Perth Glory owner’s brutal admission as he walks away from A-League club after 15 years with players and staff not paid: ‘I’ve run out of funds’

An emotional Tony Sage has laid bare the reasons why he had to hand back Perth Glory’s A-League licence, saying he deeply regrets not being able to pay players and staff on time this month.

Sage’s 15-year reign as Glory’s sole owner was officially brought to an end on Saturday when the club was placed into receivership amid ongoing financial troubles.

The Australian Professional Leagues released a statement confirming that advisory firm KordaMentha had been appointed to manage the receivership process.

Glory isn’t bankrupt and won’t be placed into administration, with the APL optimistic a new owner can be found soon.

The club’s operations will continue as normal in the meantime.

Tony Sage has handed back Perth Glory’s A-League licence after running out of funds

Sage (left) has been sole owner of the club for 15 years but has walked away

Sage, speaking from Austria, fought back tears as he detailed the personal battle he faced to keep the club afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic and the disruption caused by the recent upgrade of HBF Park.

The West Australian mining magnate estimates he has poured about $50 million into Glory during his tenure, which includes about $14m of losses over the past three years.

‘I’ve run out of funds,’ Sage told AAP.

‘Everything I’ve got at the moment is poured into my business. I can’t take it out of my business.

‘I want the players to be paid on time, which they weren’t this month, which I greatly regret.

‘It’s the first time in 18 years they haven’t been paid on time, but they’ve been paid now.

‘When something like that happens, you’ve got to step back and make sure the sustainability of the club is the most important thing.

‘I just want to make it clear, the licence wasn’t stripped off me. It was a decision made with the APL to put it in a position to find a really good owner.

‘I couldn’t do it by myself.’

He says the club struggled to stay afloat during the coronavirus pandemic

Sage, who started as a part-owner in 2007 before taking full ownership in 2009, has often described Glory as like his fourth child.

He even attended a match as a ball boy during the COVID-19 pandemic because spectators weren’t allowed.

The pandemic robbed Glory of the ability to play home games in front of crowds for the best part of two years.

The upgrade of HBF Park for the Women’s World Cup, which forced Glory to play most of their home games at Macedonia Park last season, was also a huge financial hit to the club.

Sage was expecting the WA State Government to hand Glory significant compensation for losing the ability to play at HBF Park during the renovations, but the sum received wasn’t close to the $3m-$4m he was expecting.

The situation forced Sage to seek a loan from the APL to be able to pay players and staff last season.

Players of the A-League club were not paid on time this month, but that has been rectified 

‘The players need to be paid, the staff need to be paid, and unfortunately every avenue that I’ve had to use, we’ve used,’ Sage said.

‘All of my personal money is tied up in my business, and I can’t use any of it to fund the club.

‘I sold a house in City Beach. I sold an apartment just to keep the club running, because I thought the compensation was coming.’

Sage, who has been trying to sell Glory for several years, is confident a buyer will sign on the dotted line in the near future.

Any funds received from the sale of Glory will be used to pay back loans and other outstanding expenses, with the rest going to Sage.