Scottish Second Division Rangers may have attained full membership of the Scottish Professional Football League and regained voting rights on issues affecting the new organization, but "their new status won’t affect their European exile," according to Ewing Grahame of the SCOTSMAN. Even if Rangers win the Scottish Cup next season, there "will be no Europa League slot for them, a direct result of not having published audited accounts." Rangers last did that in June '10. UEFA rules stipulate that any club wishing to compete in Europe "must be able to have provided these details over a three-year period." A Scottish FA spokesperson said, "Rangers can’t compete in Europe for three seasons" (SCOTSMAN, 7/1).
WHYTE INVESTIGATED: In Edinburgh, Keith McLeod reported government fraud investigators "are probing" Owner Craig Whyte’s takeover of Rangers. Officials from the Insolvency Service believe that "they have found clear evidence of fraud by the disgraced businessman." The investigators "have been interviewing senior figures involved in the Ibrox deal." The probe "is the surest sign yet that Whyte will face criminal charges and a lifetime’s ban from being a company director" (DAILY RECORD, 7/1).
