[valemadness]

https://www.safc.com...rding-ownership


Ellis Short, owner of Sunderland AFC, has agreed to sell the club to an international consortium of football investors. The deal, which is subject only to English Football League approval, will see ownership pass to a group led by Stewart Donald, chairman of Eastleigh FC.

Announcing the news, Ellis Short said: “It is no secret that I have been trying to sell Sunderland, but I have waited until the right group came along that have the experience, finances and plan to take this great club back to where it deserves to be.

“Overall, my chairmanship has not gone the way I would have wished; the many high points of a decade in the Premier League have been overshadowed by the low points of the last two terrible seasons. I was therefore determined to ensure that I leave Sunderland in the best possible hands and in the best possible state to turn the corner. To achieve this, higher offers from less qualified buyers were rejected, and I have paid off all debts owed by the club to leave it financially strong and debt free for the first time since years before I owned it.”

“Assuming that Stewart and his group win EFL approval, it only remains for me to wish them, and all associated with the club, the very best for the future. I will be a Sunderland fan for life, and hope to return as a fan to watch them climb back to where they belong.”

Donald, who will now relinquish ownership of Eastleigh, said: “All of us involved in this bid believe that Sunderland represents an extraordinary opportunity. Our group have all been involved in building – or re-building – football clubs to reach their potential and we believe that over the last decade we have acquired the necessary skillsets to overcome the many challenges that will face us at this huge club.”

Aside from his association with Eastleigh, Donald has also been a key behind-the-scenes presence at Oxford United in that club’s revival over the last ten years, as an investor, shirt sponsor and supporters trust committee member.

He added: “Eastleigh and Oxford are different cases to each other and, of course, smaller than Sunderland. The similarity, though, is that there is also a lot that needs to be addressed here, and it needs to be addressed with realism, focus and dedication. For a club with one of the best fanbases, stadium and academies in the UK to find itself in League One is unacceptable.

“We have a carefully thought-through plan to restructure the club, make it sustainable and, with the help of the fans, to restore its sense of pride and re-connect it with the local community. In short, we are rolling our sleeves up to do what needs to be done to ready this club to start competing again.”

Out of respect for the EFL process, neither Sunderland AFC, Ellis Short nor Stewart Donald will be making any further comment on the sale of the club until approval is granted.

https://www.eastleig...stewart-donald/

It is with great sadness and regret that I have to inform the Eastleigh fans that I have put our football club up for sale. I have spent over six years at the club and from the very first moment I arrived I have been welcomed and treated with great respect and kindness and I am truly grateful for the support everyone has given regardless of how well the team have performed at any given time.

It is an emotional decision for me and one that I did not expect to have to make. However, with my potential involvement in Sunderland, it is a condition that I must relinquish control of Eastleigh. If the rules were different I would have loved to remain with the club for many years to come.

Eastleigh has become, and will always be, extremely close to my heart. I have always tried to look after the club to the best of my ability and this will never be more important than now when considering perspective new owner/s.

The football club is in the strongest financial position it has ever been in. With a much-improved stadium and increased revenues enabling the club the ability to seriously compete in the top tier of non-league football and whilst I have been unable to deliver League football, I hope the fans will reflect on my chairmanship as a positive one.

My focus now must move to finding a suitable owner who will understand the ethos of the club. It is vital to ensure that the club continues to provide affordable football and progresses on the field whilst incurring absolutely no debt. I always ensured Eastleigh was run without debt and that any money provided was never going to create any debt.

I would like to assure the fans that I will not charge for the sale of the club and do my very best to ensure that the club is passed to an individual or group that understands these principles and is committed to continuing them.

I will obviously remain as owner for a short period and hopefully, I will get to see some of you before I depart and if not I will return and watch as many games as I can.

Thank you all again for making my ownership such an enjoyable experience.

[martatcross]

I was hoping it was Brierley !!!!!!

[moondog]

valemadness, on 29 April 2018 - 04:58 PM, said:

https://www.safc.com...rding-ownership


Ellis Short, owner of Sunderland AFC, has agreed to sell the club to an international consortium of football investors. The deal, which is subject only to English Football League approval, will see ownership pass to a group led by Stewart Donald, chairman of Eastleigh FC.

