The price paid for Goals’ assets is believed to be about £27m.

Goals said in a statement that it was being acquired by Northwind 5s Ltd.

The new company is backed by private equity firm Inflexion and Soccerworld, which runs five centres in Scotland and England.

The East Kilbride-based firm operates five-a-side pitches at 45 different locations in Britain and the USA.

The Goals statement said: “The board and management of Goals have worked tirelessly over the past 8 months with their advisers and their lenders to identify and resolve the company’s issues relating to the misdeclaration of VAT and other serious accounting issues, dating back several years. A thorough and rigorous process has been carried out properly and systematically to achieve a final outcome to this very difficult situation.

“Every avenue has been fully explored to deliver the best possible outcome for all stakeholders in the business. However, ultimately the only available solution, given the indebtedness of the company, the unresolved VAT situation and inappropriate accounting, was to accept that the Company needed to delist and for the company to undertake an accelerated M&A process (AMA Process) to seek a buyer for the business and its assets.

“The transaction will be effected through a pre-pack administration where administrators, Deloitte LLP, will have been appointed and simultaneously the business and assets of the Company acquired. Through this transaction the livelihoods of the Company’s 750 staff will have been secured and Goals’ customers will continue to be able to enjoy playing small-sided football at all its centres across the UK and US.

“The Board hopes that, once the future of the business of the company has been protected, it will be able to continue to grow and prosper.”