freehold on Loftus Road if the original £10million loan is not resolved by August next year.
Briatore’s group plan to take on this loan themselves at a much more favourable interest rate – probably around 6.5 per cent.
One of the parties in talks with Caliendo has suggested they can refinance the loan at around 8.5 per cent.
But the immediate pressure on both QPR and Caliendo is the forthcoming tax bill.
It puts the pressure on QPR for obvious reasons but is also a bargaining chip for Paladini and the Briatore group, because it leaves Caliendo facing the possibility of the club going under, leaving him with even less than he could salvage from the current offer. Unless, that is, he finds an alternative buyer. Ealing Gazette
QPR Report
August 17, 2007 - QPR Chairman Says QPR Saved! Briatore to Take Over-
The Sun - F1 chief Flavio is a Ranger
By PAUL JIGGINS -August 17, 2007
FORMULA ONE chief Flavio Briatore has won the race to buy QPR.
The Renault boss will complete a £22million deal for the Londoners early next week.
It follows three months of negotiations between the Italian tycoon and Rangers chairman Gianni Paladini.
Billionaire Briatore has agreed to wipe out Rangers’ £17m debt — saving the club from going bust.
He is also expected to give boss John Gregory cash to splash in January’s transfer window.
Paladini will stay on as chairman at Loftus Road.
And last night he said: “It’s a dream come true for QPR fans and saves this club from liquidation.
"Mr Briatore wants to do for QPR what Mohamed Fayed has for Fulham and turn us into a Premier League club.”
Flamboyant Briatore, 57, is renowned for having a shrewd business brain.
He transformed the US operations of fashion firm Benetton and turned just five stores into 800.
In 1989 Luciano Benetton asked him to work his magic on his F 1 outfit — and two years later Briatore signed Michael Schumacher.
And in 2003 he promoted reigning Formula One champ Fernando Alonso — who was then Renault’s test driver — to the team.
Briatore has a lavish home in London and last night his spokesman said: “Mr Briatore is looking forward to being involved with English football.
“QPR is a club with a rich history and fine future now.” The Sun
Reuters - Renault chief to become QPR owner, report says
Fri Aug 17, 2007
Flavio Briatore, who runs the Renault Formula One team, is set to become the new owner of English second division club Queens Park Rangers.
"Mr Briatore wants to do for QPR what Mohamed Al Fayed has done for Fulham and turn us into a Premier League club," Rangers chairman Gianni Paladini told the Sun newspaper on Friday.
"It is a dream come true for all the fans and saves this club from liquidation."
Billionaire Briatore, 57, will wipe out QPR's debt of 17 million pounds and invest an extra 100 million pounds over three years, the Sun reported.
Rangers were last in the Premier League in 1996. Reuters QPR Report
Thursday, August 16, 2007
QPR Directors Change? Nothing Announced ...But one Addition...One Removal
-Nothing's been announced by QPR but the online Staff Directory: Jason Kallis is no longer listed as a board member and a name, James Ferrary is now listed.
QPR Staff Directory
NEW
Board of Directors
Chairman - Gianni Paladini
Non-executive Directors - Franco Zanotti, Olga Paladini, Antonio Caliendo, Nick De Marco, Kevin James Steele, James Ferrary
QPR
[Previously was: Chairman - Gianni Paladini "Non-executive Directors - Franco Zanotti, Olga Paladini, Antonio Caliendo, Nick De Marco, Kevin James Steele, Jason Kallis"
August 17, 2007 QPR Takeover...Future Ground Move Possible- [In contrast to the speculation in the Daily Mail story re a possible ground move, today's London Paper reportedly has Chairman Paladini talking about plans to remain at Loftus Road and build up there to increase capacity!]
Daily Mail - Briatore buy-out keeps QPR going
Renault chief Flavio Briatore will complete a £19million deal for Queens Park Rangers next week, saving the club from going into liquidation.
Gianni Paladini, who will stay as chairman, said: "This saves the club from liquidation. Mr Briatore wants to do for QPR what Mohamed Fayed has done for Fulham and turn us into a Premier League club. It is a dream come true for all the fans."
Billionaire Briatore will wipe out QPR's debt of £17m and invest in the club that has been out of the top flight since 1996 and beset by debt and boardroom rows.
A spokesman for the Formula One giant said: "Mr Briatore is looking forward to being involved with English football.
"QPR are a club with a rich history and a fine future now."
The club, managed by John Gregory, are at home to Cardiff tomorrow. It is understood that one of the plans being discussed is a proposal to sell Loftus Road to property developers and move the club to a new site currently owned by the BBC at White City.
Paladini this year added Kevin Steele, a property lawyer from firm Mishcon de Reya, to the QPR board to advise on redevelopment options, with Hammersmith and Fulham Council believed to be in favour of the plans. Mail QPR Report
August 17, 2007 - Briatore Deal Reportedly Expected to be Without Antonio Giraudo Involvement-
According to Channel 4 re Italian soccer "Briatore closing in on QPR Friday 17 August, 2007" (which is mostly just a repeating of The Sun and Reuters story (which itself was from The Sun)
"....The 57-year-old businessman is expected to finalise the deal alone, without F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone and ex-Juventus director Antonio Giraudo, who were initially paired with Briatore’s ambitious plans." Channel 4 QPR Report
August 19, 2007 - Flavio's Briatore QPR Takeover Reportedly Will Bel Completed This Week Sunday Times - Peter Boyle - Football Shorts - Briatore on fast track at QPR
Renault F1 owner Flavio Briatore’s takeover of QPR will be completed this week. Should Rangers’ fans be worried to hear chairman Gianni Paladini say: ‘Mr Briatore wants to do for QPR what Mohamed al-Fayed has for Fulham and turn us into a Premier League club’? Sunday Times - QPR Report
August 20, 2007 - TIMES ONLINE August 20, 2007 QPR board resigns ahead of takeover
Times Online and Agencies
The board of directors at Queens Park Rangers have resigned from their posts with immediate effect ahead of potential new investment in the club.
