New Everton Owners: The Friedkin Group

[Neiler]

 

[irishtony1878]

This Multi-Club Ownership isn't about the badge anymore, it's just a financial ecosystem for the suits to move numbers around.

All the cards are held by a tiny group of tycoons. When the same board runs half the league, the local voice, the heart and soul of our clubs, gets muffled by corporate speak.

Our clubs aren't trophies or community pillars to them, they’re just assets in a portfolio. The profit doesn't stay at the local chippy, it flies straight back to their HQ. The culture’s being replaced by a spreadsheet.

MCO is about squeezing every penny out of the sport (Maximize Return), not about the beautiful game we grew up with.

They aren't some neutral helping hand, it’s a system rigged for the 1%.

The problem is, without their help, we would be playing our football alongside Exeter and the like with a fish and chip magnate (2 or 3 chippies) in charge.
To compete in the same league, we have to play with a bit of fire and sell a little bit of your soul (put up with ST increases)

 

[Neiler]

You’d prob expect us to shoot yo this table behind Newcastle, to a revenue or £250 mill next season.

Newcastle and Villa are the low hanging fruit as their revenue is based on European qualification - CL.

Spurs another interesting one.

 

[davek]

Have these 'kin scumbags had the decency to explain their grand larceny yet?

 

[davek]

Got the club for ten bob and now they're squeezing the people that created (and recreate) it out of their hard earned - then they'll sell it once the club fanbase are neutralised and good little consumers to the next bloodsucker.

We needed a sovereign wealth fund here where money is no obstacle. Instead we got a multi-club owner who are going to use Everton to fund their other 'projects'.

 

[Swartzy]

This Multi-Club Ownership isn't about the badge anymore, it's just a financial ecosystem for the suits to move numbers around.

All the cards are held by a tiny group of tycoons. When the same board runs half the league, the local voice, the heart and soul of our clubs, gets muffled by corporate speak.

Our clubs aren't trophies or community pillars to them, they’re just assets in a portfolio. The profit doesn't stay at the local chippy, it flies straight back to their HQ. The culture’s being replaced by a spreadsheet.

MCO is about squeezing every penny out of the sport (Maximize Return), not about the beautiful game we grew up with.

They aren't some neutral helping hand, it’s a system rigged for the 1%.

You can't blame the clubs, you can't even really blame the owners. It's the Football Governing Bodies that let it into the game, they opened the door and now it's too late to close it..

Feeder clubs, that is the lowest point. Those fans have lost the soul of their club for good..

 

[Neiler]

Got the club for ten bob and now they're squeezing the people that created (and recreate) it out of their hard earned - then they'll sell it once the club fanbase are neutralised and good little consumers to the next bloodsucker.

We needed a sovereign wealth fund here where money is no obstacle. Instead we got a multi-club owner who are going to use Everton to fund their other 'projects'.

They've put in more then they've taken out mate.

*They haven't taken anything out!

 

[davek]

They've put in more then they've taken out mate.

*They haven't taken anything out!

They have a group strategy whereby assets they have - in this case Everton and more precisely its Stadium - will appreciate in value over time and can be used to fund other 'projects' within the group now.

You're not daft. You know this.

AND they did get this club for a knock down price and they'll make a massive profit on Everton when they sell.

You also know this.

Keep an eye on what happens at Roma this summer...

 

[Neiler]

They have a group strategy whereby assets they have - in this case Everton and more precisely its Stadium - will appreciate in value over time and can be used to fund other 'projects' within the group.

You're not daft. You know this.

AND they did get this club for a knock down price and they'll make a massive profit on Everton when they sell.

You also know this.

It hasn’t happened though mate, the difficulty they would have in doing it is the shareholding in roundhouse, they aren’t the only investor in it - others have invested in roundhouse. They wouldn’t have done that if there was a hint of there investment going to a diffiermt company in TFG stable.

Also there isn’t any evidence of it, money has been ploughed into Everton, to finish the ground, pay debt. wrote off losses and capitalise the club and invest in the squad.

