GOALS Soccer Centres, the East Kilbride-based five-a-side football pitch firm, moved to suspend its shares as it said it had uncovered “substantial” VAT accounting errors estimated so far at around £12 million.

The firm, which operates 50 centres across the UK and in the US, said its board had concluded its misdeclaration issues first revealed three weeks ago date back several years, and the final value of the error is still being established.

It said that as a result of its findings, it requested itself that trading of its shares be suspended on London’s junior Aim market.

The firm also warned that new accounting policies it plans to adopt are likely to impact on future profits.

The group now says the discovery may lead to a “material change in its overall financial position”.

READ MORE: Football firm reveals mistakes in accounts

It said it now plans to enter into discussions with HMRC immediately and remains in discussions with its lenders to agree new financing facilities on top of previous warnings.

The group added that it will make “further announcements in due course as the results of the investigation become known”.

More details of the extent of the accounting mistake emerged after it flagged a material hit to 2018 results after uncovering the accounting errors as part of a business review.

The news sent shares crashing on the day. The unscheduled statement put prices into a 32 per cent freefall, instantly wiping £13.5m from the company’s stock market value.

That came shortly before Goals was due to report its results for the year ended December 31 on March 12 and the company said the publication of its results would be delayed.

The firm said in is earlier statement that while the “accounting adjustments” are of a non-cash nature, it meant Goals was in breach of one of its banking covenants with Bank of Scotland.

READ MORE: Goals Soccer Centres warns profits will be 'materially below expectations'

It represents the second blow in quick succession for the company, in which Sports Direct chief Mike Ashley holds a significant stake.

In January, Goals warned that profits would be lower after a revamp of its offering resulted in higher costs.

It also cited slower than anticipated growth in the US, where the company has four sites, as well as uncertainty in the political and economic spheres.

However, in its latest update on the accounting issue, Goals sought to assure that recent trading had remained strong in both its markets, saying: “The board would also like to confirm that trading since March 8 2019 has continued to be strong in both the UK and US, over the comparable period in 2018.”

Analyst Paul Hickman at Edison Investment Research said earlier that the breach of banking covenants was an “issue that shareholders thought it had put behind it”.

READ MORE: Profit warning sends Goals shares spiralling down

He also said that “forced negotiations with banks in this situation invariably result in punitive terms”.

The news comes after the double profit warning in about months was delivered by the new board, which has been put together over the last year and is led by Andy Anson, a former Disney and Manchester United executive.

While earlier this month the board said profit was expected to be “materially below expectations”, it had also said in a trading update at the start of the year that a “material rise in costs and slower growth in the US would lead to lower profits in its current financial year”.

The firm had revised its profit guidance for 2019 down by £600,000 “in light of the current economic and political uncertainty”.

Goals said: “The company announces that as part of its assessment the board has concluded that there has been a substantial misdeclaration of VAT, going back over several years.

“The final value of the misdeclaration has still to be established, but currently the figure stands at approximately £12m.”