Stefan Borson: This is how much Sir Jim Ratcliffe may have agreed to pay Tottenham
Tottenham have agreed a deal with INEOS to bring their recent legal battle to a close.
Tottenham took legal action against INEOS after the petrochemicals company exited a sponsorship deal with the club three years into a five-year agreement.
INEOS, which is spearheaded by Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, first partnered with Spurs in 2020 after agreeing to become their official hand sanitiser and 4×4 vehicle partners before the deal was later expanded in 2022.
Tottenham had been seeking just over £11million, which included £5.5m for missed payments last year, another £5.3m for the 2026-27 campaign, the final year of the sponsorship deal, and an additional £300,000 in interest.
In a new development, The Telegraph reported on 5 November INEOS has now reached an out-of-court settlement with Tottenham, with a source indicating it could be worth about half of the £11m pursued by the club.
Tottenham could be set for £2m windfall
Former Man City financial adviser Stefan Borson exclusively told Football Insider the settlement is likely only to be worth between £1-2m after he’s read the pleadings.
It emerged in August INEOS was counter-suing Tottenham for more than £1m after accusing them of holding sponsorship talks with Audi linked to the sale of Harry Kane to Bayern Munich, with the German manufacturer owning an eight per cent stake in the Bundesliga club.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Borson said: “I saw one report that was something like £11m. I don’t think it’s anywhere near that.
“I said before I expected it to settle when you read the case. I did pay to download the pleadings to have a look at what the case was about and who had the better of the case. If I had to estimate, I would think it was only settled for about £1m in Spurs’ direction. Maybe £1.5-2m, but it’s that sort of order, not £10-11m.
“I don’t think they had a particularly strong chance of winning their upper limits of damages, but I do think they had a case, particularly in relation to the season where INEOS effectively attempted to just cancel in mid-season. I do think they had a case there. I can see why there would be some payment to them and it seems sensible.”
The situation has been ongoing for several months after it was revealed in February INEOS was looking to end its sponsorship with Tottenham.
Tottenham agreed INEOS deal after talks revealed
Borson revealed the two parties likely reached a settlement after a days’ worth of mediation.
“To take this to trial would have been hundreds of thousands of pounds, which wouldn’t really have made sense,” said Borson.
“I suspect what happened was that once they have the pleaded cases from both sides, somebody suggested a mediation and probably over a period of maybe a day, they got a mediator involved, who shuttled between the two parties and got them to a £1m settlement for them to shake hands and everybody walked away.”
It isn’t the only case of this nature INEOS has faced in recent times after it was revealed the petrochemicals giant had reached a settlement agreement with New Zealand Rugby (NZR) after a six-year sponsorship deal was ended early.
NZR launched legal proceedings against INEOS in February after alleging the company had failed to make a payment for the first part of this year.
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