Flavio Briatore, the Renault Formula One team boss, has been widely tipped to complete a £22 million takeover at Loftus Road this week.
The outgoing board members of QPR Holdings Ltd Nick De Marco, James Ferrary and Kevin Steele issued a statement saying: "We believe the new investment coming into the club will be the most important for years. It will save QPR from the perilous financial position we have found ourselves in and should put the club in an excellent position to move forward.
"We would like to thank Gianni Paladini in particular for attracting this important new investment and we are delighted he will stay on as chairman of the club.
The Times
PA Sports - BOARD RESIGN AT QPR
The board of directors of QPR Holdings Ltd have resigned from their posts with immediate effect ahead of potential new investment.
Renault Formula One team boss Flavio Briatore has been widely tipped to complete a £22million takeover of the Championship club this week. And ahead of the expected announcement, outgoing board members Nick De Marco, James Ferrary and Kevin Steele issued a statement on the club´s official website.
"We believe the new investment coming into the club will be the most important for years. It will save QPR from the perilous financial position we have found ourselves in and should put the club in an excellent position to move forward," read the statement. PA Sports
BBC - QPR move step closer to takeover
Briatore may be set to be part of the QPR takeover
QPR's board of directors have resigned ahead of an expected takeover by a group that includes Renault Formula One team boss Flavio Briatore.
It comes after major shareholder Antonio Caliendo and his backers agreed to sell their stake in the club.
Gianni Paladini will stay on as chairman, but James Steele, Nick De Marco and James Ferrary are leaving.
"The new investment will be the most important for years," said a statement from the trio of ex-board members.
The statement continued: "It will save QPR from the perilous financial position we have found ourselves in and should put the club in an excellent position to move forward.
"We would like to thank Gianni Paladini in particular for attracting this important new investment and we are delighted he will stay on as chairman of the club.
"We are certain the new investors and the new board will get behind manager John Gregory and give him the support he needs." BBC
August 20, 2008 - QPR Holdings Board of Directors Resigns as Preparatory Step to Takeover -QPR Official Site - BOARD CHANGES
The Board of Directors of QPR Holdings Ltd have tendered their resignations with immediate effect ahead of potential new investment.
Speaking to www.qpr.co.uk earlier today, out-going Board members Nick De Marco, James Ferrary and Kevin Steele issued the following statement.
"We are delighted to be able to tender our resignations from the Board of Queens Park Rangers Football Club in order to assist in the changes set to take place this week.
We believe the new investment coming into the Club will be the most important for years; will save QPR from the perilous financial position we have found ourselves in over the past years; and should put the Club in an excellent position to move forward.
We would like to thank Gianni Paladini in particular for attracting this important new investment and we are delighted he will stay on as Chairman of the Club. Gianni has had a difficult job keeping the Club going but he has pulled off a master-stroke in bringing in this new investment.
We are also deeply grateful to Antonio Caliendo and Franco Zanotti for both financing the Club over the past years and for the terms upon which they have agreed to assist with the new investment.
We are certain the new investors and the new board will get behind John Gregory and give him the support he needs. We are also positive that the fans can get behind a new board and continue in their loyal and unrivalled support for the team.
It has been an honour for all of us to serve this great Club, and we are grateful to all the staff and supporters we have had the pleasure to work with."
*The Club will be making no further comment at this stage. QPR QPR Report
Tuesday, August 21, 2007 - QPR Takeover Update-
Today's Daily Mail says Bernie Ecclestone is involved. (Dave McIntyre's article yesterday spoke of 'Three new companies will now similarly own a majority stake as part of the takeover agreement." Yesterday's BBC reported "Briatore may be set to be part of the QPR takeover
QPR's board of directors have resigned ahead of an expected takeover by a group that includes Renault Formula One team boss Flavio Briatore. "
Daily Mail - QPR Takeover is Near - 20th August 2007
Bernie Ecclestone's takeover of Queens Park Rangers moved a step nearer on Monday when the board of directors of QPR Holdings Ltd resigned from their posts, claiming that major new investment was imminent.
As the Formula One chief and Renault team boss Flavio Briatore prepared to complete a joint £22million deal for the Championship club, as first revealed in Sportsmail, outgoing board members Nick De Marco, James Ferrary and Kevin Steele issued a statement saying: 'We believe the new investment coming into the club will be the most important for years.
'It will save QPR from the perilous financial position we have found ourselves in and put the club in an excellent position to move forward.' Daily Mail
DAILY MIRROR - Briatore's QPR wow - By Lee West 21/08/2007
Qpr fans have reacted with delight to the news that Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone and Renault boss Flavio Briatore are on the verge of investing in the Loftus Road club.
The entire board of QPR Holdings Ltd - who have been financing the club - resigned yesterday, claiming that 'major investment is imminent', with Ecclestone and Briatore set to hand boss John Gregory a transfer war-chest running into millions of pounds.
Paul Finney, from QPR Independent R's Supporters Club, said: "This is superb news. It amounts to a new start for the club and it means that the fans could finally get the club we deserve. Mirror QPR Report
August 20, 2007 - Monday, August 20, 2007
The QPR Takeover: Further Details - David McIntyre/Ealing Gazette - August 20,2007
Caliendo paves way for new Italian regime Rangers all set for change of ownership
Major shareholder Antonio Caliendo has finally agreed to sell his stake in QPR to a group that includes Renault Formula One team boss Flavio Briatore.
The proposed deal ran into serious trouble last week when Caliendo released a statement saying the club was not for sale following a furious row with Rangers chairman Gianni Paladini prior to Tuesday night’s Carling Cup game against Leyton Orient.
Talks resumed the next day and the buy-out looked to be back on.
Yet even as Paladini and his allies were celebrating, Caliendo was talking to other interested parties about a possible alternative deal.
But Caliendo is now ready to sell to the new Italian regime and is due to formally sign over his shares on Tuesday.
Paladini, who is selling most of his share, is to stay on as chairman but - at the request of the incoming new owners – the rest of the QPR board of directors have resigned.
