Paul Quinn is usually one of the more measured voices when it comes to Everton’s finances and ownership. Which makes the word he has chosen to describe The Friedkin Group particularly striking: “contempt”.
This is Quinn’s judgement, not ours. But the Everton financial analyst and writer behind The Esk has produced such a detailed and unusually forthright assessment of TFG’s ownership that it is worth passing on.
Quinn accuses the owners of failing to engage sufficiently with the club, its supporters and the city of Liverpool during their 21 months in charge.
Importantly, his criticism does not ignore what TFG have done for Everton. Quinn acknowledges that the group “unquestionably rescued Everton’s balance sheet” after completing its takeover in December 2024, bringing financial stability after the chaotic final years of Farhad Moshiri’s ownership. His argument is that the financial rescue does not excuse what he sees as a subsequent lack of presence and communication.
‘The variable is Everton’
Central to Quinn’s case is Dan Friedkin’s apparent absence from Everton. He points to the lack of any credible public record showing Friedkin attending an Everton match or visiting Liverpool since the takeover, while David Moyes revealed earlier this month that he has never spoken directly to the owner.
Quinn contrasts that with the Friedkin family’s ownership of Roma. He details members of the family attending Roma matches, travelling with the team and visiting the club’s training ground, while Dan and Ryan Friedkin have previously put their names to communications addressed directly to Roma supporters.
“The variable is not temperament. The variable is Everton,” Quinn writes. His wider criticism covers ownership communication, season-ticket increases and the club’s summer transfer business, set against the language used when TFG completed its takeover.
Dan Friedkin said in December 2024 that the group understood Everton’s importance to the local community and was “deeply committed” to contributing positively to Liverpool. Marc Watts, meanwhile, said TFG intended to demonstrate its commitment “through actions, not words”. Quinn believes what has followed has fallen well short of those promises.
Again, that is his assessment.
There is another side to the argument, and Quinn acknowledges it. TFG inherited an Everton in serious financial difficulty, recapitalised the club and refinanced expensive debt, while the Hill Dickinson has opened and the club is operating on a considerably more stable financial footing.
Quinn’s contention is that none of those achievements required the owners themselves to remain so distant. “The sustained, deliberate and elective withholding of presence and explanation,” he writes, is what he believes justifies the word “contempt”.
It is an exceptionally strong judgement.
We don’t present it as ReadEverton’s verdict on The Friedkin Group. But coming from a writer who has spent years analysing Everton’s finances and ownership and who readily acknowledges the financial progress made under TFG, it is a pertinent contribution to the growing debate around the club’s owners.
And one well worth Evertonians reading and judging for themselves.
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