David Murray (Scottish Businessman)

Sir David Edward Murray (born 14 October 1951) is a Scottish entrepreneur, businessman and former chairman of the Rangers Football Club.

Born in Ayr, Scotland, Murray had formed the company Murray International Metals Limited by the age of 23. The company grew to include steel distribution, mining and property development.

Murray is perhaps best known for his ownership of Scottish football club Rangers F.C., which he purchased for £6 million in 1988. While owner, the club won 15 League Championships and 20 Cups. Murray stepped down as chairman in 2009, and was replaced by Alastair Johnston.

Early life and education

Born in Ayr on 14 October 1951, Murray was educated at Ayr Academy, Belmont High School, Fettes College and Broughton High School. By the age of 23 Murray had formed Murray International Metals Limited, which was to become a leading distributor of structural steel.

Business career

Subsequently, the Murray Group of companies grew with some saying it became one of the United Kingdom's most successful privately owned enterprises. Added to the core business of steel were interests in surface mining (GM Mining), commercial property development (Premier Property Group), venture capital (Charlotte Ventures) and call centres (RHL, trading as 'RESPONSE' from February 2007 onwards, formerly Response Handling Limited). In 2006, the Murray group collectively reported turnover of £550 million, representing a fivefold increase on the figure five years previously, largely as a result of growing involvement in property development. The global recession of 2007–2008 impacted on the companies' growth and in September 2009 the group registered a loss of some £226 million following a write-down in the value of much of its property portfolio. Over the following years the group's losses continued as it struggled to bring down its debt with asset sales and debt-for-equity swaps by its bankers (the part publicly owned Lloyds Bank through its HBOS subsidiary).

Murray is currently the chairman of Murray Capital, a private investment company which is wholly owned by the Murray family. The company was established in 2000 and invests primarily in traditional economy businesses with a preference for industrial sectors including manufacturing, engineering and oil & gas. Murray Estates, a subsidiary of Murray Capital, is a property development and investment company focusing on identifying and delivering value to prime strategic residential and commercial land.

Alongside his high-profile business activities, other Murray interests have helped cement his prominence in Scottish life.

Football business

Acquiring Rangers

Murray's involvement in football has overshadowed his business and personal lives and explains much of his prominence within Scottish society. In the 1980s Murray made a bid for Ayr United which was rejected by shareholders of the club. This setback saw Murray focus attention on acquiring Rangers, a club which, following the appointment of Graeme Souness as manager in 1986, had regained its ascendancy in Scottish football.

Attracted by the idea of owning one of Scotland's highest-profile football clubs, on 23 November 1988 Murray secured the purchase of Rangers from the club's then owner, the Nevada-based Lawrence Marlborough, for a sum of £6,000,000.

Chairmanship

Throughout what was later to transpire as his first period of chairmanship, Murray continued and extended the ambitious strategy he had inherited from David Holmes. His investment saw further development to Ibrox Stadium, which had already undergone extensive remodelling in the aftermath of the Ibrox disaster of 2 January 1971, which claimed the lives of 66 fans following an Old Firm derby with Celtic.

Murray oversaw the construction of a third tier on the existing Main Stand, raising the ground's capacity by 7,300. Accompanying this were changes on the pitch. In 1989 Rangers secured their first trophy under Murray's chairmanship and the first of what was to become nine successive League Championships between the period 1989–1997. This period was to be significant for more reasons than footballing success.

In 1989 Murray and the then manager Graeme Souness signed Mo Johnston, the first high-profile Catholic to play for the club since the Second World War, from French club Nantes for £1.5 million. Since Johnston had previously played for Celtic and had recently committed to re-join them, the transfer to Rangers instead was highly controversial. Other high-profile players were to follow in later years, including Paul Gascoigne, Brian Laudrup, Ronald de Boer and Tore André Flo.

Period of success

Following Graeme Souness' departure to Liverpool in April 1991, Murray appointed his former assistant Walter Smith as manager. Under Smith, and his eventual replacement in 1998 by Dick Advocaat, Rangers embarked upon a sustained period of success that saw the club win eleven league championships over fourteen years. This domestic domination was not accompanied by success in European competition. Aside from the 1992-93 UEFA Champions League campaign, in which Rangers twice came within one victory of reaching the final, the club's record in Europe from 1989 was one of under-performance upon the expectation.

In 2005–06 Rangers secured qualification from the group stage of the Champions League, becoming the first Scottish side to reach the last-sixteen knockout stage of the competition in its current format. In 2007–08, Rangers reached the final of the UEFA Cup but lost 2–0 to FC Zenit at the City of Manchester Stadium. Rangers went on, however, to win a Cup Double, of the Scottish League Cup, and the Scottish Cup

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