Kyle Fox leaves door open to future Rangers talks after takeover bid collapses - statement in full

The American businesswomen behind a failure takeover attempt of Rangers says her company remains open to revisiting negotations in the future.

Kyle Fox, head of KRF Capital, had been in discussion with the Ibrox club for the past nine months but has now formally withdrawn her offer after failing to reach an agreement with existing shareholders.

Rangers directors including chairman Douglas Park were reluctant to give up their controlling stake in the club to the Miami-based investor but Ms Fox has refused to close the door on making another approach to shareholders in the future.

“We were drawn to the football club by its fans, who are arguably the most passionate in all of sports,” said KRF’s capital founder and managing partner. “The focal point of our approach as a capital group is to galvanize fandom by converging performance, media distribution and fan engagement to drive interaction beyond matchday.

A Rangers takeover bid led by US-based investor Kyle Fox has fallen through. (Photo by Rob Casey / SNS Group)

“Our proposal was a combination of providing liquidity for those shareholders who wished to sell and ongoing investment into the club to improve performance on and off the field."

Rangers launched legal action against Ms Fox last year over a potential breach of trademark by using the club logo in her attempts to gain investors but the case was subsequently dropped by the Ibrox club.

A statement from KRF Capital added: “KRF Capital would like to thank the Rangers FC board and its shareholders for their time and consideration during these last 9 months of negotiations, and remains open to conversations in the future with the club leadership.

“Modern professional European sports organizations are implementing these strategies to add millions of Euros to their bottom line to support the club in all areas, from recruitment to player support, merchandizing and enhanced content delivery.

“KRF Capital will continue to explore other professional sports club investment opportunities where we can execute our strategy to bring strategic technology and operational expertise, capital and access to significant product partners. We are passionate about investing in professional sports, an uncorrelated asset, and driving value through championing technology to enhance content while driving data-driven solutions for partners and clients.”