Everton takeover: Friedkin Group completes deal to become new owner of the club | Football news

Friedkin Group (TFG) has completed its acquisition of English Premier League club Everton.

Friedkin Group, which also owns Roma and is led by the American billionaire Dan Friedkinacquired a majority stake in Everton, starting a new era for the Merseyside club and ending Farhad Moshiri’s spell at Goodison Park.

Friedkin, who bought Serie A giants Roma in 2020, is worth an estimated $6.1bn (£4.8bn).

New CEO Mark Watts said in an official statement: “Today represents a momentous and proud occasion for the Friedkin Group as we become custodians of this iconic football club.

“We are committed to leading Everton into an exciting new era on and off the pitch. Providing immediate financial stability to the club has been a key priority, and we are delighted to have achieved this.”

He added: “Although returning Everton to its rightful place in the Premier League table will take some time, today is the first step on that journey.”

Moshiri: The best result for Everton’s future

Outgoing Everton Majority shareholders Farhad Mushiri:

“I truly believe that the deal with the Friedkin Group is the best outcome for the club and its future success.

“It has been a huge team effort to get to this point and I would personally like to thank my board colleagues John Spielman and Colin Chung and all the members of the senior management team including Katie, James, Richard and of course Kevin and Sean for their huge commitment to the club.

“Despite the challenging geopolitical backdrop, a great deal has been achieved over the past two years including delivering a new sports department, stabilizing our finances and delivering our iconic new stadium.

“I now hand over to the new owners the confidence in the future outlook of the club and that our amazing fans will witness the success on the pitch that they fully deserve.”

“A new and promising start for Everton”

Sky Sports News correspondent Alan Myers:

“So, 18 months after the sale, Everton finally has new owners. It’s been on, off, and back again. At first, it looked like MSP Sports Capital, then 777 Partners, there the Friedkin Group’s initial interest was to move away.” , albeit to stay close to them, then John Textor and then the resurgence of TFG, the frustration and anxiety on the part of the fans was evident at times but that is all behind them now and now they can look forward to a new era, in a new stadium with Malkin. Renew.

“But what future can they look forward to? It’s fair to agree with those fans who point out that Friedkin’s ownership of Serie A side Roma has been eventful, to say the least. They took control of the iconic Italian club in 2020, Five managers subsequently found themselves at the wrong end of the Serie A table and with a fan base dissatisfied with the American leadership management thus far.

“However, there were trophies to be had at the time, thanks to their high-profile appointment of Jose Mourinho, he reached two European finals and won one before leaving the club at the end of the 2023/24 season. They turned to a club legend in Daniele De Rossi, but he was sacked, prompting It led to the CEO’s resignation and his replacement Ivan Juric was also shown the door with the club just four points above the relegation zone, and Friedkin’s group turned to club favorite Claudio Ranieri. To arrest the situation.

“Many of the problems they inherited at Roma await them at Everton: an underperforming team, a club with great history and a passionate fan base hungry for a return to the glory days. They will not spend their money on problems.” However, and this is true, there must be a reasonable, thoughtful and balanced development, and it must have a short-term success rate but have a long-term vision.

“The group has shown a willingness to invest in the team and minimize the losses they inherited when they took over in 2020 and have shown a tough approach to decision-making.

“Everton fans should not expect a revolution in the coming months, I expect a fairly low period of arrival and stability. TFG wants to show that it has a long-term vision and plan but at the same time recognizes the need to deal with this issue.” The task at hand is to keep Everton in the Premier League.

“There will be a new Chairman at the company, Mark Watts, who will also sit on the Roma Board, and will join him on the new-look board established by other existing members of TFG, with interim CEO Colin Chung remaining in his role until he succeeds him. Chung has put in a lot of hard work since the departure of the previous Board and Chairman, to reduce costs and deal with PSR issues, and this work will allow a much easier transition for the new owners. The club needs to change both culturally and results-wise, there have been issues with Its relationship with the fans has been around for some time, and many believe the club lacks an identity and want to know where the club sees itself, and this is a challenge that the new owners will need to start working on immediately and get it right as well.

“Everton fans are desperate for a fresh start, a settled club and some progress on and off the pitch. The takeover and new stadium represent an opportunity to build something special at a long-suffering club that has seen a decline from its former glories.” “In the last 30 years, but thanks to former owner Farhad Moshiri’s millions, they will have a state-of-the-art stadium, a much better financial outlook and some hope for the future. It is now the Friedkin Groups’ opportunity to make that change but they also need to be given time to do so.”

Sky Sports News Reporter Alan Myers Looks at what we can expect from Texas-based billionaires when the takeover goes through…

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