Kevin Steele, who did much of the work to secure the takeover, is stepping down along with Nick De Marco and recently-appointed director James Ferrary.
Caliendo and his Monaco-based backers have been involved with QPR since 2004.
Former Brazil captain Dunga was part of the group as were a number of other individuals, including former Argentina international Ramon Diaz.
At one stage, Diaz was in line to take over as manager before a winning run saw Ian Holloway cling onto the job.
Paladini and the Monaco-based groups collectively owned a majority of shares in QPR under the guise of companies Moorbound, Barnaby and Wanlock.
Three new companies will now similarly own a majority stake as part of the takeover agreement.
One of the first tasks facing the new owners will be to rid Rangers of the troublesome £10million loan arranged prior to the club coming out of administration in 2002.
The interest rate of around 11 per cent has been a major burden and the terms of that deal were changed when a recent additional £1.3million loan was agreed.
ABC Corporation can now acquire the freehold on Loftus Road if the original £10million loan is not resolved by August next year.
The new owners plan to take on this loan themselves at a much more favourable interest rate – probably around 6.5 per cent. Ealing Gazette QPR Report
August 21, 2007 - Takeover Update - Complete Within 24 Hours
-Daily Mail
Renault chief Flavio Briatore will complete his takeover of Queens Park Rangers within the next 24 hours. ...
Three of Rangers' four main shareholders have signed documents selling their shares to Briatore and the fourth, Franco Zanotti, is expected to follow suit this evening.
Club chairman Gianni Paladini, plc chairman Antonio Caliendo and Brazil manager Dunga, who with Zanotti make up the Monaco-based consortium that own 62 per cent of the club, have sold their holdings to the Italian businessman over the past few days.
"There is only Zanotti left and then the deal is complete," said Paladini. "It will either be tonight or tomorrow morning at the latest."
A press conference is likely to be scheduled for early next week to unveil Briatore, who is in Istanbul preparing for Sunday's Turkish Grand Prix.
Briatore will clear Rangers' £17million debt and will hand manager John Gregory around £10m, which will allow him to strengthen his squad before the transfer window closes....Daily Mail
The Briatore Approach/Philosophy (to Racing)
A Recent Interview with QPR's purportive new owner, Flavio Briatore. None of it is to do with football (soccer) but maybe a few indicators of his approach.
August 1 - Formula 1 Exclusive interview - Renault’s Flavio Briatore
Renault team principal Flavio Briatore is one of the paddock’s most colourful characters but under the flamboyant surface lies an analytical mind worthy of his team’s two consecutive constructors’ titles.
Speaking to Formula1.com, Briatore tackles the thorny issue of Formula One racing’s future, as well as reviewing his squad’s performance this season…
Q: You have always been an advocate of change in Formula One racing. Are you satisfied with the planned revisions for 2008 and the FIA’s proposals for 2011? Do you think the new regulations will deliver?
Flavio Briatore: We are currently engaged in a very good discussion with the FIA about the rules for 2011. There is a good dialogue between the teams and the federation, and some very interesting proposals are being discussed. We don’t agree with all of them, and the teams have different opinions on certain issues. But that is to be expected. There are four major goals that we need to achieve with these new rules - to make sure Formula One stays at the pinnacle of motorsport; to reduce costs; to become more environmentally aware; and to improve the show. That is what we are working towards at the moment.
Q: You recently said that progress in Formula One racing is handicapped by ‘too much democracy’. What would be your ideal?
FB: The need for unanimous agreement to make decisions is very frustrating. I think majority decision-making would help us get a lot more things done, faster and more efficiently.
Q: You have long argued that races have to become more exciting. The European Grand Prix showed just what excitement a little rain can muster. Aside from relying on the forces of nature, what can be done?
FB: At the moment, the model of a Formula One weekend is simple. We spend two days sorting out the cars, putting the quickest ones at the front and the slowest ones at the back through qualifying. Then we send them out to race, and magically hope for the slower ones to become faster, and vice versa, to produce overtaking! Even if we make it easier to overtake, we still need something else to shuffle the order of the cars to create a really exciting racing. When the rain comes, it introduces that little bit of chaos you need to jumble things up. Perhaps we should look at other ways of achieving that on a more regular basis.
Q: Is the GP2 model feasible for Formula One racing?
FB: If you mean in terms of everybody using the same car, then no, because Formula One needs to keep the high technology appeal it has at the moment. If you mean in terms of thinking in a new way about how to run the races, and being open-minded in how we approach the structure of the race weekend, then absolutely. For example, they reverse the grids in GP2 for the second race, and it means that the quick drivers have to fight past the slower ones. Or what about having two races per weekend, instead of one? Some aspects of Formula One are essential parts of its DNA, but perhaps not as many as people think…
Q: Formula One racing has one foot firmly placed in the sporting world and the other in entertainment. How could these two elements be better combined?
FB: I don’t believe we can focus only on car design to help improve the racing, we need to think more about the entertainment. That means bringing more of a marketing approach to the sport, firstly to tell people what the plans are to use advanced technology and to show our environmental awareness, but also in how we package and present Formula One. Improving the racing is only one aspect of that. In the modern world, people want to get closer to the stars, to be able to have contact with them and to see behind the scenes. We need to reach out to the fans and start getting them closer to the sport.
Q: As for Renault - ten races down - how would you sum up the team’s season so far?
FB: A bad start to the year. A lot of hard work. Concrete improvements. And the proof that this is a champion team even when we are not winning races. It has been a test of character this year, and I think we have passed it. Now we are on the way back.
Q: Renault won two championships with a comparatively lean budget. Looking at the standings this season, do you think we are witnessing the renaissance of big budgets?
FB: Not from my point of view. We won the last two championships on a sensible budget. Although we have dropped back this year, that is not because of a lack of resources. There were other mistakes that we made, nothing to do with the amount of money we spend. And now, we have shown that we can respond and start closing the gap. We have the resources we need to do the job.
