No 11th-hour talks aimed at keeping the Sky Blues at the Ricoh have taken place between council leader Ann Lucas and Sisu boss Joy Seppala, Telegraph sources claim.
It is understood Ms Seppala is in America on a pre-arranged trip.
It comes less than 24 hours before tomorrow’s crucial creditors’ meeting - which will result in Coventry City Football Club Limited being liquidated if Ricoh bosses refuse to sign an agreement to exit administration.
Sources insist Ms Seppala remains keen to take up Coun Lucas’s offer of “woman-to-woman” talks any time, anywhere - made in an open letter in Tuesday’s Coventry Telegraph .
Later on Tuesday, a meeting of creditors of CCFC Limited concluded with no agreement between Sisu/CCFC related companies and part-council owed Ricoh firm Arena Coventry Limited (ACL) for the club to exit administration via parties signing a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA).
It is not known if there are attempts today on either side for the two women to talk before tomorrow’s meeting.
It was claimed Ms Seppala was unhappy when she turned up for negotiations in a hotel near London last Thursday that Coun Lucas and Coventry City Council chief executive Martin Reeves (also a Ricoh director) were not present.
ACL hit back by insisting it was right that ACL directors were at the table, not council leaders, as the council is a 50per cent ACL shareholder. ACL was represented by ACL directors Paul Harris from joint ACL owners Alan Edward Higgs Charity, and council finance director Chris West.
The Telegraph revealed on Tuesday afternoon that ACL had requested changes to administrator Mr Appleton’s proposed CVA - including that Sisu/Otium agree to a vastly reduced rent of £150,000 to play at the Ricoh for ten years.
Many Coventry City fans on social media concluded the offer was a non-starter for any hope of an agreement because it excluded any offer over stadium ownership and matchday revenues - which the loss-making club has long sought.
It is understood the club will claim that such demands should in law be made separately to the CVA - and can form no material part of administrator Paul Appleton’s considerations as an officer of the court. His duty is to bring the company out of administration if possible and despatch a return on debts owed to creditors.
ACL has considered calling for the CCFC Ltd sale process to be re-opened.
ACL’s lawyer James Powell has challenged the legitimacy of the sale of minor non-material assets in CCFC Ltd in which £60million of liabilities had been located.
He has claimed all Coventry City assets should have been put up for sale together - including the players’ contracts which Mr Appleton has said were located in another company - CCFC Holdings.
The Football League and the administrator have both said the crucial golden share allowing the club to play in the League had rested with CCFC Ltd prior to the administration.
A crucial creditors’ meeting at 10am tomorrow is expected to finally decide on whether the club can exit administration via agreement on the CVA, or if the company is liquidated.
Liquidation could mean a 15-point Football League deduction from Coventry City’s 2013/14 Division One campaign - due to begin on Saturday in an away game at Crawley Town.
All eyes will also be on the League to see if it transfers the golden share as expected to Sisu related company Otium, which Mr Appleton selected as the buyer for the assets in CCFC Ltd at £1.5m.
Transferring the golden share would enable Otium to run the club - with the likelihood of it playing ‘home’ games at Northampton Town from next week.
The Northampton groundshare plan already has League approval for up to five years - providing Sisu/Otium demonstrate plans to return to the Coventry area within five years by building a new stadium.
The club has signed exclusivity agreements for a sale on two sites - including Brandon speedway stadium, which property agents GVA first revealed in the Telegraph last week had been sold subject to contract.
If the CVA is signed, the earliest Coventry City could exit administration and a transfer embargo lifted is after a 28-day cooling off period, close to the closure at the end of August of the transfer window.
ACL has issued High Court proceedings for damages against Northampton Town, claiming it induced Sky Blues’ prospective owners Otium to breach CCFC Ltd’s 40-year licence and lease agreement to play at the Ricoh. Northampton Town claims the challenge has no legal merit.
Many fans hostile to Sisu/Otium have called for liquidation, or for them to sign the rent agreement as a reasonable reduction from the current £1.3million, which Sisu had refused to pay since last year.
