Latest news with #AndrewCavenagh
Scottish Sun
10 hours ago
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Delivering trophies is one thing but changing Rangers' culture might be tougher fix for new owners, reckons Bill Leckie
TWENTY million quid might make you or I happy for the rest of our lives. But in football terms it doesn't even touch the sides. 3 Rangers' new owners, including Andrew Cavenagh, might want to shake things up 3 And guys like Paraag Marathe will want to echo the American sports experience It gets you one-fifth of Bruno Fernandes. Or a year's wages for Mo Salah. If new European champions PSG are feeling generous, it might just about buy you one of their unused subs from Munich on Saturday night. So if any Rangers fans believe this summer's war chest promised by their new owners is enough to get them 'back where they belong' — to quote chairman Andrew Cavenagh's open letter from America — they are kidding themselves. Fact is, it won't. It might get them closer to Celtic next season, it might help them win a trophy. It's only a gesture, though. A down payment. A taste of what might be on tap if everyone knuckles down and gets their act together. Most of all, it appears to be a sign from the 49ers that bringing in new players, much like finding a new manager, is only part of what they have signed up to do. Or, at least, that's how it should be. Because for me, while revitalising the dugout and the dressing room has to be the short-term aim after a dismal campaign, what matters way more is a long-term plan that changes the culture of a club broken from top to bottom. The business culture. The corporate culture. The communications culture. And, maybe most of all, the FAN culture. Sure, if Donald Trump had bought them he wouldn't have changed a thing. Rangers fans react as 49ers takeover completed He'd already be wearing a No One Likes Us We Don't Care baseball cap. He'd be serenading Vladimir Putin with a chorus of No Surrender. Cavenagh and sidekick Paraag Marathe are cut from a different cloth, though. They built the foundations of their sporting empire on the family-friendly, tailgate-BBQ vibe of NFL game days. I can't see them being comfortable with the kind of atmosphere that generations of Ibrox boardrooms accepted not only as normal, but somehow as the look they wanted for their brand. It's an angry place. It's a place that distrusts outsiders, a place that screams abuse about the faith of half its own country. Surely that isn't the image Cavenagh and Co want for their investment? One of snarling faces, of religious hatred, of visiting supporters staring down the double barrels of a shotgun. Not to mention a world of potential sponsors recoiling in shock at the sight? If I was part of this consortium, that banner before the last Old Firm game would have sealed the deal for me as far as the need for cultural upheaval was concerned. It might even have made me think more than twice about whether this was the club for me and my dosh after all. It's clear chief executive Patrick Stewart isn't having the Union Bears thing, at least not in its present trouble-making form. You'd think he'd be telling the 49ers this, though you'd hope they would not only already be aware of it, but also would see it as a no-brainer that it cannot be allowed to go on. After all, if a clean slate applies to the dugout and the dressing room, then surely it should also apply to the stands. As in, if you're not prepared to buy into a new way of thinking, a new attitude, then off you pop and we'll fill your seat with someone who is. At which point, I'm well aware that the emails will start flying in about why the same isn't being written about THEYM across the city, about THEIR intolerances and THEIR anger. But this isn't about 'theym'. 3 Chief executive Patrick Stewart is already trying to make his influence felt Credit: Getty They are not the ones beating themselves up about serial failure on and off the pitch. This is about Rangers. And one of the first things the new people running Rangers have to do if this takeover is to work — genuinely work long-term, not just deliver the punter-appeasing quick fix of some silverware — is to stop worrying about what Celtic are doing, and start getting their own messy house in order. If they are properly serious about the job in front of them, they will set about rebuilding from top to bottom, and succeeding will mean as much as delivering titles and making an impact in Europe. If they are properly serious, they will look ahead to the day when they themselves ride off into the sunset, and promise the club they put up for sale won't trade on sectarianism and loathing its neighbours. That it will be one where mums and dads and kids can sit together and enjoy something as healthy as it is successful. Rangers have had this chance before. When the version run on tick by David Murray hit financial and footballing rock bottom in 2012, they could easily have come back up as a better club — but they blew it. Instead of finding the humility to set a wage structure that would let them rebuild from the ground up, they chucked more money at individual players than the rest of League Two spent among them in a week. Instead of reflecting on the boastful, wasteful, self-entitled mindset that had caused their humiliating fall from grace, they chose instead to blame it all on a world that they believed was out to get them. They either couldn't see — or chose to ignore — the bigger picture that the whole No One Likes Us schtick was dragging them down, and that they needed to re-market themselves as an outward-looking, progressive organisation where everyone was welcome. Today, and for very different reasons, Rangers have that same chance again. It's one they simply MUST grab, and run with like a 49ers wide-receiver in full flight. Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page
Daily Mail
15 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXIT KOPPEN: Rangers technical director Nils Koppen is first high-profile departure from Ibrox following US takeover ... with Everton's Dan Purdy set to take his place