Q: Heikki Kovalainen has made less of an impression than fellow rookie Lewis Hamilton. But there is no doubt he is improving with every race. Are you satisfied with his performance?
FB: The team let him down at the start of the year, giving him a car that was very difficult to drive. For a rookie, that is a tough situation to be in, and I think he felt it. But if the start was disappointing, he has responded since then. He has listened to the feedback he was given, he carried on working all the way through, and he has driven some very strong races since Canada. Maybe it has taken half a season, but he is starting to demonstrate his talent now - and showing why we believe in him.
Q: At six teams the driver line-up for 2008 is already settled. What is the state of affairs at Renault?
FB: We are in no rush. At the moment, we are working to make sure we are on the right track with the car for 2008. That is the priority for next year in order to achieve our target of winning races again. This year has shown that having the right car is the key to being competitive. Formula1 QPR Report
August 24, 2007 - Statement by QPR Holdings re "Possible Offer"-
[According to posters on various messageboards, it was reported that Flavio Briatore will be talking to the press today re QPR at 1pm (London time)]
QPR Official Site - CLUB STATEMENT Posted on: Fri 24 Aug 2007
QPR Holdings Limited - Statement in respect of a possible offer
Following the recent comments in the press, the Board of QPR announces that it is engaged in discussions with a number of parties that may or may not lead to an offer being made for the entire issued share capital of the Company.
The Board will advise shareholders of any further significant developments.
For enquiries, contact: QPR Holdings Limited, Gianni Paladini, Director, 020 8743 0262 / 020 8740 2525. QPR
OFFICIAL SITE STATEMENT UPDATED TO INCLUDE
Relevant Securities in Issue
In accordance with Rule 2.10 of the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers, QPR confirms that as at the close of business on 23 August 2007 it had 100,000,000 ordinary shares of 1 pence each in issue.
Dealing disclosure requirements
Under the provisions of Rule 8.3 of the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers (the 'Code'), if any person is, or becomes, 'interested' (directly or indirectly) in 1 per cent. or more of any class of 'relevant securities' of QPR, all 'dealings' in any 'relevant securities' of that company (including by means of an option in respect of, or a derivative referenced to, any such 'relevant securities') must be publicly disclosed by no later than 3.30pm (London time) on the London business day following the date of the relevant transaction. This requirement will continue until the date on which any offer becomes, or is declared, unconditional as to acceptances, lapses or is otherwise withdrawn or on which the 'offer period' otherwise ends. If two or more persons act together pursuant to an agreement or understanding, whether formal or informal, to acquire an 'interest' in 'relevant securities' of QPR, they will be deemed to be a single person for the purpose of Rule 8.3.
Under the provisions of Rule 8.1 of the Code, all 'dealings' in 'relevant securities' of QPR by QPR or by the potential offeror, or by any of their respective 'associates', must be disclosed by no later than 12.00noon (London time) on the London business day following the date of the relevant transaction. A disclosure table, giving details of the companies in whose 'relevant securities' 'dealings' should be disclosed, and the number of such securities in issue, can be found on the Takeover Panel's website at www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk
'Interests in securities' arise, in summary, when a person has long economic exposure, whether conditional or absolute, to changes in the price of securities. In particular, a person will be treated as having an 'interest' by virtue of the ownership or control of securities, or by virtue of any option in respect of, or derivative referenced to, securities.
Terms in quotation marks are defined in the Code, which can also be found on the Panel's website. If you are in any doubt as to whether or not you are required to disclose a 'dealing' under Rule 8, you should consult the Panel. QPR Official Site
QPR Report
August 24, 2007 Briatore Confirms QPR Interest...But Denies QPR Deal
-REUTERS - UPDATE 2-Soccer-Briatore confirms interest in taking over QPR Fri Aug 24, - By Alan Baldwin
ISTANBUL, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Renault Formula One team boss Flavio Briatore confirmed on Friday that he was part of a group interested in taking over second division English soccer club Queens Park Rangers.
However, the flamboyant Italian said he was only one of those involved in the talks. No offer had been made and nothing signed.
"We are talking. we are a bunch of friends together," he told reporters at the Turkish Grand Prix while declining to name any of his associates. "If it happens I am very happy, if not I am very happy as well."
The West London club, who have debts of 17 million pounds ($34 million) and need considerable new investment, said in an earlier statement that they were in talks with various parties that could lead to a takeover bid.
"The board of QPR announces that it is engaged in discussions with a number of parties that may or may not lead to an offer being made for the entire issued share capital of the company," it said.
Briatore, a multi-millionaire and close associate of billionaire Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone, said he had never been to QPR's Loftus Road ground.
The history behind it (the club) is great. And I pass the stadium every time I go to Oxford by helicopter and so I become friendly with the stadium," he said.
Briatore added that if his group were successful, Formula One would remain his priority. Renault have been champions for the past two seasons.
"The idea is like any other," said Briatore, whose other business interests include nightclubs and exclusive Billionaire fashion shops. "I opened the Cipriani (restaurant) in London but I am not in the kitchen to cook. I have the people managing it.
"Formula One is my priority 100 percent, anything else we are doing in a professional way but as a group of friends. Nothing dramatic."
Briatore, a lifelong supporter of Italian club Juventus, said he had met QPR chairman Gianni Paladini only once: "After that it was the normal talking with my people and the people from the board." (Additional reporting by Jonathan Cable) Reuters
SPORTING LIFE - BRIATORE CONFIRMS QPR INTEREST
By Ian Parkes, PA Sport, Istanbul
Multi-millionaire Flavio Briatore has confirmed he is interested buying Queens Park Rangers but warned he would not "go crazy" to complete the sale.
Briatore, team boss of Formula One marque Renault, is involved with "a bunch of friends" in looking to acquire the Coca-Cola Championship club.
However, the Italian has conceded the consortium is one of several parties looking to take over the troubled Loftus Road outfit.
"We started talking by chance, but there are a lot of people in England talking with QPR at the moment," said Briatore ahead of this weekend's Turkish Grand Prix in Istanbul.
