Deal done: Global Football Partners buys Charlton
“Global Football Partners (GFP) is delighted to confirm its purchase of Charlton Athletic Football Club and Charlton Athletic Women’s Football Club, following the EFL and the FA’s approval of the respective deals.” (more)
And there you have it. After months of uncertainty the new owners promise “to bring uncertainty to an end through actions rather than words or grand promises and put in place a vastly experienced Senior Management Team.”
There will be seven shareholders including Charlie Methven and the not previously mentioned Warren Rosenfeld and family, Singapore based ACA Football Partners, Munir Javeri and Marc Bryan. Joshua Friedman and Gabriel Brener are there too.
As expected Jim Rodwell is back as Managing Director and Chair of the Board as well as Ed Warrick as Group Finance Director. Simon Lenagan has a less defined role of Technical Advisor.
Unexpected is the return, albeit as interim, of Steve Sutherland as Commercial Manager and ex-player Paul Elliott as a Non-Executive Director. Elliott has often been linked with previous potential buyers.
Charlton fan Gavin Carter will also sit on the board. A Director of Performance and Technical Director will be announced shortly the announcement said.
The purchase includes the women’s team, but not the assets of The Valley or Sparrows Lane, still owned by Roland Duchatelet.
I am happy that the new ownership has been approved and we can move onto a new chapter. The last pages of Thomas Sandgaard have not been a good read, and the club and it’s fans were in desperate need of change.
Whether that change brings good fortune and good and careful leadership only time will tell, but this does take us into the new season in at least a more enthusiastic and promising place.
COYA.
I desperately want to be excited by this……………………….but I’m not !
Good news that the takeover has gone through and if we cast our minds back to late last year Dean Holden was recommended to the club by Rodwell, Methven and co, so there’s a strong connection there.
We have an SMT – a Senior Management Team in place and I’m pleased it has in Suthers and Elliott some names who know the club while the others have been around football. Further into the background sits the consortium of owners with Methven straddling both.
My negative is that the management looks a tad unwieldy.
The proof of the pudding is in its consumption and we’ll have to see how things work in practice. We’ve signed a few players and have more to come in, if we get some experience and talent and if we get off to a good start and win a few games then things will be much easier.