Cost Control Efficiency Drive

I’m not referencing local media for absolute clarity. The local reporters have a very fine line to tread in not burning bridges whilst writing something objective. Don’t envy them.

I do my bit 😉

Selling it as 94/95 retro is curious isn’t it? 😆

Shorts & socks…

Thank you…hope you will enjoy your badges 😁

It’s not my experience that V’s get a universal easy ride in the media BTW.

In a season that is pointing towards ignominy this shirt is possibly going to be a rare positive. I agree that it’s closer to the 92-94 than the 94-95 but it’s still very nice. Hats off to Fraser Read for listening 👍

The parent lends to its subsidiaries interest-free. Rovers aren’t paying for that debt (compared to Man Utd/Burnley for instance). Separately & in parallel the V’s in India will fund their group working capital requirements holistically. If they don’t generate enough cash from their core operations &/or there are timing differences then they will borrow from their bankers. It’s also possible that they borrow to fund capital projects - this borrowing attracts interest clearly - but chargeable to the borrower (the Indian parent). It’s like parents lending money to kids FOC but having to take out an overdraft to fund the loan..!

@J*B @tomphil @IraC I think we are all saying broadly very similar things. The appetite has diminished. The mandate is "keep it ticking over with minimal parental support". By NOT selling they are avoiding having to write off value through the parent company accounts. It's like buying a stately home for £50m, spending £200m on it but at the end of that spending somehow not increasing the capital value of the property or visitor numbers. You still own the asset, but you may have in your head that it should be worth £250m but nobody will give you anything like that. As long as you carry on owning it, you don't have to confront the awful truth that you've just wasted >£200m of your money. Now if you have billions, you don't notice a loss of that scale perhaps ? I get the sense that they don't want to admit that they've cocked up - so they keep it, run it on a threadbare budget & never have to publicly swallow their pride ?

The strongest correlation is usually argued to be wage bill v league position. Given what’s happening to our funding, we can only presume that managing the wage bill carefully is a crucial metric for SW. On that basis, our league position is moving only in one direction.

I doubt the objective is to “achieve” relegation. That makes zero sense for anyone. However, I firmly believe the principal objective now is “reduce the costs”. It’s a side effect that the 2nd almost inevitably leads to the first if it becomes a sustained, repeated requirement season after season. I think that’s where we are.

1. What is the stated goal of the Rovers Women’s team? What are the ambitions? How committed are i. The owners ii. The CEO to having a competitive women’s team? 2. If the budget is unchanged from last season - how many players were under contract & on what basis (hours) last season? How does that compare to this coming season? 3. If the budget is unchanged, why have so many players been released? Whose decision was it not to offer terms? What was the rationale? 4. What has happened to sponsorship income given the new men’s 1st team shirt sponsor? Whose job is it to find a replacement? How’s it going? 5. How would the club react/respond to the damning allegations levelled by former players/employees regarding culture surrounding the women’s team? Thanks Duncan.

Hi Jonas - happy to help… email media@brfcs.com if you want to set up an interview. The comments on here I think sum up Leo’s Rovers career…it wasn’t a success let’s put it like that 😆

As funding the women’s team doesn’t impact adversely on FFP calculations this suggests it’s a cash flow decision. The saying that the owners never refuse to sign a cheque clearly no longer holds true - just in case there was any lingering doubt at all. This club is dying the death of a thousand cuts.

A new Rovers show launches today as part of the 4000 Holes podcast stable - Rovers Inc. This new show, hosted by Paul Worthington & Simon Burns (from the Rovers Returned podcast) will aim to look behind the scenes at what is going on off the field at Ewood Park. Stepping away from the Saturday 3pm (or for that matter, Friday 8pm, Sunday 12pm…!) headlines, Rovers Inc will analyse the latest news when it comes to the club’s finances, how the club is run from a corporate governance perspective and the role of senior leadership at the club, from those based at Ewood to the owners in India. To say it has been a turbulent time off the pitch over the past 12 months (years) would be an understatement. Disagreements over the direction of the club have spilled over into the public against the backdrop of funding issues from the ownership and a concerning set of accounts which highlight “material uncertainty” over the club’s future finances. The club had a brief experiment with a Director of Football model, and now seems to have moved away from it. Why? What impact will this have going forward? What happens off the pitch has a direct impact come kick-off time, in many different forms. From the players we can sign, those we need to sell, how the team is managed, and the relationship between the commercial side and football side of the club. In order for us fans to hold those in charge accountable, we need to unpick what is happening and put the pieces together. If you want to learn more about what is going on at Rovers then tune into Rovers Inc where we will be looking at all these issues and more, as we bid to educate, entertain and inform when it comes to the business side of Rovers. Episode 1 - 'Rudy, Rudy, Rudy, Rudy...wo-oh', oh etc is available right here In this episode we take an initial look at the commercial aspects of the new front of shirt sponsor and ask what the return of Rudy Gestede means in terms of how the club will be run? https://www.thebusinessdesk.com/northwest/news/2135248-heavy-hearts-as-vape-company-reaches-end-of-blackburn-rovers-shirt-sponsor-deal

Newcastle’s Scott Carson

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That’s a pretty standard business practice to close off the potential for future litigation etc. What’s interesting is that they seem to be really good at that process, so there are aspects of corporate governance in which they are competent…

Wednesday have an ‘interesting’ owner who is far from universally popular but they do have an average attendance getting on for double of ours at c.27k which helps massively.

Danny Batth as well. *just seen it higher up 🤦‍♂️

The mock ups are precisely that…an initial concept design to start discussions. I too had confirmation that the home & away would be heavily ‘95 influenced & the photos of the home shirt seem largely to confirm that. I expect minor trim differences/collar for the red & black but thick red pinstripes on black seems a fair bet. The pink 3rd kit is the one I would expect to change most from those pictures…but this is me guessing & setting myself up for ridicule 😉

I can confirm that in my guise as podcast host for 4000 Holes I have had interviews with journalists from The Athletic, the Sunday Mirror, the i & When Saturday Comes magazine - stories which all made it to press. I’ve also been on TalkSport on multiple occasions highlighting the Indian court issues so there are outlets following this story…

Some thoughts...I now need to book a holiday...😐 https://www.brfcs.com/magazine/articles/the-euros-it's-not-like-the-brochure.../549