"We have not put in any offer. Absolutely nothing formal has been done, but the lawyers are working.
"We know where we are and what we want to do. If it happens then I will be very happy, but we are not going to go crazy to have this club."
Briatore concedes the closest he has come to the ground is when he has flown over it in his helicopter en route to Renault's base in Oxfordshire.
However, he has met current QPR chairman and fellow Italian Gianni Paladini, albeit a chance encounter.
Should Briatore and his group gain control of the club, he insists his involvement will be strictly behind the scenes.
"My business is in Formula One," confirmed Briatore.
"It is 100%. The focus for me is next year because we need to be competitive again.
"It's like Cipriani (a restaurant he owns in Mayfair). I don't go in the kitchen to cook the food.
"I occasionally go there to eat, and with QPR I will occasionally go to a match. Nothing more."
Briatore has confirmed the present management, with John Gregory in charge, would remain unchanged if his takeover succeeds, adding: "Everything is perfect."
Briatore declined to comment on his plans for QPR, although he remarked: "It is like with anything I am involved with - I want to be successful."
Briatore masterminded Renault's rise to dominance in Formula One, with the team winning the drivers' and constructors' championships in 2005 and 2006.
The 57-year-old also created and runs fashion brand 'Billionaire', while he owns pharmaceutical company Pierrel. Sporting Life
BBC - Briatore cools QPR takeover talk
Flavio Briatore has played down reports linking him with an imminent takeover of QPR, saying he has not made a bid.
The Renault Formula One team boss heads a group talking over an offer to take control of the Championship club.
It comes after QPR's board resigned on Monday, ahead of an assumed bid for parent company QPR Holdings Limited.
However, the Italian said: "We started talking by chance, but there are a lot of people in England talking with QPR now. We have not put in any offer."
A statement on QPR's website had earlier read: "The board announces it is in discussions with a number of parties which may or may not lead to an offer."
Major shareholder Antonio Caliendo and his backers have agreed to sell their stake in the club - but Briatore insists he will not be held to ransom.
"Absolutely nothing formal has been done, but the lawyers are working," he said.
"We know where we are and what we want to do. If it happens then I will be very happy, but we are not going to go crazy to have this club." BBC
AUGUST 25, 2007
Briatore and QPR - Further Details on Takeover Status and Briatore's Plans
The Guardian - Briatore says he and his secret friends are one of many suitors of QPR - Richard Williams
F1 boss has only ever seen ground from a helicopter
Decision on bid expected in the next two weeks
Flavio Briatore, the flamboyant boss of the Renault formula one team, spoke yesterday for the first time about his plan to take over Queen's Park Rangers, and admitted that has seen the club's Loftus Road stadium only from the air, en route by helicopter from his Chelsea home to his team's Oxfordshire headquarters.
"We are talking but nothing formal has been done," Briatore said in the paddock at Istanbul Park, where his team are competing in Sunday's Turkish grand prix. "We have a bunch of friends together. We've been talking for the last month but I've no idea where we are. QPR are talking to a lot of people."
Last week the board of QPR Holdings Ltd resigned en bloc in order to make way for new investors, who will need to put around £25m into a club which avoided going into administration six years ago only thanks to a loan of £10m from a company registered in Panama. QPR's debts are currently said to stand at around twice that figure.
Briatore refused to identify the "friends" involved. Bernie Ecclestone, with whom he enjoys a close relationship in formula one but who has previously been linked with a bid to buy Arsenal, yesterday declined to confirm that he was among those behind the QPR offer. Neither, according to Briatore, do they include Antonio Giraudo, the disgraced former chief executive of Juventus, who is now believed to live in London. Briatore said that he had met Gianni Paladini, the club's chairman, only once.
"They need to make a decision as soon as possible because they need financial support," he said. "I don't think the financial issue is a big problem. There's something else we need to discuss. Let's see what they decide and what happens in the next two weeks. If it goes well, I am very happy."
The 57-year-old Briatore is a lifelong Juventus fan. He entered formula one almost 20 years ago and guided Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso to the world championship. Alonso is one of several drivers whose careers are handled by his management company, and Briatore's many other business interests include a holiday resort in Kenya, a night club in Sardinia, a small chain of expensive menswear stores, and restaurants in London and New York. His past girlfriends include the supermodels Naomi Campbell and Heidi Klum, and he is currently engaged to another mannequin, Elisabetta Gregoraci.
The club he plans to buy was founded in 1882 and came second in the league in 1975-76, only a point behind Liverpool. They dropped out of the Premier League in 1996, and narrowly avoided a return to the third tier last season. Under John Gregory, their current manager, they stand 20th in the Championship, with one point from the season's opening two matches.
"I don't want to say anything about the potential of the club," Briatore responded, when asked if his ambitions for QPR included European football. "At this moment it [the takeover] is not reality. If it happens, we have a programme for the next four or five years of what we want to do."
He dismissed the notion of selling the ground and moving the club to a new location and denied that he would be playing a hands-on role, comparing his involvement with QPR to his restaurant interests. "I opened the Cipriani, which is one of the most successful restaurants in London," he said, "but I'm not in the kitchen to cook. I go there sometimes for dinner. I love football. But formula one is my priority, 100%." Guardian
http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,,2155856,00.html
THE TIMES - QPR confirm takeover discussions
Formula One chief Flavio Briatore in pole position as football club reveals talks with a 'number of parties'Steve Hawkes and Agencies
Flavio Briatore, the multi-millionaire businessman who is head of the Renault Formula One team, has confirmed he is interested in buying debt-riddled Coca-Cola Championship club Queens Park Rangers but warned he would not “go crazy” to complete the sale.
Briatore today said he is involved with “a bunch of friends” in looking to acquire the Coca-Cola Championship club. However, the Italian has conceded the consortium is one of several parties looking to take over the troubled Loftus Road outfit.
“We started talking by chance, but there are a lot of people in England talking with QPR at the moment,” said Briatore ahead of this weekend’s Turkish Grand Prix in Istanbul.
