Rangers vs SPFL row: Tom English reacts to ‘big defeat’ in sponsorship dispute
BBC Sport’s Tom English branded it a “big defeat” for the SPFL after the league body had to apologise to Rangers at the conclusion of their sponsorship row.
Chairman Murdoch MacLennan said, via Glasgow Times, he was “very happy to apologise if there has been any damage to the reputation of Rangers FC or Park’s of Hamilton” after the club’s stance in refusing to take part in the SPFL’s cinch deal was finally accepted.
CEO Neil Doncaster has been heavily criticised already as a result of the final outcome, while he personally stopped short of an apology of his own.
English was clear about the significance of the Friday (14 July) developments as far as it reflected on the Scottish governing body.
Reacting to the news on Twitter the BBC Sport man wrote: “Big defeat for the SPFL executive here…”
Vindication
Rangers, and the Gers fanbase, will be delighted that one of the steady stream of legal disputes that crop up around this club has fallen in their favour for once.
What the ramifications turn out to be at the SPFL remains to be seen but key members of the previous hierarchy at Ibrox, including former chairman Douglas Park and ex-CEO Stewart Robertson, have been vindicated this time.
Why Doncaster decided to push through a sponsorship deal that Rangers had flagged up ahead of time as incompatible with their own commitments is for him to explain.
It at least resolves one off-field distraction that has at times threatened to overshadow what the manager and the players are attempting to achieve on the pitch.
Further sponsorship rows were feared earlier this season that threatened to be financially expensive for Scottish football, but with the finding that Rangers’ position was right perhaps they can now be avoided going forward.
The independent inquiry into the governance at the SPFL, in theory, should prevent these sorts of disagreements recurring, which would surely be of benefit to everyone involved.
In other Rangers news, a permanent first-team exit is on the cards after an Ibrox ace was spotted abroad to complete his move away.