Setanta battles for its survival

Setanta's founders, Michael O'Rourke and Leonard Ryan are spearheading the effort to find new financing for the network, as it faces the prospect of imminent administration. The Irish company missed a £3m payment due to the Scottish Premier League last week and currently owes £30m to the English Premier League. As a result of its ballooning debts of more than £500m and the lack of further funding by its biggest investors Doughty Hanson and Balderton Capital, there is speculation that it may have to declare bankruptcy in a matter of hours.

The company has itself stopped offering subscriptions to its services, after BT Vision suspended sales and BSkyB refused to advance the broadcaster £50m to allow it to continue its operations. In a statement it said: "We have not gone into administration. All our channels are still broadcasting. However, in the current circumstances, we've decided to suspend temporarily the acceptance of new subscriptions."

Talks have been underway with Disney-owned sports network ESPN, a former Eurosport stakeholder, on a rescue deal, but if these do not succeed then administration looks to be a certainty. However bankruptcy would not just affect the company itself, but also some of the football teams it owes money. It is thought that a handful of Scottish sides could themselves be forced to fight for their survival if Setanta goes under.

Simon Burnton in the Guardian: "So it looks like curtains for Setanta, whose owners are desperately trying to save a company generally believed to be hours away from going into administration. A rescue is still theoretically possible – it might realise that its existing service could be run at a massively reduced cost and with no loss of quality, simply by giving some chimpanzees a video camera and hoping for the best. Though it may have been doing that from the start. Who knows?"

Mark Wilson in the Daily Mail: "Setanta's plight mirrors the downfall of ITV Digital, which went bust in 2002 owing £178million to the 72 clubs below the English Premiership. Six were forced into administration, while many others suffered hardship or relied on wealthy benefactors to keep them off the casualty list. ·