Worcester Warriors banned by RFU, put into administration

• Worcester Warriors suspended from playing, placed into administration.
• Both the men’s and women’s teams will now be barred from the Premier 15s.
• Administration entails the possibility of relegation or a points deduction.

Worcester Warriors have been suspended from playing and will be placed into administration after failing to fulfil.

A Rugby Football Union financing deadline.

The financially troubled team was required to demonstrate a “credible” future strategy by Monday at 17:00 BST.

Both the men’s and women’s teams will now be barred from the Premier 15s and the Premiership, respectively.

Administration entails the possibility of relegation or a points deduction for the men’s team.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), one of the main guarantors of a loan through Sport England, said it had agreed to the directors’ request to place Worcester into administration.

The loan, estimated to be worth over £15 million, was provided as a part of the government’s plan to help athletes survive the coronavirus pandemic.

The decision was made “to protect a large government investment, and to provide the club the best possible chance of survival,” according to a statement.

Because Jim O’Toole, the club’s former chief executive, is leading a consortium that wants to save the club but was hesitant to move further until it was placed under administration, the development may attract additional investment.

After failing to get “critically required money,” Warriors owners Jason Whittingham and Colin Goldring said that putting the team into administration was “the greatest way to defend the interests of the business and ensure the best possibilities of a solution that rescues the club.”

“We are grateful to DCMS and Sport England as the Covid-19 loan program manager for accepting our request to place the club into administration,” they said in a statement.

“Both the club and DCMS will continue to co-ordinate efforts to find a rescue for the club if there is any possibility of it being saved.

“The administrators will assess any rescue options for some or all of the business as and when offers are made, while ensuring public funds are protected.”

Bill Sweeney, chief executive officer of the RFU, continued, “We have had to take this action to defend everyone’s best interests.

The announcement was “extremely difficult for fans, staff, and players,” he continued, and he praised them for their “tireless work over the past few weeks to enable matches to go.”

Warriors’ future is unknown, but Sweeney hopes a buyer can be found quickly so the team may potentially continue playing if the suspension is removed.

“While it is the responsibility of each business owner to manage their individual finances, we will look at learnings from this situation to see what regulation can be put in place to provide all parties with more financial transparency,” said Sweeney.

The scheduled Premiership match between Worcester and Gloucester will no longer take place, Premiership Rugby has said in response to Worcester’s ban, adding that it will “continue to support them where we can during this next phase.”

The Cherry and Whites sent assistance as well, tweeting: “We are thinking about the Worcester Warriors’ players, employees, and fans. We anticipate seeing them back in the Premiership soon.”

Warriors are not the only troubled team in the Midlands; rival Wasps recently announced they will name administrators to “defend the club’s interests.”

After Worcester’s suspension was made official, the team tweeted, “Wasps and the entire rugby family stands as one with all the players, staff, and supporters of Worcester Warriors.”

The club’s failure to fulfil the RFU deadline was not entirely unexpected because workers had been instructed in a letter to get their belongings by 16:30 BST, when Sixways Stadium’s gates would be locked, and the club’s insurance coverage would have expired at midnight.

The players will now train on nearby fields while their fates are sorted out as access to the stadium and its amenities is no longer possible. Lee Morrow, the stadium’s caretaker, and his wife must vacate their apartment located atop the West Stand.

Late payments, partial payments, £25m debt

The capacity at Sixways was decreased to 4,999 due to safety requirements, yet Warriors nevertheless managed to host their first two home Premiership games despite the two prior threats of suspension.

The University of Worcester Warriors, the club’s women’s team, has won both of its games in the Allianz Cup. Those who attended the play on Saturday witnessed Warriors win an emotionally charged encounter 39-5.

The suspension comes after weeks of financial turbulence since Warriors received a winding-up petition from His Majesty’s Revenue & Customs for an unpaid tax bill of £6 million; the club’s total debts are estimated to be £25 million.

Players received their payments later than expected, and several members of the staff did not get any pay at all for August.

Despite their pledges, the owners failed to pay the remaining 35% of those salaries, and their announcement of a sale agreement about two weeks earlier never received any official confirmation.

Worcester MP Robin Walker requested DCMS’s approval to put the club into administration in parliament last week after the owners refused earlier requests from local MPs.

The closing of Sixways has also had an impact on Worcester Raiders, a non-league football team that uses the facility for its home games.

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