Nils Koppen is poised to be the first high-profile departure from Rangers following the completion of the American takeover last week. The Belgian will step down from his role as technical director in the coming days after just 18 months in Glasgow. Kevin Thelwell starts his new job as sporting director on Monday. Dan Purdy is set to fill the role that Koppen will vacate having worked alongside Thelwell at Everton. It's believed that Koppen will remain at Ibrox to help with the transition, but will then move on. The development follows an external review of all of Rangers' football operations, which chief executive Patrick Stewart announced in January. Koppen, who was formerly PSV Eindhoven's head scout, joined the Ibrox club as director of football recruitment under Philippe Clement before moving into his broader role last November. While he was credited with recruiting Hamza Igamane and Vaclav Cerny, there were misgivings about his overall record in the two full transfer windows that he oversaw, with Rangers ultimately finishing the season 17 points behind Celtic. It appears that the responsibility of identifying possible signings will now fall to Purdy. He enjoyed a close working relationship with Thelwell at Goodison Park, where he had a number of analytical and scouting roles. Rangers are now looking to overhaul their playing squad after health tycoon Andrew Cavenagh and his partners from the San Francisco 49ers completed their £75million Ibrox takeover. They immediately pledged to make £20m available to upgrade the first team via the purchase of freshly-issued shares. Thelwell, who has been working behind the scenes, will firstly prioritise securing a new manager. Davide Ancelotti and Russell Martin are the two main contenders. Despite interest from other clubs in Europe, Ancelotti, son of legendary manager Carlo, has told Rangers he is desperate to start his career in management with them. Martin looked set to fall out of the race last week when Leicester City lined him up as a replacement for Ruud van Nistelrooy. However, with the Foxes yet to axe the Dutchman following their relegation from the Premier League, Martin is still very much in contention to succeed Barry Ferguson as manager. Former Ajax boss Francesco Farioli and ex-Feyenoord manager Brian Priske are also in the running but are thought to be very much outsiders.
BBC News
16 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Purdy replaces Koppen as Ibrox technical director
Rangers' new American owners are continuing their restructuring of the club by appointing Everton's former head of recruitment Dan Purdy as technical director to replace Nils week, a US-based consortium, including the investment arm of the San Francisco 49ers, completed a multi-million pound takeover of sporting director Kevin Thelwell officially begins his role on Monday, and the club have moved to bring in Purdy to work alongside him, as they did at previously head of scouting for Dutch club PSV Eindhoven, originally joined Rangers as director of football recruitment in January 2024 before the Belgian stepped up to become technical director 10 months later. Now the club's new owners have decided to move in a different direction, though Koppen will assist Thelwell with the transition into his new Ibrox club are expected to appoint a new head coach soon, with Davide Ancelotti and Russell Martin believed to be the two main Cavenagh will be confirmed as the club's new chairman at an annual meeting at the end of June. His vice-chair will be the current chairman of Leeds United, Paraag Marathe. Patrick Stewart will continue as chief executive.
STV News
16 hours ago
- Business
- STV News
Rangers technical director Nils Koppen set to leave Ibrox
Rangers technical director Nils Koppen is set to leave Ibrox, with the club's new owners moving in a different direction. The Belgian, who joined Rangers in January 2024, was appointed to his current position in November but will now depart just six months later. The news comes just days after the takeover by 49ers Enterprises, and health tycoon Andrew Cavenagh was confirmed. STV News understands that former Everton man Dan Purdy will be the next technical director at Rangers. Kevin Thelwell, who also previously worked at the Merseyside club, officially begins his role as sporting director at Ibrox on Monday. Koppen will stay in his role to help with the transition before standing down. Rangers are also still in the hunt for a new manager to take them into next season with former Real Madrid coach Davide Ancelotti the current favourite for the job. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
The National
18 hours ago
- Business
- The National
Celtic hero on why Rangers takeover 'doesn't matter'
Gers fans were delighted on Friday when the takeover of the club by a US consortium involving health tycoon Andrew Cavenagh and 49ers Enterprises was finally officially confirmed. It has brought a degree of optimism for what lies ahead with fresh investment expected to help them build a better squad. But the Hoops are the country's top dogs and won't give up that mantle without a fight. Indeed, former winger Petta expects them to defend their title again next year and make it five-in-row. He insists Rangers need much more than a takeover to bridge the gap. Read more: Philippe Clement 'turns down Sparta Prague managerial position' Celtic player admits uncertainty over future with club The Dutchman told the Sunday Post: 'For me, it doesn't matter what happens at Rangers. Sure, keep an eye on it and be vigilant, but they shouldn't be able to get too close to Celtic in the next year. 'I think Celtic will win the league and that will be five-in-a-row. It's getting higher and higher all the time. 'It's up to Rangers to be stronger and more consistent to make a proper challenge over 38 games. 'Let's see if they are capable of doing it under the new owners and the new manager. "There are still lots of questions unanswered at Rangers. 'If I was at Celtic right now I'd be thinking to myself: 'Bring it on and let's see what you've got'. I would not be scared in any manner of Rangers.'