Announcing the news, Ellis Short said: “It is no secret that I have been trying to sell Sunderland, but I have waited until the right group came along that have the experience, finances and plan to take this great club back to where it deserves to be.

“Overall, my chairmanship has not gone the way I would have wished; the many high points of a decade in the Premier League have been overshadowed by the low points of the last two terrible seasons. I was therefore determined to ensure that I leave Sunderland in the best possible hands and in the best possible state to turn the corner. To achieve this, higher offers from less qualified buyers were rejected, and I have paid off all debts owed by the club to leave it financially strong and debt free for the first time since years before I owned it.”

“Assuming that Stewart and his group win EFL approval, it only remains for me to wish them, and all associated with the club, the very best for the future. I will be a Sunderland fan for life, and hope to return as a fan to watch them climb back to where they belong.”

Donald, who will now relinquish ownership of Eastleigh, said: “All of us involved in this bid believe that Sunderland represents an extraordinary opportunity. Our group have all been involved in building – or re-building – football clubs to reach their potential and we believe that over the last decade we have acquired the necessary skillsets to overcome the many challenges that will face us at this huge club.”

Aside from his association with Eastleigh, Donald has also been a key behind-the-scenes presence at Oxford United in that club’s revival over the last ten years, as an investor, shirt sponsor and supporters trust committee member.

He added: “Eastleigh and Oxford are different cases to each other and, of course, smaller than Sunderland. The similarity, though, is that there is also a lot that needs to be addressed here, and it needs to be addressed with realism, focus and dedication. For a club with one of the best fanbases, stadium and academies in the UK to find itself in League One is unacceptable.

“We have a carefully thought-through plan to restructure the club, make it sustainable and, with the help of the fans, to restore its sense of pride and re-connect it with the local community. In short, we are rolling our sleeves up to do what needs to be done to ready this club to start competing again.”

Out of respect for the EFL process, neither Sunderland AFC, Ellis Short nor Stewart Donald will be making any further comment on the sale of the club until approval is granted.

https://www.eastleig...stewart-donald/

It is with great sadness and regret that I have to inform the Eastleigh fans that I have put our football club up for sale. I have spent over six years at the club and from the very first moment I arrived I have been welcomed and treated with great respect and kindness and I am truly grateful for the support everyone has given regardless of how well the team have performed at any given time.

It is an emotional decision for me and one that I did not expect to have to make. However, with my potential involvement in Sunderland, it is a condition that I must relinquish control of Eastleigh. If the rules were different I would have loved to remain with the club for many years to come.

Eastleigh has become, and will always be, extremely close to my heart. I have always tried to look after the club to the best of my ability and this will never be more important than now when considering perspective new owner/s.

The football club is in the strongest financial position it has ever been in. With a much-improved stadium and increased revenues enabling the club the ability to seriously compete in the top tier of non-league football and whilst I have been unable to deliver League football, I hope the fans will reflect on my chairmanship as a positive one.

My focus now must move to finding a suitable owner who will understand the ethos of the club. It is vital to ensure that the club continues to provide affordable football and progresses on the field whilst incurring absolutely no debt. I always ensured Eastleigh was run without debt and that any money provided was never going to create any debt.

I would like to assure the fans that I will not charge for the sale of the club and do my very best to ensure that the club is passed to an individual or group that understands these principles and is committed to continuing them.

I will obviously remain as owner for a short period and hopefully, I will get to see some of you before I depart and if not I will return and watch as many games as I can.

Thank you all again for making my ownership such an enjoyable experience.

Let's hope a certain Chinese consortium aren't tempted to buy fellow National League side Eastleigh

[azul]

moondog, on 29 April 2018 - 06:20 PM, said:

Let's hope a certain Chinese consortium aren't tempted to buy fellow National League side Eastleigh

The chinese consortium could buy the whole of the borough of Eastleigh cheaper than buying CFC off Uncle Dave

[fishini]

moondog, on 29 April 2018 - 06:20 PM, said:

Let's hope a certain Chinese consortium aren't tempted to buy fellow National League side Eastleigh

Well they won't be buying us seeing as it seems we are not and never have been for sale conterary to what the snake tells you

[Security66]

moondog, on 29 April 2018 - 06:20 PM, said:

Let's hope a certain Chinese consortium aren't tempted to buy fellow National League side Eastleigh

Our ground will be a major factor in any potential owners.