I’m all for a bit of caution and rigour just don’t see a red flag at the moment.

If I was to guess a long term strategy it’s as you say asset appreciation over time, but I think TFG are also very political and increasingly influential in European Club lobby - something no one really talks about or acknowledges in here really.

I have a suspicion their goal is asset appreciation but also to offer a stable clubs for any future -ESL or waters down equivalent that will eventually came - Everton and Roma will be offered up, Cannes i think is also strategically chosen.

 

[davek]

It hasn’t happened though mate, the difficulty they would have in doing it is the shareholding in roundhouse, they aren’t the only investor in it - others have invested in roundhouse. They wouldn’t have done that if there was a hint of there investment going to a diffiermt company in TFG stable.

Also there isn’t any evidence of it, money has been ploughed into Everton, to finish the ground, pay debt. wrote off losses and capitalise the club and invest in the squad.

I’m all for a bit of caution and rigour just don’t see a red flag at the moment.

If I was to guess a long term strategy it’s as you say asset appreciation over time, but I think TFG are also very political and increasingly influential in European Club lobby - something no one really talks about or acknowledges in here really.

I have a suspicion their goal is asset appreciation but also to offer a stable clubs for any future -ESL or waters down equivalent that will eventually came - Everton and Roma will be offered up, Cannes i think is also strategically chosen.

That's not what I mean.

You know that these institutions will borrow against assets and dont have to rob Peter to pay Paul. Everton is a major part of their portfolio of interests.

This last week have also shown that they have the will to lay down the law on the complete commercialisation of this particular "asset".

 

[Neiler]

That's not what I mean.

You know that these institutions will borrow against assets and dont have to rob Peter to pay Paul. Everton is a major part of their portfolio of interests.

This last week have also shown that they have the will to lay down the law on the complete commercialisation of that asset.

They've paid down an awful lot of costly and problematic debt in turn saving a lot on interest mate - that was draining the club, they restructured the existing debt on way better terms - largely due to their credibility and reputation as a group - with lenders that dont come out of the camen islands. There isn't any evidance of any new debt as yet, they've put a fair bit of money into the club, i dont see them blinking yet either. This doesn't seem top end either, as far as i can see they are going through Dept - Dept at the club and doing a root an branch restructure - new hires and being newly resourced and invested in - the club is going to be a very different place to what it was.

To be frank the business it, organically its still loosing close to £60 mill a year if you take out mad cap one of things like selling the women's team. The season ticket prices while a wrench are still 12th lowest in the PL - it was inevitable, i said it a year before the stadium was finished the cheapest it will ever be will be was year one.

The club need to make money for its own wellbeing and broad base being able to compete - its the whole point of the move. If there is evidance that money is being taken ot of the club - ill be on it, but there just isn't yet.

We have a real opportunity here, as above from a revenue perspective we can launch ourselves into the mix with a Newcastle and Villa next season and year on year invest to begin to compete for those CL places - they are game changing. If we can naturally rub shoulders as business with Spurs, Villa and Newcastle from a financial perspective and then make enough good decisions - we can compete and bloody the noses of the likes of Chelsea, Utd, Norway, Arsenal and City.

We waited a long time for this - a real chance to get closer to compete, without a millstone.

 

[mahermi1]

Got the club for ten bob and now they're squeezing the people that created (and recreate) it out of their hard earned - then they'll sell it once the club fanbase are neutralised and good little consumers to the next bloodsucker.

We needed a sovereign wealth fund here where money is no obstacle. Instead we got a multi-club owner who are going to use Everton to fund their other 'projects'.

You're putting you're" head on the block" there Dave. No thanks mate unless you've found a sovereign wealth Ayotollah who does not believe in Capital punishment, is a Communist and a member of the Green party, remember Dave, Fossil fuels are destroying the Planet, they love Gas guzzling cars and private Jets and not Bikes and I'm positive a man of your mightily high Principals would never consider one as an owner of our club due to them incredible standards and principles you hold everyone else to .....daily.

