13th December 2024
December 13 – Sheffield United’s Saudi Arabian owner Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, has put the club’s sale on hold as he attempts to negotiate an increase in the sales price if the club are promoted back to the Premier League this season.
Over the summer Prince Abdullah agreed a £105 million deal with the COH Sports group, led by American businessmen Steven Rosen and Helmy Eltoukhy. That deal has been approved by the English Football League with the COH principals having passed the EFL’s owners test.
However, with the club currently top of the Championship, a point ahead of Leeds and four points ahead of third-place Burnley after 20 games, Prince Abdullah has stalled the completion of the sale.
A return to the Premier League would see a huge windfall for any new owner, with the TV deal alone worth £140 million next season. Clearly the value of the club would be greater than the current £105 million agreed, but there are still 26 games to go.
Rosen and Eltoukhy are reportedly frustrated by Prince Abdullah’s negotiating with the Saudi said to be holding sign-off on the sale while the club have a strong chance of promotion. The question is whether Sheffield United are still worth £105 million if they are not promoted.
With Prince Abdullah having been trying to sell the club for almost two years, the danger in the brinkmanship of the deal is that his approved buyers may simply just walk away.
Rosen and Eltoukhy realeased a statement to Bloomberg saying: “We are pleased to have secured approval from the EFL, and thank them for their thoughtful engagement on the process. This was the last outstanding matter, and we look forward to moving forward to completion as soon as possible. Like all Sheffield United supporters we want to see the club building on its strong start to this season. We believe that only a rapid completion will allow us to support Chris (Wilder) and the team.”
In 2013 Prince Abdullah bought a 50% stake in the club when they were in League One before taking full control six years later from Kevin McCabe after a bitter legal battle in the high court.
He had tried to sellthe club at the end of the 2022/23 season to Nigerian businessman Dozy Mmobuosi, who had tabled a bid for the club in the region of £90 million. His offer was never given approval by the EFL. Mmobuosi then fell foul of the Securities and Exchange Commission in the US for fraud.
The club were promoted and Prince Abdullah rode the financial wave of the Premier League before relegation and renewing attempts to offload the club.
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