[moondog]

azul, on 29 April 2018 - 06:26 PM, said:

The chinese consortium could buy the whole of the borough of Eastleigh cheaper than buying CFC off Uncle Dave

They will get off to a good start as the owner appears willing to give the club away

[valemadness]

moondog, on 29 April 2018 - 06:20 PM, said:

Let's hope a certain Chinese consortium aren't tempted to buy fellow National League side Eastleigh

I had heard that the Chinese consortium had been considering sunderland as well as us. Hopefully they may decide to come back in with another offer, which one would hope Mr Allen would decide to take as he is losing money all the time with having to put more in every month.

[azul]

valemadness, on 29 April 2018 - 07:24 PM, said:

I had heard that the Chinese consortium had been considering sunderland as well as us. Hopefully they may decide to come back in with another offer, which one would hope Mr Allen would decide to take as he is losing money all the time with having to put more in every month.

Sunderland or us

Wasn't this Chinese consortium actually a company?

[Vivo]

Security66, on 29 April 2018 - 06:29 PM, said:

Our ground will be a major factor in any potential owners a dog track soon.

[moondog]

azul, on 29 April 2018 - 07:39 PM, said:

Sunderland or us

Wasn't this Chinese consortium actually a company?

Yes

[Mr Mercury]

valemadness, on 29 April 2018 - 07:24 PM, said:

I had heard that the Chinese consortium had been considering sunderland as well as us. Hopefully they may decide to come back in with another offer, which one would hope Mr Allen would decide to take as he is losing money all the time with having to put more in every month.

"Mr Allen"..... get a few drinks inside you and really go for it!

[calvin plummers socks]

Sunderland next season get a £34 million parachute payment.

Acc stanley have a £1 million annual wage bill!

Same division.....

[Stents]

calvin plummers socks, on 30 April 2018 - 10:31 AM, said:

Sunderland next season get a £34 million parachute payment.

Acc stanley have a £1 million annual wage bill!

Same division.....

You can fit the entire population of Accrington in the Stadium of Light and still have space for Sunderland's season ticket holders

[kopblue]

calvin plummers socks, on 30 April 2018 - 10:31 AM, said:

Sunderland next season get a £34 million parachute payment.

Acc stanley have a £1 million annual wage bill!

Same division.....

Is rodwell still there on 70k per week?

[60s 70s Spireite]

kopblue, on 30 April 2018 - 11:30 AM, said:

Is rodwell still there on 70k per week?

Still there, but missing, per lost posters stuck up around the stadium concourses. Not played (or even seen per the more cynical fans) since last September. Apparently his salary will fall by £30k per week. Hard life isn’t it?

[Paul stanley]

Pleased for them been from gateshead i have friends and family that are fans. Not been ran right in years. This stuart donaldson seems a genuiene football guy

[JonB]

Their ex player Micky Gray is spouting away on twitter that he knows more about the take over and will say more on Tuesday morning when he’s on talksport plus twitter. We shall wait to see what gems he comes out with. He’s currently suggesting that this takeover won’t be good for the club.

This post has been edited by JonB: 30 April 2018 - 02:34 PM

[Westbars Spireite]

JonB, on 30 April 2018 - 02:34 PM, said:

Their ex player Micky Gray is spouting away on twitter that he knows more about the take over and will say more on Tuesday morning when he’s on talksport plus twitter. We shall wait to see what gems he comes out with. He’s currently suggesting that this takeover won’t be good for the club.

It can hardly make things worse.

[Paul stanley]

Westbars Spireite, on 30 April 2018 - 04:34 PM, said:

It can hardly make things worse.

It sure can't at least th is Stuart Donald guy is based in the UK and knows football. Credit to Ellis short for writing off the debt

This post has been edited by Paul stanley: 30 April 2018 - 06:10 PM