We already knew this summer would bring about a host of changes with the squad undergoing a huge rebuild consisting of around a dozen new signings expected to be made. But, there could be even more changes to come at Bramall Lane. The Sheffield United takeover appears to be progressing, per reports from The Telegraph, as the American-based consortium have now submitted their plans to the EFL for their “fit and proper” checks.
According to the report, negotiations have progressed between said group and Prince Abdullah over a sale worth more than £100 million. And some members of the consortium have indeed travelled to England in order to finalise the purchase.
Have Sheffield United finally found a real buyer/s?
As many know by now the current owner of Sheffield United has been willing to sell the Blades for the right price, reportedly £140 million, but the only businessmen that have been in the public domain over the last few years are Henry Mauriss and Dozy Mmobousi, and let’s just leave it at that, shall we.
However, amidst all of the “fake” takeover talks there has been this American consortium, based in Silicon Valley, that declared interest in the club around May of 2023 and they remained interested in the Blades – and this month they have reportedly progressed their interest into formal negotiations with both Prince Abdullah and of course the EFL.
Per The Telegraph report: “Plans have gone to the EFL, who conduct an owners and directors’ test. They also ask potential owners for “Future Financial Information” about their plans for the future, and proof of funds. There is confidence the final steps will be completed and the new owners can assume control over the summer.”
All signs look positive
What stands out to me is the fact they are evidently willing to get things done as soon as possible ready for the summer transfer window to begin – that suggests to me they are in fact willing to back the manager in the market which will be music to everybody’s ears due to the amount of work that needs doing this summer.
So, the club may look a lot differently this summer in terms of how they will operate in the transfer market. Not only will the Blades have a brand new recruitment team, they may also have investment.
I also find it interesting that the current board have made a lot of moves over the past 12 months from an infrastructure point of view. They have plans in place to build a new training complex, they have acquired the land around the stadium, they have made improvements on the hotel situated on Bramall Lane, and they have a brand new recruitment team in place.
Coincident or not, all of these things came to fruition after the Silicon Valley-based group declared interest in Sheffield United.
My theory is that the prospective new owners have been the ones forcing these moves behind the scenes over the past several months as they want a more “complete package” football club. And if this is to be the case, that shows they are serious about running Sheffield United.
If the consortium is behind the recent infrastructure acquisitions and for example the u turn on Ben Osborne there could indeed be exciting times ahead.
It could also explain the willingness to have a disaster of a season in the premier league in order to get the ship financially stable, and not out of control. If the purchase goes through it might at least mean that IF premier league status is achieved again then spending limits can be increased over what The Prince could achieve, and surviving there a realistic aim. For me, that’s exciting!
My thoughts exactly, I’ve been thinking about that for a while. Obviously the club cannot come out publicly and say that they sacrificed the PL deliberately. This in my opinion has been going on behind the scenes for over a year, when the consortium where interested in buying the club then. Timing here is the essential part. The club is now ready, infrastructure in place, finances in a better place., Fingers crossed the rebuild can move forward. UTB
I had been waiting on some announcements of infrastructure improvements for some time before they were made. It’s at least a couple of years since the prince announced his intent on improving the Academy tier status and only recently have we bought the HSBC sports club up at Dore (side: I used to play my home matches there while Chris Waddle watched on with a beer in his hand). For me, with the ecosystem of FFP, these infrastructure changes and other investments which improve our brand value, off field income, etc. are the ones which provide a foundation for continued growth and improvement and we’ve been too slow to move on these things. I don’t know if the consortium had anything to do with this, I think it’s more likely that as a seller of assets, the Prince wanted to improve the value of those assets before selling (like doing your kitchen up before selling your house). Either way, I think it bodes well. As for the consortium, they need to continue that investment, but also put money into a playing squad which will be severely depleted, maybe even “decimated” this summer.