Quality of investors is crucial, say Leeds United
Yorkshire Post 30/5/12
By Ian Appleyard
LEEDS United have confirmed that talks are taking place with potential investors following a season of unrest at Elland Road. Chairman Ken Bates, who took control at Leeds seven years ago, has been the subject of protests from a section of supporters who question his ambitions for the club.
The identity of the potential investors has not been revealed but Yorkshire Post sources say that one is based in North America. It is understood at least three groups have declared an interest in Leeds with a Chicago-based would-be investor – thought to have inspected the club’s facilities last week – believed to be the frontrunner.
However, Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) – the owners of Canadian ice hockey team Toronto Maple Leafs – denied any involvement via Twitter yesterday, saying: “We love the enthusiasm of #LUFC Fans! However to repeat our response from last week – there is no truth to the rumours.”
And Jon Pritchett, chief executive of Chicago-based Club 9 Sports, said there had been ‘no discussions whatsoever’ between his company and Leeds.
Club 9 made an unsuccessful bid to acquire a major stake in Sheffield Wednesday two years ago and have subsequently been linked with both Rangers and Tranmere Rovers.
A spokesman for Leeds United said: “Further to media reports on Tuesday, the club can confirm that talks are taking place regarding investment for the long-term future.
“The club has always publicly stated it would welcome potential investment but has maintained a belief...the quality of the investor is the most important factor in terms of the long-term development of Leeds United. No further comment will be made at this stage.”
The Leeds United Supporters’ Trust (LUST), whose board members are currently banned from buying tickets at Elland Road, have been seeking out new investors for the last three months.
Accounts published recently showed that Leeds made a profit of £10m in the last four years but, although sizeable amounts have been spent on ground development, the team lost several top players and finished only 14th in this season’s Championship.
New manager Neil Warnock has already seen one of his top targets – Portsmouth defender Joel Ward – slip from his grasp to join Crystal Palace in a £400,000 deal. Highly-rated Scottish internationals Robert Snodgrass and Ross McCormack, meanwhile, have yet to sign new deals and may yet leave.
A Trust spokesman said: “We want change at the club whether with Ken Bates or with someone else. We want a better relationship with the club and a good team. We want people in charge who share our ambition for the club. If this is what comes about as a result of these talks, we will be very excited.”
The Trust is aware several parties have expressed interest and say at least one bid is on the table.
“In February we responded to Ken Bates’s suggestion that we ‘put our money where our mouth is’ by asking any potential investors who shared the aims and ambitions of our members and of our Vision Statement to contact the Trust with a view to working together to take Mr Bates up on his offer. Our members increasingly tell us that they feel a change of ownership would be the best route towards positive change at Leeds United.
“On Friday, we invited our members and Leeds fans everywhere to let us know their thoughts about the summer so far and we received hundreds of emails.
“The clear and resounding message from our members was that they have completely lost faith in the current Leeds United board’s ability to deliver a successful football club.
“Following the failure to meet Neil Warnock’s target of signing a new group of players before his holiday deadline and Robert Snodgrass’s comments about past promises not being met, and after last season – which saw players sold, failure on the pitch, and the season ticket income used to finance corporate facilities rather than new players – our members firmly believe that new owners and a new board are required at Leeds United to match the ambition of the fans, the players and the manager.
“We developed a presentation so interested parties could see how working with LUST could help them and have been in contact with a number of people to explore ways of bringing about change for the better at Elland Road.
“We have spoken to two groups who are interested in buying Leeds. At this stage, it is not possible for us to go into details as, with a firm offer on the table, we would not want to jeopardise any current negotiations.
“We are sure that the news of discussions around the sale of the club will be warmly welcomed by our members and make disaffected supporters feel more optimistic about the future,” he added.
LUST is a Supporters’ Trust affiliated with Supporters Direct and has almost 5,500 members.
By Ian Appleyard
LEEDS United have confirmed that talks are taking place with potential investors following a season of unrest at Elland Road. Chairman Ken Bates, who took control at Leeds seven years ago, has been the subject of protests from a section of supporters who question his ambitions for the club.
The identity of the potential investors has not been revealed but Yorkshire Post sources say that one is based in North America. It is understood at least three groups have declared an interest in Leeds with a Chicago-based would-be investor – thought to have inspected the club’s facilities last week – believed to be the frontrunner.
However, Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) – the owners of Canadian ice hockey team Toronto Maple Leafs – denied any involvement via Twitter yesterday, saying: “We love the enthusiasm of #LUFC Fans! However to repeat our response from last week – there is no truth to the rumours.”
And Jon Pritchett, chief executive of Chicago-based Club 9 Sports, said there had been ‘no discussions whatsoever’ between his company and Leeds.
Club 9 made an unsuccessful bid to acquire a major stake in Sheffield Wednesday two years ago and have subsequently been linked with both Rangers and Tranmere Rovers.
A spokesman for Leeds United said: “Further to media reports on Tuesday, the club can confirm that talks are taking place regarding investment for the long-term future.
“The club has always publicly stated it would welcome potential investment but has maintained a belief...the quality of the investor is the most important factor in terms of the long-term development of Leeds United. No further comment will be made at this stage.”
The Leeds United Supporters’ Trust (LUST), whose board members are currently banned from buying tickets at Elland Road, have been seeking out new investors for the last three months.
Accounts published recently showed that Leeds made a profit of £10m in the last four years but, although sizeable amounts have been spent on ground development, the team lost several top players and finished only 14th in this season’s Championship.
New manager Neil Warnock has already seen one of his top targets – Portsmouth defender Joel Ward – slip from his grasp to join Crystal Palace in a £400,000 deal. Highly-rated Scottish internationals Robert Snodgrass and Ross McCormack, meanwhile, have yet to sign new deals and may yet leave.
A Trust spokesman said: “We want change at the club whether with Ken Bates or with someone else. We want a better relationship with the club and a good team. We want people in charge who share our ambition for the club. If this is what comes about as a result of these talks, we will be very excited.”
The Trust is aware several parties have expressed interest and say at least one bid is on the table.
“In February we responded to Ken Bates’s suggestion that we ‘put our money where our mouth is’ by asking any potential investors who shared the aims and ambitions of our members and of our Vision Statement to contact the Trust with a view to working together to take Mr Bates up on his offer. Our members increasingly tell us that they feel a change of ownership would be the best route towards positive change at Leeds United.
“On Friday, we invited our members and Leeds fans everywhere to let us know their thoughts about the summer so far and we received hundreds of emails.
“The clear and resounding message from our members was that they have completely lost faith in the current Leeds United board’s ability to deliver a successful football club.
“Following the failure to meet Neil Warnock’s target of signing a new group of players before his holiday deadline and Robert Snodgrass’s comments about past promises not being met, and after last season – which saw players sold, failure on the pitch, and the season ticket income used to finance corporate facilities rather than new players – our members firmly believe that new owners and a new board are required at Leeds United to match the ambition of the fans, the players and the manager.
“We developed a presentation so interested parties could see how working with LUST could help them and have been in contact with a number of people to explore ways of bringing about change for the better at Elland Road.
“We have spoken to two groups who are interested in buying Leeds. At this stage, it is not possible for us to go into details as, with a firm offer on the table, we would not want to jeopardise any current negotiations.
“We are sure that the news of discussions around the sale of the club will be warmly welcomed by our members and make disaffected supporters feel more optimistic about the future,” he added.
LUST is a Supporters’ Trust affiliated with Supporters Direct and has almost 5,500 members.