Other fans have criticised the council and ACL - claiming the club’s private owners need to buy into the stadium and have access to stadium revenues to invest in the team.
It is understood Ms Seppala is in America on a pre-arranged trip.
It comes less than 24 hours before tomorrow’s crucial creditors’ meeting - which will result in Coventry City Football Club Limited being liquidated if Ricoh bosses refuse to sign an agreement to exit administration.
Sources insist Ms Seppala remains keen to take up Coun Lucas’s offer of “woman-to-woman” talks any time, anywhere - made in an open letter in Tuesday’s Coventry Telegraph .
Later on Tuesday, a meeting of creditors of CCFC Limited concluded with no agreement between Sisu/CCFC related companies and part-council owed Ricoh firm Arena Coventry Limited (ACL) for the club to exit administration via parties signing a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA).
It is not known if there are attempts today on either side for the two women to talk before tomorrow’s meeting.
It was claimed Ms Seppala was unhappy when she turned up for negotiations in a hotel near London last Thursday that Coun Lucas and Coventry City Council chief executive Martin Reeves (also a Ricoh director) were not present.
ACL hit back by insisting it was right that ACL directors were at the table, not council leaders, as the council is a 50per cent ACL shareholder. ACL was represented by ACL directors Paul Harris from joint ACL owners Alan Edward Higgs Charity, and council finance director Chris West.
The Telegraph revealed on Tuesday afternoon that ACL had requested changes to administrator Mr Appleton’s proposed CVA - including that Sisu/Otium agree to a vastly reduced rent of £150,000 to play at the Ricoh for ten years.
Many Coventry City fans on social media concluded the offer was a non-starter for any hope of an agreement because it excluded any offer over stadium ownership and matchday revenues - which the loss-making club has long sought.
It is understood the club will claim that such demands should in law be made separately to the CVA - and can form no material part of administrator Paul Appleton’s considerations as an officer of the court. His duty is to bring the company out of administration if possible and despatch a return on debts owed to creditors.
ACL has considered calling for the CCFC Ltd sale process to be re-opened.
ACL’s lawyer James Powell has challenged the legitimacy of the sale of minor non-material assets in CCFC Ltd in which £60million of liabilities had been located.
He has claimed all Coventry City assets should have been put up for sale together - including the players’ contracts which Mr Appleton has said were located in another company - CCFC Holdings.
The Football League and the administrator have both said the crucial golden share allowing the club to play in the League had rested with CCFC Ltd prior to the administration.
A crucial creditors’ meeting at 10am tomorrow is expected to finally decide on whether the club can exit administration via agreement on the CVA, or if the company is liquidated.
Liquidation could mean a 15-point Football League deduction from Coventry City’s 2013/14 Division One campaign - due to begin on Saturday in an away game at Crawley Town.
All eyes will also be on the League to see if it transfers the golden share as expected to Sisu related company Otium, which Mr Appleton selected as the buyer for the assets in CCFC Ltd at £1.5m.
Transferring the golden share would enable Otium to run the club - with the likelihood of it playing ‘home’ games at Northampton Town from next week.
The Northampton groundshare plan already has League approval for up to five years - providing Sisu/Otium demonstrate plans to return to the Coventry area within five years by building a new stadium.
The club has signed exclusivity agreements for a sale on two sites - including Brandon speedway stadium, which property agents GVA first revealed in the Telegraph last week had been sold subject to contract.
If the CVA is signed, the earliest Coventry City could exit administration and a transfer embargo lifted is after a 28-day cooling off period, close to the closure at the end of August of the transfer window.
ACL has issued High Court proceedings for damages against Northampton Town, claiming it induced Sky Blues’ prospective owners Otium to breach CCFC Ltd’s 40-year licence and lease agreement to play at the Ricoh. Northampton Town claims the challenge has no legal merit.
Many fans hostile to Sisu/Otium have called for liquidation, or for them to sign the rent agreement as a reasonable reduction from the current £1.3million, which Sisu had refused to pay since last year.
Other fans have criticised the council and ACL - claiming the club’s private owners need to buy into the stadium and have access to stadium revenues to invest in the team.