Stephen Vaughan, Sr
Encyclopedia
Stephen Vaughan is an English businessman from Liverpool
. As owner of Vaughan Promotions, originally a boxing
promotion and management company, he has owned Barrow A.F.C.
and Chester City
football clubs, and has served as chairman of both. His periods as chairman of the two clubs initially saw both succeed on the pitch, but both ended due to Vaughan's involvement in criminal investigations. In 2009, Vaughan failed the FA
's fit and proper person test
, barring him from having any involvement in football following his admission of VAT
fraud. Vaughan has also been involved with Droylsden F.C.
and has been chairman of Widnes Vikings
rugby league
team.
investigation by HM Customs and Excise. Vaughan's links to gangster Curtis Warren also became apparent; later in Warren's biography, an incident is reported in which Warren flew over Barrow AFC's Holker Street
ground and commented "I own that". Nothing came of Customs and Excise's investigation, and Vaughan reinstated himself as chairman.
However, Vaughan had been using his own money to fund the club; when he left Barrow permanently in November 1998, his departure resulted in the club having a £200,000 financial short fall. Furthermore, it transpired that Vaughan had transferred Holker Street to his company, Vaughan Promotions, in return for his investment. Barrow were subsequently placed into liquidation
and removed from the Football Conference
. A lengthy dispute over the ownership of Holker Street followed, whilst Barrow were readmitted to play in the Northern Premier League
in September 1999. Vaughan remained a share-owner in the liquidated company, but day-to-day running of the club had been taken over by the newly formed Barrow AFC (1999). Eventually, it was found that the club legally owned the ground, not Vaughan, and Barrow was able to sell the asset to pay many of the club's debts.
Vaughan was linked with attempts to buy a number of clubs, and finally took over at Chester City in 2001. Soon, however, Chester were drawn to play Barrow AFC in the FA Cup
. Under Football Association rules, Vaughan could not own shares in both teams and a few days prior to the match, he transferred his Barrow AFC shares to a local painter and decorator for a nominal sum. After the game, the shares were transferred back. A few days later, new Barrow chairman Brian Keen completed the purchase of Vaughan's shares.
At Chester, Vaughan again invested heavily and brought success. He improved the club's Deva Stadium and took them to victory in the Football Conference in 2004. In February 2002, Vaughan bought shares in rugby league club Widnes Vikings, completing his takeover in 2006. Difficulties in securing a ground in Chester lead to suggestions that the football club might move to Widnes, and even change its name to reflect this, but nothing came of this and Vaughan quit as Widnes chairman in April 2007. A few months later, he also stood down as chairman of Chester following a controversy in which he arranged for the club to hold a minute's silence following the death of Colin Smith, a murdered Liverpool gangster and associate of Curtis Warren. Nevertheless, Vaughan remained the majority shareholder in the club, which began to run into financial problems. A sale was announced to Gary Metcalf
, a Liverpool-based businessman, though ownership of the club was eventually transferred to Stephen Vaughan, Jr., Vaughan's son, in April 2009. Eventually, Chester City went into voluntary administration and were bought back by Chester City Ltd (2004), a company entirely owned by members of the Vaughan family, including Stephen.
These financial difficulties coincided with on-the-pitch struggles. Chester were relegated from the Football League at the end of the 2008–09 season. They were initially barred from competing in the 2009-10 season
due to a complaint by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs
over the manner in which the club had been placed into and then left administration, but the club were eventually given FA affiliation. This came, however, with a 25-point penalty at the start of the 2009–10 season as a result of administration and financial irregularities. This left the club struggling in the Football Conference. Chester continued to experience financial difficulties and in November 2009, Vaughan was disqualified from acting as a director of any company for a period of 11 years, following his involvement in a £500,000 VAT fraud whilst director of Widnes Vikings. As a result, he became the first owner of a professional football club to fail the FA's "Fit and proper person test
", and was forced to reduce his shareholding in Chester City. Control of the club was then passed back to Stephen Vaughan, Jr., whilst Vaughan has continued to operate in a representative role for the club. By February 2010, Chester City were unable to fulfil their fixtures due to failures to pay police, coach drivers and players, and the club was suspended from the Football Conference pending a vote on their ejection to be held on Friday 26 February. The decision was made to expel Chester City from the Football Conference and, following a court order on 10 March it was confirmed that the club's 125 year history was now over. Neither Vaughan nor any representative bothered to attend the Conference vote nor the High Court judgement.
