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Iraqi billionaire bids to take Leeds back to football big time
David Leppard and Robert Winnett
A CONTROVERSIAL Iraqi billionaire is preparing to buy the ailing Leeds United football club in an attempt to restore it to its former glory.
Nadhmi Auchi, a British-based businessman with a fortune claimed to be worth
£1.3 billion, is drawing up detailed plans to take control of the debt-ridden club. He hopes to move it to a purpose-built stadium, redeveloping the current Elland Road ground to pump millions into the Coca-Cola Championship side.
Yesterday, sources close to Auchi confirmed he was interested in buying the club. One said: “This is one of the most important clubs in the country and Auchi believes he can help the supporters and the local community but still make a profit. Everything now depends on the price.”
A former Ba’ath party member whose brothers were killed by Saddam Hussein’s regime, Auchi left Iraq in the late 1970s to settle in London. He is one of Britain’s wealthiest and best connected citizens, yet maintains a low profile.
Lord Lamont, a former Tory chancellor, sits on the board of Auchi’s holding company and the billionaire hosts regular dinners attended by royals, Middle Eastern leaders and MPs. He has also bought tables at Labour fundraising dinners.
He has quietly built a business empire comprising 120 firms across the world in property, construction and hotels.
However, his business dealings have often proved controversial. Last year, in France, he was convicted of paying kickbacks to the oil firm Elf.
Auchi, who was born in Baghdad in 1937, received a 15- month suspended jail sentence and a £1.39m fine. He says the prosecution was politically motivated and is appealing against it. In Britain, a pharmaceutical firm he owns is co-operating in a criminal investigation by the Serious Fraud Office into an alleged price-fixing cartel involving supplies for the National Health Service.
Auchi’s interest in Leeds is believed to have begun this year when it was about to be relegated from the Premiership after a financial meltdown.
Leeds United was once one of Britain’s most successful football clubs. During its heyday in the 1960s and 1970s, its star players included legends such as Billy Bremner, Jack Charlton and Norman Hunter.
However, the club’s fortunes took a disastrous turn in the 1990s when it invested heavily in players without succeeding on the pitch. It was rescued from administration last February by local businessmen. However, the club was relegated and is languishing in the bottom half of the Championship with estimated debts of £40m.
Auchi is thought to have drawn up a 10-year business plan for Leeds. It involves moving the club and redeveloping the Elland Road ground with flats, shops and community facilities. The ground lies in an attractive area for property developers — close to motorways — and this is thought to have sparked Auchi’s interest.
This weekend Auchi was unavailable for comment but a friend said: “This will be a big redevelopment. He wants to help the community, help a very old established football club and make some money. He wants to be seen to be investing in England and creating jobs.”
Iraqi billionaire bids to take Leeds back to football big time
David Leppard and Robert Winnett
A CONTROVERSIAL Iraqi billionaire is preparing to buy the ailing Leeds United football club in an attempt to restore it to its former glory.
Nadhmi Auchi, a British-based businessman with a fortune claimed to be worth
£1.3 billion, is drawing up detailed plans to take control of the debt-ridden club. He hopes to move it to a purpose-built stadium, redeveloping the current Elland Road ground to pump millions into the Coca-Cola Championship side.
Yesterday, sources close to Auchi confirmed he was interested in buying the club. One said: “This is one of the most important clubs in the country and Auchi believes he can help the supporters and the local community but still make a profit. Everything now depends on the price.”
A former Ba’ath party member whose brothers were killed by Saddam Hussein’s regime, Auchi left Iraq in the late 1970s to settle in London. He is one of Britain’s wealthiest and best connected citizens, yet maintains a low profile.
Lord Lamont, a former Tory chancellor, sits on the board of Auchi’s holding company and the billionaire hosts regular dinners attended by royals, Middle Eastern leaders and MPs. He has also bought tables at Labour fundraising dinners.
He has quietly built a business empire comprising 120 firms across the world in property, construction and hotels.
However, his business dealings have often proved controversial. Last year, in France, he was convicted of paying kickbacks to the oil firm Elf.
Auchi, who was born in Baghdad in 1937, received a 15- month suspended jail sentence and a £1.39m fine. He says the prosecution was politically motivated and is appealing against it. In Britain, a pharmaceutical firm he owns is co-operating in a criminal investigation by the Serious Fraud Office into an alleged price-fixing cartel involving supplies for the National Health Service.
Auchi’s interest in Leeds is believed to have begun this year when it was about to be relegated from the Premiership after a financial meltdown.
Leeds United was once one of Britain’s most successful football clubs. During its heyday in the 1960s and 1970s, its star players included legends such as Billy Bremner, Jack Charlton and Norman Hunter.
However, the club’s fortunes took a disastrous turn in the 1990s when it invested heavily in players without succeeding on the pitch. It was rescued from administration last February by local businessmen. However, the club was relegated and is languishing in the bottom half of the Championship with estimated debts of £40m.
Auchi is thought to have drawn up a 10-year business plan for Leeds. It involves moving the club and redeveloping the Elland Road ground with flats, shops and community facilities. The ground lies in an attractive area for property developers — close to motorways — and this is thought to have sparked Auchi’s interest.
This weekend Auchi was unavailable for comment but a friend said: “This will be a big redevelopment. He wants to help the community, help a very old established football club and make some money. He wants to be seen to be investing in England and creating jobs.”
