Milan Mandaric rules out Sheffield Wednesday takeover bid, cites ‘several other interested parties'

New York Times

3 days ago

Former owner Milan Mandaric will not try to lead a rescue bid for crisis-stricken Championship side Sheffield Wednesday following talks with his family and UK-based advisors, the 86-year-old Serbian-American businessman has confirmed.
Last week, in an interview with BBC Radio Sheffield, Mandaric suggested that he was ready to explore the 'possibility' of a takeover, as the South Yorkshire side need a 'big rescue'.
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But having flown to London from his California base on Monday, the serial club-owner has issued a statement to say he is not in a position to buy the club.
Mandaric sold Wednesday to Dejphon Chansiri in 2015 and had hoped to meet the Thai businessman to discuss a way out of the club's grave financial problems this week, but Chansiri declined the invitation.
In truth, Mandaric was never in a position to buy the club back from Chansiri and what he was really proposing was a temporary takeover, with the Thai's consent, to stabilise the four-time English champions so they would be more attractive to new investors.
But, with Chansiri refusing to engage with the idea, it was a non-starter.
'I am of course very concerned about the current situation the club finds itself in,' said Mandaric in a written statement.
'However, on reflection I feel it would not be in the best interest of finding the long-term solution we all want for me to explore further my heartfelt desire to assist at this crucial time for the club.
'I have several projects I am currently working on outside the UK and I do not believe I could devote the time it would take to return the club to the healthy condition I left it in a decade ago when Mr. Chansiri took over ownership from me.'
Mandaric, who has owned or co-owned at least 10 different clubs in six different countries during a remarkable career in football, is currently involved in a hotel project in Slovenia, where he has also been looking for a new club to invest in after recent spells in charge at Olimpija Ljubljana and Vojvodina.
His statement continued by saying he was aware that there are 'several interested parties' who are trying to buy Wednesday and he did not want his involvement 'to either slow down or hinder these discussions'.
As previously reported by The Athletic, there are two U.S.-based groups currently in talks with Chansiri's representatives. Of those two only the one led by Sheffield-born businessman Adam Shaw and American real estate investor John Flanagan has chosen to go public.
Contrary to recent reports, Lyon majority shareholder John Textor has not entered the race and is unlikely to do so while the French club try to overturn their relegation to Ligue 2 for financial issues.
In the meantime, Sheffield Wednesday have recently been given a three-window transfer embargo for breaking English Football League rules on late payment of wages. And with this month's payday looming, fears are mounting that Chansiri will fail to pay players and staff on time for a third time in four months. There is also the next tax bill to settle, a new training-ground pitch to lay, stadium repairs to complete and pre-season fixtures to organise — Wednesday's problems are piling up.
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If there is any good news, it appears that Chansiri's family, which owns the world's largest tuna manufacturer Thai Union Group, has taken control of the Sheffield Wednesday sale process by appointing a highly-respected London-based lawyer to engage with bidders.
Mandaric, who has also owned Portsmouth and Leicester City in the past, concluded his statement by saying he would continue to follow Sheffield Wednesday's fortunes and would be happy to help Chansiri in any way he could. He also thanked the Wednesday fans who had contacted him but said he would not be making any further public comments.
There is one concrete way that the former owner could help his old club and it was alluded to in his BBC radio interview. When Mandaric sold the team to Chansiri he negotiated a bonus payment of £8million if Wednesday are promoted to the Premier League and a further £2m if they can then stay up for more than one season.
Unlike most such deals, this one is open-ended and would be passed on to any new owner. This is the £10m that Mandaric told the BBC he was still owed. Chansiri has previously asked him to drop this claim on the club and Mandaric has told him he would be willing to discuss it, but Chansiri has not taken him up on that offer.
Sheffield Wednesday, one of England's oldest and best-supported clubs, were founder members of the Premier League but were relegated in 2000 and have spent the last 25 years yo-yoing between the second and third tiers.
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