3 Seejoy is a famous football club but has significant cash flow problems. The directors and shareholders wish to take
steps to improve the club’s financial position. The following proposals had been drafted in an attempt to improve the
cash flow of the club. However, the directors need advice upon their implications.
(a) Sale and leaseback of football stadium (excluding the land element)
The football stadium is currently accounted for using the cost model in IAS16, ‘Property, Plant, and Equipment’.
The carrying value of the stadium will be $12 million at 31 December 2006. The stadium will have a remaining
life of 20 years at 31 December 2006, and the club uses straight line depreciation. It is proposed to sell the
stadium to a third party institution on 1 January 2007 and lease it back under a 20 year finance lease. The sale
price and fair value are $15 million which is the present value of the minimum lease payments. The agreement
transfers the title of the stadium back to the football club at the end of the lease at nil cost. The rental is
$1·2 million per annum in advance commencing on 1 January 2007. The directors do not wish to treat this
transaction as the raising of a secured loan. The implicit interest rate on the finance in the lease is 5·6%.
(9 marks)
Required:
Discuss how the above proposals would be dealt with in the financial statements of Seejoy for the year ending
31 December 2007, setting out their accounting treatment and appropriateness in helping the football club’s
cash flow problems.
(Candidates do not need knowledge of the football finance sector to answer this question.)
