New owners at dundalk

[sbgawa]

I can't see a reason to be negative about this...dundalk have no assets so peak6 can hardly leave it any worse then it is....
If they walk away with the club in debt then you restart as a new club again ...in a worst case scenario.
So on the positive front possible major investment and a chance to dominate the league....negative....back to square 1.
European football is not the only potential reward either...a team dominating a league with players on long term contracts gets transfer fees for their players and also attract better players.
As a rovers fan I would be worried as to how we compete with their budget going forward.

[Nesta99]

As a rovers fan I would be worried as to how we compete with their budget going forward.

This is at the centre of much of this thread. Dundalk fans are hopeful that this takeover will be a success and lead the club on to a sustained period of success but this isnt taken as a given and we are collectively worried about the potential fall down the line, have said so many times yet doomsday warnings are repeated over irrespective of our acknowledgement of the possibile doom! Many fans of other clubs are understandibly worried about the ability to compete if this project is a success; It is though being presented as a worry about the future welfare of Dundalk FC. While there may be some genuine concern for a LoI club and potential future difficulties I think quite a few are grabbing the popcorn and throwing out 'careful now' like soundbites, but are quietly hoping this ends up a fail rather than a change in the fortunes for investment in a LoI club. As WH had a post singled out for honesty earlier in the thread, I think sbgawa deserves similar credit.

[Pablo Escobar]

This is at the centre of much of this thread. Dundalk fans are hopeful that this takeover will be a success and lead the club on to a sustained period of success but this isnt taken as a given and we are collectively worried about the potential fall down the line, have said so many times yet doomsday warnings are repeated over irrespective of our acknowledgement of the possibile doom! Many fans of other clubs are understandibly worried about the ability to compete if this project is a success; It is though being presented as a worry about the future welfare of Dundalk FC. While there may be some genuine concern for a LoI club and potential future difficulties I think quite a few are grabbing the popcorn and throwing out 'careful now' like soundbites, but are quietly hoping this ends up a fail rather than a change in the fortunes for investment in a LoI club. As WH had a post singled out for honestly earlier in the thread, I think sbgawa deserves similar credit.

I think you're doing most a disservice here.

[EatYerGreens]

I can't see a reason to be negative about this...dundalk have no assets so peak6 can hardly leave it any worse then it is....
If they walk away with the club in debt then you restart as a new club again ...in a worst case scenario.
So on the positive front possible major investment and a chance to dominate the league....negative....back to square 1.
European football is not the only potential reward either...a team dominating a league with players on long term contracts gets transfer fees for their players and also attract better players.
As a rovers fan I would be worried as to how we compete with their budget going forward.

Aren't you the same guy who thought there was nothing to worry about with the Bray/Athlone scenarios too....?

[Nesta99]

I think you're doing most a disservice here.

I do accept that Cork fans' recalling the hassles they had after Arkaga is still raw for them and some do seem least inclined to wish ill will!

[mcgonigle]

I think you're doing most a disservice here.

Is he though? How many on here would be happy for Dundalk to become the next BATE winning the league every season? I know I wouldn't if it was another LOI club

I've no doubt people don't want to see us go to the wall but most would be very happy for these lads to be gone in a few years and Dundalk be a mid table or first division non runner

[El-Pietro]

I can't see a reason to be negative about this...dundalk have no assets so peak6 can hardly leave it any worse then it is....
If they walk away with the club in debt then you restart as a new club again ...in a worst case scenario.
So on the positive front possible major investment and a chance to dominate the league....negative....back to square 1.
European football is not the only potential reward either...a team dominating a league with players on long term contracts gets transfer fees for their players and also attract better players.
As a rovers fan I would be worried as to how we compete with their budget going forward.

This is a ridiculous post. You can't honestly believe its ok to go into a gamble like this knowing that if you lose, you say feck it we'll start again. Clubs who have gone through that only did so because no other option was left. We fought tooth and nail to get ourselves out of debt, and we had to suffer through months (18 months) of disaster. Our players, staff were left unpaid, small local businesses weren't paid. It took us years to get the respect of the city back, and many still do not trust us because of what went on before.

[sbgawa]

This is a ridiculous post. You can't honestly believe its ok to go into a gamble like this knowing that if you lose, you say feck it we'll start again. Clubs who have gone through that only did so because no other option was left. We fought tooth and nail to get ourselves out of debt, and we had to suffer through months (18 months) of disaster. Our players, staff were left unpaid, small local businesses weren't paid. It took us years to get the respect of the city back, and many still do not trust us because of what went on before.

Of course I'm not saying that but the point I an trying to make is the downside has limits and t he upside is huge

[sbgawa]

Aren't you the same guy who thought there was nothing to worry about with the Bray/Athlone scenarios too....?

I argued at the time that it was impossible to get away with betting any decent amount on a loi 1st division match without getting rumbled. I was wrong (Not about being rumbled but about being able to get enough on) . Anyone who compares peak6 to the athlone scenerio is daft

[EatYerGreens]

Of course I'm not saying that but the point I an trying to make is the downside has limits and t he upside is huge

Death is a pretty big downside, to be fair.

[Nesta99]

Yes but it is softened by the ability to resurrect in this league!

[EatYerGreens]

Yes but it is softened by the ability to resurrect in this league!

Firstly - that's currently. Hopefully we'll get to the stage of a proper pyramid system for Irish football - although we're admittedly far from it at the moment. But that must surely the aspiration. And if it happened before any current LOI clubs go bust, they'd have to start quite far done. Plus - even if there was no pyramid in place, it comes with a ban from Europe (for 3 years ?).