“We have not put in any offer. Absolutely nothing formal has been done, but the lawyers are working. We know where we are and what we want to do. If it happens then I will be very happy, but we are not going to go crazy to have this club.”
QPR board resigns ahead of proposed takeover
Cardiff expose vulnerable QPR flaws
Flamboyant Briatore on track to take over at QPR
Briatore concedes the closest he has come to the ground is when he has flown over it in his helicopter en route to Renault’s base in Oxfordshire. However, he has met current QPR chairman and fellow Italian Gianni Paladini, albeit that was a chance encounter.
Should Briatore and his group gain control of the club, he insists his involvement will be strictly behind the scenes. “My business is in Formula One,” he said. “It is 100 per cent. The focus for me is next year because we need to be competitive again. It’s like Cipriani (a restaurant he owns in Mayfair). I don’t go in the kitchen to cook the food. I occasionally go there to eat, and with QPR I will occasionally go to a match. Nothing more.”
Briatore has confirmed the present management, with John Gregory in charge, would remain unchanged if his takeover succeeds, adding: “Everything is perfect.”
He declined to comment on his plans for QPR, although he remarked: “It is like with anything I am involved with - I want to be successful.” Briatore masterminded Renault’s rise to dominance in Formula One, with the team winning the drivers’ and constructors’ championships in 2005 and 2006. The 57-year-old also created and runs fashion brand ’Billionaire’, while he owns pharmaceutical company Pierrel.
Queens Park Rangers have made a short stock market statement which said: “Following the recent comments in the press, the board of QPR announces that it is engaged in discussions with a number of parties that may or may not lead to an offer being made for the entire issued share capital of the company.
“The board will advise shareholders of any further significant developments.”
Paladini had described Briatore’s interest last week as a “dream come true”. He said: “Mr Briatore wants to do for QPR Mohammed Fayed has for Fulham and turn us into a Premier League club.”
He had warned that the club faced administration and a 10-point fine unless a rescue package could be found.
QPR is thought to be £17 million in the red and needs to pay a £1.3 million bill to the Inland Revenue by September 1.
On Monday, all three board directors, Nick De Marco, James Ferrary and Kevin Steele, resigned.
In a statement on the club’s official website, they said: “We believe the new investment coming into the club will be the most important for years.
“It will save QPR from the perilous financial position we have found ourselves in and should put the club in an excellent position to move forward.” The Times
The Sun - Flavio in fight to seal QPR deal
By JANINE SELF August 25, 2007
The multi-millionaire Renault team boss and his associates are in discussions to buy the Championship club for £22million.
The deal was scheduled to have been completed before the end of this week.
But now Rangers, currently facing liquidation, have announced fresh interest from other parties.
A club statement said: “The board is engaged in discussions with a number of parties, which may or may not lead to an offer being made for the entire issued share capital of the company.”
Briatore, 57, in Istanbul for the Turkish Grand Prix, said: “We know where we are and what we want to do.
"If it happens, I will be very happy. But we are not going to go crazy to have this club.” The Sun
Reuters
ISTANBUL, Turkey (Reuters) -- Renault Formula One team boss Flavio Briatore confirmed on Friday that he is part of a group interested in taking over English club Queens Park Rangers.
Briatore confirmed that Foruma One was still his priority despite his interest in Queens Park Rangers.
However, the flamboyant Italian said he was only one of those involved in the talks. No offer has been made for the Championship club and nothing has yet been signed.
"We are talking, we are a bunch of friends together," he said at the Turkish Grand Prix, while declining to name any of his associates.
"If it happens I am very happy, if not I am very happy as well."
The West London club, who have debts of £17 million ($34 million) and need considerable new investment, said in an earlier statement that they were in talks with various parties.
"The board of QPR announces that it is engaged in discussions with a number of parties that may or may not lead to an offer being made for the entire issued share capital of the company," it said.
Briatore, a multi-millionaire and close associate of billionaire Formula One s upremo Bernie Ecclestone, said he had never been to QPR's Loftus Road ground.
"The history behind it (the club) is great. And I pass the stadium every time I go to Oxford by helicopter and so I become friendly with the stadium," he said.
Briatore added that if his group were successful, Formula One would remain his priority. Renault have been champions for the past two seasons.
"The idea is like any other," said Briatore, whose other business interests include nightclubs and exclusive fashion shops. "I opened the Cipriani (restaurant) in London but I am not in the kitchen to cook. I have the people managing it.
"Formula One is my priority 100 percent, anything else we are doing in a professional way but as a group of friends. Nothing dramatic."
Briatore, a lifelong supporter of Italian club Juventus, said he had met QPR chairman Gianni Paladini only once: "After that it was the normal talking with my people and the people from the board." Reuters
NASADQ Company News
QPR Holdings Limited Confirms Offer Talks
Edited Press Release
LONDON -(Dow Jones)- QPR Holdings Limited ("QPR") said Friday following the recent comments in the press, the Board of QPR announces that it is engaged in discussions with a number of parties that may or may not lead to an offer being made for the entire issued share capital of the Company.
The Board will advise shareholders of any further significant developments.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires 08-24-070417ET Nasdaq QPR Report
August 25, 2007 - The Potential QPR Takeover - Who's Possibly Involved
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Daily Mail - Sports Agenda: Briatore and his racy QPR suitors
The 'bunch of friends' with whom Formula One boss Flavio Briatore is exploring the possibilities of buying Championship club Queens Park Rangers should be of some concern to the Football League.
Briatore, who confirmed his currently informal interest in QPR yesterday before the Turkish Grand Prix, has some controversial associates involved with him in the project.
These include former Juventus chief executive Antonio Giraudo, banned from football in Italy for five years following the match-fixing scandal with the recommendation from Italian football's governing body that it should be a lifetime penalty.
Other members of the Briatore consortium are father and son team of Arrigo and Giuseppe Cipriani, who own a chain of restaurants in Europe and the US, including the London Mayfair flagship in which Briatore is an investor.