On April 4, 2010 Vaughan and his son Stephen Vaughan Jnr, along with a 29-year-old man from Neston, were arrested on suspicion of affray and the serious assault of a police officer and later charged for this. He was found guilty in March 2011 and was jailed for 15 months.
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
. As owner of Vaughan Promotions, originally a boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
promotion and management company, he has owned Barrow A.F.C.
Barrow A.F.C.
Barrow A.F.C. are an English football club founded in 1901 based in the town of Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria. Following promotion at the end of the 2007–08 season, they currently play in the Conference National. The club spent over fifty years in the Football League between 1921 and 1972, and have...
and Chester City
Chester City F.C.
Chester City Football Club was an English football team from Chester. The club was founded as Chester F.C., and joined the Football League in 1931, spending most of their time in the lower divisions. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. Chester won their first league title in 2004, the...
football clubs, and has served as chairman of both. His periods as chairman of the two clubs initially saw both succeed on the pitch, but both ended due to Vaughan's involvement in criminal investigations. In 2009, Vaughan failed the FA
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...
's fit and proper person test
Fit and proper person test
The Fit and proper person test or Director's test is a test undergone by owners and directors of major British football clubs in the hope that it prevents corrupt or untrustworthy businessmen from buying them.-Application:...
, barring him from having any involvement in football following his admission of VAT
Vat
Vat or VAT may refer to:* A type of container such as a barrel, storage tank, or tub, often constructed of welded sheet stainless steel, and used for holding, storing, and processing liquids such as milk, wine, and beer...
fraud. Vaughan has also been involved with Droylsden F.C.
Droylsden F.C.
Droylsden F.C. is an English football club based in Droylsden, near Manchester. As of the 2011–12 season, they play in the Conference North.-History:...
and has been chairman of Widnes Vikings
Widnes Vikings
Widnes Vikings RLFC are an English professional rugby league club based in Widnes, Cheshire. They currently play in the Engage Super League, the top tier of European rugby league, after being awarded a license to compete in the top-flight Super League from 2012 onward...
rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
team.
Life and career
Vaughan was an amateur boxer as a youth, and formed Vaughan Promotions in 1990 to promote boxing matches in the United Kingdom. His company purchased Barrow AFC in 1995, and Vaughan invested heavily in the club, bringing the Unibond Premier League title to the team in the 1997-1998 season. However, during the season Vaughan had resigned as chairman due to a money launderingMoney laundering
Money laundering is the process of disguising illegal sources of money so that it looks like it came from legal sources. The methods by which money may be laundered are varied and can range in sophistication. Many regulatory and governmental authorities quote estimates each year for the amount...
investigation by HM Customs and Excise. Vaughan's links to gangster Curtis Warren also became apparent; later in Warren's biography, an incident is reported in which Warren flew over Barrow AFC's Holker Street
Holker Street
Holker Street, also known as the Furness Building Society Stadium for sponsorship purposes, is a sports stadium located in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England. Currently and originally used as a football ground, it has also previously been used for speedways races...
ground and commented "I own that". Nothing came of Customs and Excise's investigation, and Vaughan reinstated himself as chairman.
However, Vaughan had been using his own money to fund the club; when he left Barrow permanently in November 1998, his departure resulted in the club having a £200,000 financial short fall. Furthermore, it transpired that Vaughan had transferred Holker Street to his company, Vaughan Promotions, in return for his investment. Barrow were subsequently placed into liquidation
Liquidation
In law, liquidation is the process by which a company is brought to an end, and the assets and property of the company redistributed. Liquidation is also sometimes referred to as winding-up or dissolution, although dissolution technically refers to the last stage of liquidation...
and removed from the Football Conference
Football Conference
The Football Conference is a football league in England which consists of three divisions called Conference National, Conference North, and Conference South. Some Football Conference clubs are fully professional, such as Luton Town, but most of them are semi-professional...
