Blackpool's owners lose multi-million pound court battle with club president

A judge at Manchester’s High Court ruled against Owen and Karl Oyston and in favour of Latvian businessman Valeri Belokon

Karl Oyston, Blackpool's chairman, has overseen the club's plummet down the divisions (Getty)

The Oyston family, owners of Blackpool, will be forced to pay a minimum of £2million after losing a court battle with the club’s president.

A judge at Manchester’s High Court ruled against Owen and Karl Oyston, respectively the Lancashire club’s owner and chairman, who lost their dispute with Latvian businessman Valeri Belokon on Thursday.

Belokon provided £4.75m to the club in 2008 to aid the development of Jimmy Armfield Stand at Bloomfield Road, Blackpool’s home ground.

After hearing arguments from lawyers representing JSC Baltic International Bank, a company owned by Belokon, and Segesta Limited, the holding company for the club’s assets, Judge Jane Moulder ruled in favour of the former.

A hearing to determine the amount of compensation paid to Belokon will take place in April, while a separate, £10m legal case between the two parties is scheduled to be heard in London later this year.

A small group of Blackpool fans sat in court responded with a muted “yes” as the judge ruled against the club and applauded her as she left the courtroom, according to the Press Association.

Blackpool’s home fixtures have been boycotted by thousands of the club’s supporters all season, as part of the Blackpool Supporters’ Trust’s (BST) ‘Not A Penny More’ campaign.

The Seasiders, currently playing in League Two, have plummeted through the Football League’s division in recent years, having spent the 2010/11 season in the Premier League.


 The stand in question was named after Jimmy Armfield, one of the club's greatest players 
 (Getty)

Outside the court, Christine Seddon, deputy chair of the BST, said: “I'm giddy. This is, we think, just the start. There's another action to come which is even bigger.”

A statement from Belokon’s lawyers, Clifford Chance, said: "While Mr Belokon welcomes this judgment, it brings him little joy when Blackpool Football Club remains in League Two.

“Mr Belokon will vigorously continue his separate claim in proceedings in London relating to the historic and ongoing management of the club.”