Briatore and his racy QPR suitors
The two restaurateurs pleaded guilty last month in Manhattan Supreme Court to evading 10 million dollars of New York taxes after submitting fraudulent tax returns in 2003 and 2004.
Briatore compared his passive investment in the Ciprianis' London restaurant to what would be his behind-the-scenes style at QPR.
He said: 'I occasionally go there to eat, but I don't go in the kitchen to cook the food. And with QPR, I will occasionally go to a match. Nothing more.'
A Football League spokesman said: 'Any new directors will have to comply with our fit-andproper person regulations.' Mail QPR Report
August 26, 2007 QPR's Briatore Takeover - One Supposedly Involved
-Mail - QPR fans fearworst if Flavio moves in
The price of Flavio Briatore — of Formula One fame — saving Queens Park Rangers seems likely to be a move from Loftus Road, the club's on-off home since 1917. Sean Mulryan, boss of the Ireland-based Ballymore property development group, is involved in Briatore's international rescue team.
Mulryan was among the Irish businessmen who backed the Drumaville Consortium which installed Niall Quinn as chairman at Sunderland as part of last year's takeover.
Mulryan's interest is said to be in the redevelopment of Loftus Road and the construction of a new stadium. The old Unigate site in nearby Wood Lane remains a possible destination, but Rangers fans fear having to journey further afield to see their team in future. Mail
From Teamtalk - Briatore to bring F1 to football
Flavio Briatore intends to bring his experience of running successful F1 teams into English football if he completes his takeover of QPR.Briatore, head of the Renault F1 team, is heading a consortium who have made an offer to buy the cash-strapped Coca-Cola Championship club.
"A group of friends and I made an offer because there was an opportunity," he told Spanish newspaper Marca.
"It was an opportunity to do something in football, as I believe that Formula One, from the paddock to the hospitalities, can teach a couple of things to football."
Briatore does not intend throwing money around should he eventually take over at Loftus Road, however, as he insists spending big does not guarantee success in the sporting world.
"The proof of this from the opposite side is that Toyota, considering all the money they have spent, should have won World Championship by now," he added. Teamtalk
Spanish Newspaper Marca can be read at Marca QPR Report
August 29, 2007
Bernie Ecclestone Reportedly Confirms Has Discussed with Briatore QPR Involvement
-Daily Mail - The Screamer ... It's the talk of football
Bernie Ecclestone has confirmed he is prepared to join forces with Flavio Briatore in the planned takeover of Queens Park Rangers.
The Formula One boss and Britain's 20th richest man had initially denied any interest in QPR when the story was first revealed by Sportsmail, saying only if Arsenal were up for sale would he invest some of his £2.25billion fortune in football.
But yesterday Ecclestone admitted that he had indeed discussed the takeover at Loftus Road with Renault boss Briatore and 'might get involved'.
He said: 'Flavio has asked me about it and I'm giving it some thought. I'm just doing my day job at the moment but I might get involved.' Daily Mail
August 30 - Ecclestone and Briatore's QPR Purchase-
DAILY MAIL - QPR set to confirm Briatore's takeover
Queens Park Rangers are expected to announce today that they have been taken over by a consortium headed by Renault Formula One racing team boss Flavio Briatore and the sport's billionaire supremo Bernie Ecclestone.
The takeover of the club is expected to be worth about £25m - including taking on a debt of about £21m.
And manager John Gregory has been promised a war chest of £10m to spend on players in January, though he will hope for a quick injection of funds to do deals before the transfer window closes tomorrow night. Mail
SkyNews Bernie Set To Join In For QPR Bid
Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone looks set to be part of the team that is going to snap up Queens Park Rangers football club.
He is understood to have teamed up with Renault racing chief Flavio Briatore to buy the Championship club in a deal that could be announced as early as today.
Mr Ecclestone - who is worth around £2.2bn - is also linked to a possible £780m offer for Arsenal.
He apparently decided against going for this deal when his Italian colleague initially approached him but has since changed his mind.
Both men are businessmen, rather than keen football fans.
It is expected that they will bring their business acumen to play in the football arena, having transformed Formula One from a minority interest into a multi-billion pound industry employing tens of thousands of people around the world.
Flavio Briatore, meanwhile, has great taste in drivers - he spotted the talent of former world champions Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso among others.
The Italian tycoon has only seen Loftus Road, QPR's stadium, by air from a helicopter on his way from Chelsea to Oxfordshire.
Any new partnership is expected to repay a £10m loan owed by QPR six year ago and which has been responsible for the heavy burden of interest payments. Skynews
The Sun - August 30 - F1 chiefs win race for QPR - By BOB HAYES
FORMULA ONE bosses Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore have won the battle to take over QPR.
The duo’s successful 50-50 bid for the Championship club is expected to be announced today.
The deal means the club will pay off an outstanding £3million tax bill to the Inland Revenue.
A further £10m budget will be available to Rangers boss John Gregory for the January transfer window.
The new owners will also repay a £10m loan taken out by the club six years ago to get out of administration. That debt has been costing the club £1m in interest a year.
Chairman Gianni Paladini will stay in day-to-day control of the club.
Ecclestone has a £2.2billion fortune after turning Grand Prix racing into a massive money-spinner.
Briatore, the Renault team chief, is the man who spotted a young Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso. The Sun
Bernie Ecclestone on Investing in QPR
The Business Aug 29 - Ecclestone says he will consider QPR bid Rupert Steiner
"Bernie Eccelstone, the billionaire entrepreneur behind Formula One racing, says he is one of the mystery investors who have been approached to join a consortium mounting a bid for Queens Park Rangers (QPR), the troubled London football club.
It is the first time Ecclestone, who has also been linked with a £780m (E1.1bn, $1.5bn) bid to buy Arsenal, has confirmed he is considering joining Flavio Briatore, the Renault F1 boss, who is in informal talks to buy QPR.