. A lengthy dispute over the ownership of Holker Street followed, whilst Barrow were readmitted to play in the Northern Premier League
Northern Premier League
The Northern Premier League, is one of the regional English football leagues which sits directly below the Football Conference featuring semi-professional and amateur clubs. Geographically, the league covers all of Northern England, and the northern areas of the Midlands. Originally just one...
in September 1999. Vaughan remained a share-owner in the liquidated company, but day-to-day running of the club had been taken over by the newly formed Barrow AFC (1999). Eventually, it was found that the club legally owned the ground, not Vaughan, and Barrow was able to sell the asset to pay many of the club's debts.
Vaughan was linked with attempts to buy a number of clubs, and finally took over at Chester City in 2001. Soon, however, Chester were drawn to play Barrow AFC in the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
. Under Football Association rules, Vaughan could not own shares in both teams and a few days prior to the match, he transferred his Barrow AFC shares to a local painter and decorator for a nominal sum. After the game, the shares were transferred back. A few days later, new Barrow chairman Brian Keen completed the purchase of Vaughan's shares.
At Chester, Vaughan again invested heavily and brought success. He improved the club's Deva Stadium and took them to victory in the Football Conference in 2004. In February 2002, Vaughan bought shares in rugby league club Widnes Vikings, completing his takeover in 2006. Difficulties in securing a ground in Chester lead to suggestions that the football club might move to Widnes, and even change its name to reflect this, but nothing came of this and Vaughan quit as Widnes chairman in April 2007. A few months later, he also stood down as chairman of Chester following a controversy in which he arranged for the club to hold a minute's silence following the death of Colin Smith, a murdered Liverpool gangster and associate of Curtis Warren. Nevertheless, Vaughan remained the majority shareholder in the club, which began to run into financial problems. A sale was announced to Gary Metcalf
Gary Metcalf
Gary S. Metcalf is an American organizational theorist, management consultant, and faculty member in the Organizational Systems concentration at Saybrook Graduate School.- Biography :...
, a Liverpool-based businessman, though ownership of the club was eventually transferred to Stephen Vaughan, Jr., Vaughan's son, in April 2009. Eventually, Chester City went into voluntary administration and were bought back by Chester City Ltd (2004), a company entirely owned by members of the Vaughan family, including Stephen.
These financial difficulties coincided with on-the-pitch struggles. Chester were relegated from the Football League at the end of the 2008–09 season. They were initially barred from competing in the 2009-10 season
2009–10 Football Conference
The 2009–10 Football Conference season was the sixth season with the Conference consisting of three divisions, and the thirty-first season overall. The Conference covers the top two levels of Non-League football in England. The Conference National is the fifth highest level of the overall pyramid,...
due to a complaint by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs
Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs
Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs is a non-ministerial department of the UK Government responsible for the collection of taxes and the payment of some forms of state support....
over the manner in which the club had been placed into and then left administration, but the club were eventually given FA affiliation. This came, however, with a 25-point penalty at the start of the 2009–10 season as a result of administration and financial irregularities. This left the club struggling in the Football Conference. Chester continued to experience financial difficulties and in November 2009, Vaughan was disqualified from acting as a director of any company for a period of 11 years, following his involvement in a £500,000 VAT fraud whilst director of Widnes Vikings. As a result, he became the first owner of a professional football club to fail the FA's "Fit and proper person test
Fit and proper person test
The Fit and proper person test or Director's test is a test undergone by owners and directors of major British football clubs in the hope that it prevents corrupt or untrustworthy businessmen from buying them.-Application:...
", and was forced to reduce his shareholding in Chester City. Control of the club was then passed back to Stephen Vaughan, Jr., whilst Vaughan has continued to operate in a representative role for the club. By February 2010, Chester City were unable to fulfil their fixtures due to failures to pay police, coach drivers and players, and the club was suspended from the Football Conference pending a vote on their ejection to be held on Friday 26 February. The decision was made to expel Chester City from the Football Conference and, following a court order on 10 March it was confirmed that the club's 125 year history was now over. Neither Vaughan nor any representative bothered to attend the Conference vote nor the High Court judgement.
On April 4, 2010 Vaughan and his son Stephen Vaughan Jnr, along with a 29-year-old man from Neston, were arrested on suspicion of affray and the serious assault of a police officer and later charged for this. He was found guilty in March 2011 and was jailed for 15 months.