Peter Lorimer:
Where are the big investors to help rebuild United?By Peter Lormier
Talking Soccer
ENGLISH football clubs are becoming the latest must-have fashion accessory for wealthy foreign businessmen as the game truly goes global.
First we had mega-rich Abramovich taking over Chelsea, then American billionaire Malcolm Glazer, the owner of the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers, took complete control of Manchester United.
Another American entrepreneur, Randy Lerner, took over Aston Villa last year and today George Gillett and Tom Hicks wrapped up a £470m takeover of Liverpool.
Gillett used to own Harlem Globetrotters but now owns Montreal Canadiens ice hockey team while Hicks owns Dallas Stars ice hockey team and the Texas Rangers baseball team.
Lerner has been the owner of the American football team, the Cleveland Browns, of the National Football League since 2002, and his personal fortune is estimated at $7.5 billion dollars.
This week Sheffield Wednesday confirmed talks are ongoing with a Chinese consortium about a summer takeover.
Owls chairman Dave Allen held a meeting with a Chinese party headed by a multi-millionaire casino owner.
Allen, chairman at Hillsborough since 2003, first revealed he was keen to hand over control to someone who could wipe out the club's £26million debts at the turn of the year and said at the time: "We are not looking for small-time people, we are looking for a mega-rich businessman like Roman Abramovich at Chelsea, who want to buy a football club for a hobby.
"This man has made money from casinos overseas and has vast wealth."
Now Coventry hope their dreams of a return to the Premiership will come a step closer after they opened talks with a view to becoming the latest club taken over by American investors.
The Sky Blues have confirmed they are in talks with Manhattan Sports Capital Partners with a view to the American group – led by lifelong City fan Gary Hopkins – taking over at the Ricoh Arena.
Staggering sums of money are involved here as investors look to widen their interests.
The incredible and speedy advances in technology mean that someone in, say, China will be able to watch maybe a Liverpool game on something the size of a mobile telephone or on the bottom of their computer screen and there is something of a rush to get in on this.
Further, there can be a marrying together of the big sporting organisations on both sides of the Atlantic, with endless possibilities for each of them.
Little wonder that Leeds United chairman Ken Bates is deeply frustrated by the lack of even local investment in the club when all this is going on around it.
As a brand name, Leeds is right up there with the biggest of them. Wherever you go in the world people have heard of Leeds United and know all about the club's great history.
Yet at a time when the club would greatly benefit from the input of significant funds from those who openly say they have the best interests of Leeds United at heart, there remains a peculiar reluctance to invest at a local level.
The biggest talking point at Elland Road this week concerns the apparent desire of the club captain Kevin Nicholls to return to his former club Luton.
This development comes at a time when, with just 10 games left, Leeds are fighting for their very lives in the Coca-Cola Championship and it is pointless prolonging the issue by continuing to focus on it.
Great timing, Kevin!
Following recent reversals tomorrow's visit of Luton to Elland Road involves a real six-pointer and it is an absolute must-win for Leeds.
Down at Kenilworth Road earlier in the season Luton handed out a 5-1 thrashing which was an embarrassment for all concerned.
This is an opportunity both for the players to exact revenge and for the supporters who had to endure chants of "You're going down" to turn the tables.
Kilde:
http://www.leedstoday.net/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleID=2111695&SectionID=1083