BA boss counters Richard Branson's bet with 'knee in the groin' offer
7 replies, posted
[url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-20676667[/url]
[quote=BBC News][B]Willie Walsh has wagered a "knee in the groin" in a bet with Sir Richard Branson that the Virgin brand will still be around in five years.[/B]
On Monday, Sir Richard offered a £1m bet to the boss of BA-owner International Airlines Group (IAG) over the future of his Virgin airline.
Mr Walsh said he did not have £1m, so wagered something "as painful to him as it might be to me" instead.
He also questioned Sir Richard's influence on the airline industry.
Mr Walsh said the £1m would be unfair, as Sir Richard was a "billionaire banker", according to The Guardian and Telegraph newspapers who spoke to the airline boss in South Korea.
"I don't think £1m would hurt him," they reported the IAG boss as saying.
"I don't have £1m, so a knee in the groin, maybe - that would be as painful to him as it might be to me."
Mr Walsh then went on to question the impact Sir Richard has had on the industry.
"I just don't see that the guy has anything that stands out in terms of what he has achieved in the industry," he said, as reported by the Telegraph.
"I've said it publicly, I don't respect him in the way I respect other people in the industry, and that's a personal view."
[B]'False rumours'[/B]
Sir Richard offered the £1m bet that Virgin would still be around in five years after Mr Walsh suggested the brand could soon disappear. This followed reports suggesting Sir Richard may sell some of his 51% stake.
"This is wishful thinking and totally misguided," Sir Richard wrote in his blog.
"Will BA never learn? Let's see how much they believe this. Let them put their money where their mouth is.
"The last time BA had to make a settlement to me for damages (in part for spreading not dissimilar false rumours) I split the money amongst our staff. Rather than suing them on this occasion, I will pay £1m to their staff if Virgin Atlantic disappears within, say, five years. If not, BA pays our staff £1m."
There has been a long history of disputes between BA and Virgin.
Sir Richard has been particularly critical of the number of take-off and landing slots at Heathrow Airport that BA holds, especially after IAG bought BMI, which gave it more slots.
In the early 1990s, Sir Richard won damages and an apology from BA at the High Court for a "dirty tricks" campaign, in which BA allegedly poached passengers, staff and gave negative stories about the Virgin founder to the press.[/quote]
Saw Smurfy made the thread. Thought the title was a clever joke. It wasn't.
Branson better win this!
Lol, yea right, the head of BA, a massive company, doesn't have a million pounds. I'd bet my left hand his paycheck is more than 5 million pounds a year
[QUOTE=download;38787711]Lol, yea right, the head of BA, a massive company, doesn't have a million pounds. I'd bet my left hand his paycheck is more than 5 million pounds a year[/QUOTE]
I'd bet a knee in the groin.
I bet Richard Branson would accept that.
[QUOTE=download;38787711]Lol, yea right, the head of BA, a massive company, doesn't have a million pounds. I'd bet my left hand his paycheck is more than 5 million pounds a year[/QUOTE]
According to the tax man he doesn't have 1 million pounds.
He won't have a million in 5 years either...?
He can't trust BAs survival much in that case.
I hope Richard accepts and it's televised, and he wears a huge, spiked iron knee-guard and gets a 25-yard run up.
I eagerly await Branson's response :v:
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