“Briatore would like me to join him,” Ecclestone told The Business. “I am not sure what I am going to do at the moment. It depends how much it is. If it is sensible money then maybe yes, why not.”
Last weekend Briatore, speaking at the Turkish grand prix, said: “We have a bunch of friends together. We’ve been talking for the past month but I’ve no idea where we are. QPR are talking to a lot of people.” He refused to name the “friends” involved.
Ecclestone said that any investment would be a private venture rather than take place though his family trusts or the many holding companies connected with F1: “I am looking at it. It would be me personally – nothing do with the trusts. They could never get involved in this sort of thing – it would be more a hobby. It’s a lot smaller than Arsenal. It can only go up, it can’t go down because it is just about the bottom of everything.”
The club, which is owned by a Monaco-based consortium led by Antonio Caliendo, the club chairman, survived administration six years ago and has debts of £21m. A £10m loan to ABC Corporation of Panama is secured against the Loftus Park Stadium in Shepherd’s Bush, which is worth more than £20m.
The board of QPR, currently in talks with three separate parties, expects to have identified a preferred bidder by the end of September." The Business
August 30 =QPR Takeover - Ecclestone and Briatore in Joint Consortium
-The Times - August 30, 2007 - Ecclestone chooses QPR over Arsenal
Gary Jacob and Edward Gorman
Bernie Ecclestone will acquire a majority stake in Queens Park Rangers as part of a takeover that is expected to be announced today, but he has not ruled out bidding to take over at Arsenal at a later date. The Formula One rights holder is joined in a con-sortium by Flavio Briatore, the principal at the Renault Formula One team and one of his closest allies, whose interest was reported by The Times this month.
Ecclestone ruled himself out of the deal when first approached by Briatore, but he has since changed his mind. They could offer a solution for fans desperate for their club to return to their former glory — they finished eighth in the top flight as recently as 1995, but were relegated a season later. They have since spent three seasons in the third tier of English football, beset by financial problems.
Neither businessman is known for a love of football — although they are friendly with Roman Abramovich, the Chelsea owner, and have been to matches at Stamford Bridge — but their sharp thinking has gained a unique place in Formula One. Ecclestone transformed Formula One into a multibillion-pound industry that employs thousands of people in Britain alone, while Briatore helped to master-mind the transfer of a little-known Michael Schumacher and spotted Fernando Alonso, both of whom he helped to turn into world champions.
Briatore, the flamboyant Italian who is thought to be worth about £70 million, has admitted that he has seen Loftus Road, the club’s stadium, only from the air, en route by helicopter from his home in Chelsea to his team’s headquarters in Oxfordshire. Ecclestone, whose fortune is valued at £2.2 billion, would have to sell most of his stake in QPR, the Coca-Cola Championship club, if he wanted to complete the bid for Arsenal that he has said that he is interested in pursuing. The directors of the Barclays Premier League club have agreed not to sell their shares until at least April.
The takeover of QPR will be worth about £25 million, including taking on the debt of about £21 million. John Gregory, the QPR manager, has been promised about £10 million to spend on players in January, but he will hope that there may be funds to bring in some players before the transfer window closes tomorrow night.
The new owners will repay the £10 million that is owed to the ABC Corporation, a company registered in Panama, which provided a loan that helped the club to exit administration six years ago. The interest payments of 10 per cent have been a considerable burden.
The club borrowed a further £1.3 million from the same company to stave off the threat of administration this summer, money that was used to pay Revenue & Customs. QPR still owe the taxman about £3 million and their directors, including Antonio Caliendo, the chairman of QPR Holdings Ltd, and Gianni Paladini, the club chairman, are owed £7 million in loans.
The new owners will probably look at whether it is feasible to continue playing at Loftus Road. Despite its position in West London, the stadium has been estimated by property experts to be worth about £24 million because covenants on the site limit the housing that can be built. QPR officials have previously considered building a joint stadium in West London with Fulham, who would sell Craven Cottage. The officials have looked at a site near the BBC headquarters in Wood Lane, White City.
Other consortiums, including one involving Ronny Rosenthal, the former Liverpool forward, were entertained by QPR this summer, but the business-men felt that the sums could not add up unless the club went into administration to restructure the debt.
Dual control
— Bernie Ecclestone’s involvement in the deal to buy Queens Park Rangers could prevent the Formula One ringmaster from taking over Arsenal.
— Ecclestone would not be allowed to own more than 9.9 per cent of the shares in another club. David Sullivan, the Birmingham City co-owner, owned about 5 per cent of the shares in West Ham United until he sold up to Eggert Magnússon last season. The Times
August 30, 2007
August 29, 2007
Eccelstone and Briatore - Profiles
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Just brief links to profiles of Bernie Eccelstone and Flavior Briatore!
Profiles
Bernie Eccelstone - Wikipedia
Recent stories re Eccelstone and Arsenal:
The Times, August 11 "Ecclestone on verge of launching Arsenal bid"
The Times, August 11: "Celebrated money man joins race to gain control of Emirates"
The Times, July 23 - "Dein driving Ecclestone's Arsenal plan"
1997 Telegraph Profile/Interview with Ecclestone
Flavio Briatore - Wikipedia
Flavio Briatore Own Website QPR Report
August 31, 2007
"After a Final Round of Talks"...Briatore & Ecclestone Set to Announce QPR Purchase!
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Guardian - Stuart James and David Hytner Friday August 31, 2007
"...Flavio Briatore is set to announce that he has purchased a majority stake in Queens Park Rangers, together with Bernie Ecclestone, his fellow formula one powerbroker, after a final round of talks in London last night.
The Championship club are carrying debt of £21m, including a £10m loan from the Panama-based ABC Corporation at an annual interest rate of 10%. But Briatore, the Renault principal, in tandem with Ecclestone, the formula one rights holder, who has changed his mind from three weeks ago and clambered on board, intend to pay off ABC.
Their takeover is estimated to be worth £25m but they will also back John Gregory, the manager, with funds in the transfer market. QPR's board resigned last week to clear the way for the new investors. Guardian QPR Report
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