Secondly - going bust is not some magic Etch-a-Sketch, or like those pens in 'Men In Black'. It causes all sorts of problems for a club's credibility and involves a hefty amount of work in getting a team going again. Some here are suggesting it as if it's as easy as changing socks, which is worrying.

[sbgawa]

I'm not saying it's easy or something you'd want to be doing all I am trying to point out is that in a worst case situation dundalk get to start again .....but under the new setup they have an oppurtunity to go on from here and dominate the league.
Given the limited downside they have reason to be optimistic. Enjoy the ride.
As I said earlier as a rovers supporter my gut instinct is that this is bad news for us and we will find it difficult to compete with dundalk new financial muscle ....

[pineapple stu]

Firstly - that's currently. Hopefully we'll get to the stage of a proper pyramid system for Irish football - although we're admittedly far from it at the moment.

I think unfortunately that's about as likely as the FAI suddenly taking an interest in the league because some Yanks put money in.

One thing I don't really understand - and maybe it's explained earlier on - is why have the Dundalk owners chosen to sell up now? In terms of cash, Dundalk can out-do any LoI club, and that'll be the case for the next few years surely. They have to be favourites for the league this season given Cork's post-Maguire slump - they won't be as bad as that this season, but they won't match their first-half form either and will surely drop back 10 points or so. If they were worried they lacked the commercial knowledge to drive things on, they could have hired someone. So why the need to sell now?

[outspoken]

I think unfortunately that's about as likely as the FAI suddenly taking an interest in the league because some Yanks put money in.

One thing I don't really understand - and maybe it's explained earlier on - is why have the Dundalk owners chosen to sell up now? In terms of cash, Dundalk can out-do any LoI club, and that'll be the case for the next few years surely. They have to be favourites for the league this season given Cork's post-Maguire slump - they won't be as bad as that this season, but they won't match their first-half form either and will surely drop back 10 points or so. If they were worried they lacked the commercial knowledge to drive things on, they could have hired someone. So why the need to sell now?

They’ve clearly stated throughout that the pressures of running a day to day business (fastfix) while trying to run a rapidly expanding football club that clearly requires full time staff to operate at the level they want to be at was proving more and more difficult. Perhaps fast fix was starting to suffer and in the long run Dundalk would’ve suffered?

I’m extremely pessimistic about this deal, Dundalk are going to need to play in European group stages every year for this to work and that seems unlikely even with increased spending. Even if they were to match the exploits of 2016, is there enough money there to keep the new guys interested? Redevelopment of oriel won’t come cheap. Hopefully if anything comes out of this deal it’s a revamp oriel but i do feel a Dundalk supporters trust could be more important now than ever, although would they stand any chance of digging the club out of a hole the size these new investors could dig should things go tits up.

[White Horse]

One thing I don't really understand - and maybe it's explained earlier on - is why have the Dundalk owners chosen to sell up now?

Now is the best time to sell. The Europa League run was noticed by international investors. In 3 or 4 years, it will have been largely forgotten or superseded by another story.

[WeAreRovers]

Been trying to stay out of this but for once I'm with the Dundalk fans, I think they're right to be both excited and nervous. Good for them and I hope it works out. Obviously we don't want a BATE/Rosenborg situation but I'm confident that won't happen. It's up to the rest of us to get our sh*t together, simple as that.

Rovers already have put our house in order to a large degree, we're light years ahead facilities and academy-wise and have a benign investor, large fanbase etc but still, just like Dundalk, nothing is guaranteed. I get where the negativity is coming from but the League and individual clubs need investment.

Obviously a Rovers fan is going to be more sanguine about this than a Longford fan for instance but football's not a meritocracy.

[oriel]

I always said even at the start of the reported link to the American investors interest, that a key point of sucess will be if they are interested in revamping oriel park. I think the only way they can make money is from regular appareances in the EL group stages, and of course they could still make that by playing in Dublin grounds.

However they may see a better option to invest in revamping the ground and being able to host these games in Dundalk and to feed into the community spirit they mentioned as one of the attractions that led them to the club. If they did this it would also increase the sale price when they decided to sell and move on, they won’t own the ground but a redeveloped ground would make it more atttactive for a buyer.

Nothing much has changed my overall opinion though to date, I am firmly in the ‘excited but apprehensive’ camp.

[El-Pietro]

Arkaga talked about a new ground for us. 20-30k stadium at the old dump, where there is a park now. Hotel etc. Talk is cheap. If they actually start work on the ground I'll start to believe them, but if its just plans or talk then I will remain unconvinced. Not that my opinion matters of course.

[EatYerGreens]

I always said even at the start of the reported link to the American investors interest, that a key point of sucess will be if they are interested in revamping oriel park. I think the only way they can make money is from regular appareances in the EL group stages, and of course they could still make that by playing in Dublin grounds.

However they may see a better option to invest in revamping the ground and being able to host these games in Dundalk and to feed into the community spirit they mentioned as one of the attractions that led them to the club. If they did this it would also increase the sale price when they decided to sell and move on, they won’t own the ground but a redeveloped ground would make it more atttactive for a buyer.

Nothing much has changed my overall opinion though to date, I am firmly in the ‘excited but apprehensive’ camp.

Q. "What first attracted you to the club that harvested €6.5m in revenues from European competition in a single year, off the back of only a €0.5m team investment ?"

A. "Their community spirit. Definitely their community spirit".

Isn't that just the equivalent of a new signing for a team claiming at their unveiling press conference that they've always had a soft spot for their new club ? #platitudes.