 

[davek]

You're putting you're" head on the block" there Dave. No thanks mate unless you've found a sovereign wealth Ayotollah who does not believe in Capital punishment, is a Communist and a member of the Green party, remember Dave, Fossil fuels are destroying the Planet, they love Gas guzzling cars and private Jets and not Bikes and I'm positive a man of your mightily high Principals would never consider one as an owner of our club due to them incredible standards and principles you hold everyone else to .....daily.

There's no clean pair of hands anywhere. We may as well get one that gets us to the top without killing the fanbase.

 

[davek]

They've paid down an awful lot of costly and problematic debt in turn saving a lot on interest mate - that was draining the club, they restructured the existing debt on way better terms - largely due to their credibility and reputation as a group - with lenders that dont come out of the camen islands. There isn't any evidance of any new debt as yet, they've put a fair bit of money into the club, i dont see them blinking yet either. This doesn't seem top end either, as far as i can see they are going through Dept - Dept at the club and doing a root an branch restructure - new hires and being newly resourced and invested in - the club is going to be a very different place to what it was.

To be frank the business it, organically its still loosing close to £60 mill a year if you take out mad cap one of things like selling the women's team. The season ticket prices while a wrench are still 12th lowest in the PL - it was inevitable, i said it a year before the stadium was finished the cheapest it will ever be will be was year one.

The club need to make money for its own wellbeing and broad base being able to compete - its the whole point of the move. If there is evidance that money is being taken ot of the club - ill be on it, but there just isn't yet.

We have a real opportunity here, as above from a revenue perspective we can launch ourselves into the mix with a Newcastle and Villa next season and year on year compete for those CL places - they are game changing. If w can naturally rub shoulders Spurs, Villa and Newcastle from a financial perspective and make enough good decisions - we can compete and bloody th enoses of the likes of Chelsea, Utd, Norway, Arsenal and City.

We waited a long time for this - a real chance to get closer to compete, without a millstone.

They could afford to do that and take any pain in that respect because they know they got a club on the cheap whose shares they paid about £25M to Moshiri for.

In any case: they structured the debt, they're not paying it own: Everton fans are paying off the interest on it....not just through tickets but the whole commercial kit and caboodle of stuff that fans are the ultimate generators of.

There's no sugar daddy or even straight shooter owner turned up here. We have American owners who will seek to turn everything onto the fans to pay for and leave with an almighty profit.

 

[Neiler]

They could afford to do that and take any pain in that respect because they know they got a club on the cheap whose shares they paid about £25M to Moshiri for.

In any case: they structured the debt, they're not paying it own: Everton fans are paying off the interest on it....not just through tickets but the whole commercial kit and caboodle of stuff that fans are the ultimate generators of.

There's no sugar daddy or even straight shooter owner turned up here. We have American owners who will seek to turn everything onto the fans to pay for and leave with an almighty profit.

You need to look at the enterprise value of the change ownership mate its just shy of 1 billion, when you factor in, cost, equity to shares, investment, the restructuring of debt and finishing BMD and injections of working capital. Some of that had to happen as a result of regulatory problems with the PL and third party loans - if you remember. So they didn't at all get it for a song - the share holding was low because it was worthless - just a collection of £100 mill bills - that they took on..

As for the nature of the owner ship its simple, we've come out of a period of having a sugar daddy type owner in Moshiri and Usminov - it didnt work. You see organically how much money the club lost, we nearly went to the wall and got worse on the pitch - what you are proposing is to get a better sugar daddy nest time - but its not a healthy model - why - well we just lived through 7 years of it through Moshiri.

The model TFG are following is a self sustainable one were regardless who the owners are - the club can wash its own face, function on what it makes and be competent to compete - like say an Arsenal and Spurs in a facility led approach to self sustainability.

We've had this debate for over a decade now - you know im a big advocate of the club washing its own face, being self sustainable and not being drip fed by an owner. Tis is what TFG are trying to do - its what Norway have done across the park also.

With SCR its also the only game in town.