THE story is typically Rangers. It is one of claim and counter, share deals and multi-million pound promises, one which has become entangled in the tragic death of a Scottish popstar as an American businesswoman defends herself in court.
It is a tale that is perhaps scarcely believable. When it comes to matters off the field at Ibrox, anything goes, however, and the latest chapters - ones of twists and turns, familiar faces and new protagonists - come as no surprise to those who have lived through every element of the drama for more than a decade now.
Takeover talk, in the loosest sense, is never far away at Ibrox. If you had a pound for every WhatsApp message or forum or social media post that claimed inside knowledge on upcoming investment from Hong Kong / America / Saudi Arabia, deleted as appropriate this week, then you would have enough in your pocket to actually buy Rangers.
Change will happen. At some point, Douglas Park will no longer be chairman and the make-up of the board and shareholder platform will look very different to what it is now and what it has been for some time.
New faces and fresh ideas at director and executive level would be no bad thing. Indeed, it is now necessary for Rangers to finally move forward after the current incumbents twice failed to build on their successes in the aftermath of title 55 and the run to Seville.
History teaches investors and supporters a valuable lesson. When you opt to cash in and leave the table, the person that replaces you has a defining say in your legacy. Just ask Sir David Murray.
Rangers fans are more in tune with these issues than most, and with good reason. So it is understandable that the proposal from Kyle Fox and KRF Capital has sent minds racing.
A level of scepticism is only natural and is, in fact, a prerequisite. But the mere hint of outside investment and potential takeovers should ultimately lead back to the role that the fans could have played by now and should have in the future.
If Rangers were owned by those who care about it most, the club would be safeguarded and secured forever. As it stands, though, Club 1872 control just 4.62 per cent of the shares in RIFC plc and even if the share purchase deal with Dave King is completed, fans will still be short of the 25 per cent plus one share threshold that is so significant.
At five per cent, the man on the street has the ability to call General Meetings and at 10 per cent shares cannot be compulsorily acquired following an offer for RIFC. If the magic number is reached, Special Resolutions cannot be passed without agreement from Club 1872.
That puts the future of Rangers in the hands of those who know its past and fund its today. That would render talk of takeovers, and any associated fears that come with it, meaningless and ensure the club is protected, that lessons have been learned and won't be repeated.
Until that point, fans will always have to treat each buy-in blueprint with suspicion, regardless of how significant the sums are or how well-meaning potential investors seem now that Rangers is an attractive proposition once again.
Ms Fox has been assisted by Paul Murray and Adrian Bevington, a former director with the Football Association, as she seeks to invest in Rangers. Plans for a 75 per cent deal, according to documents filed in a US court, were rejected by the Ibrox board before a second offer, which saw the share price raised from 25p to 40p and be accompanied by a £75million investment strategy, was also kicked out.
The proposal, according to Murray, would have given Fox a 'plurality ownership of Rangers' and he claims the shareholders he was in discussions with on her behalf 'remain interested' in the opportunity.
In legal documents first seen by our sister title, The Herald on Sunday, Murray stated he advised Ms Fox that 'being open and transparent with her acquisition plan and seeking the board's recommendation and blessing of the proposal, as a courtesy, would be the ideal course of action to make shareholders feel comfortable.'
From there, the situation escalated. A statement last month was the first public airing of the situation as RIFC plc revealed it had 'raised injunction proceedings in the US to prevent a US entity and its principal falsely claiming it has been authorised by Rangers to sell shares in RIFC and using Rangers IP for that purpose'.
In a filing to court, Ms Fox said that she did not receive a cease-and-desist letter from Rangers and that the presentation material in question was subject to a non-disclosure agreement. It was claimed it was shared with the late musician Darius Campbell Danesh, who passed away last month in Minnesota.
Rangers are seeking compensation for damage to its 'business relationships, goodwill and reputation' amid claims that KRF were meeting with potential investors on the basis that the 'fake sale of equity' had been endorsed by the board. For Fox, the lawsuit is being used a threat to shareholders to 'intimidate them not to sell'.
"Far from my investment proposals causing any harm to Rangers, it is the Rangers board that is harming their own shareholders and me by attempting to sabotage this investment opportunity for purely selfish reasons and blocking KRF Capital's efforts to bring value to the club," Fox said.
In his open letter to the Rangers board last week, former chairman Dave King raised serious and long-held concerns over the running of Rangers, both on and off the park, and questioned the opposition to his share deal with Club 1872. He asked why John Bennett had put up a 'for sale' sign by meeting Fox and if Rangers 'remain for sale in the view of the Board if “the price is right?".
There will come a point when the price and the time is right. Ultimately, it is up to the support how big a say they want at that moment and how much of an influence they can have in the years to come.
Further chapters will be written. If the fans are not the central figure soon, they will have missed the opportunity to be the authors of Rangers' fate.
