Everton: 777 Partners takeover could hit rocks as appeal to UEFA made
Everton may be affected as UEFA and other leaders of European football have been urged to protect football from multi-club owners in a speech made by France sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera, according to AP.
The American news outlet reported that Oudea-Castera had warned that European football could be taken over by a small number of investors in a threat to sporting principles.
In a detailed speech, the sports minister said: “These are threats to our sporting principles and we need to be vigilant to such threats. Fans of French club Strasbourg have protested at games in recent weeks against their club’s American owners who have a much bigger investment in English club Chelsea.
“One of France’s most successful clubs, Lyon, is in a different American-backed multi-club network with England’s Crystal Palace and Belgium’s Molenbeek, where fans have protested about their owners.
“American owner 777 Partners has attracted intense scrutiny on its legal issues at home as it tries to add Premier League club Everton to its group.
“You are the guardians of our principles, of our sport. We need to recognise the risk of circumventing rules and sometimes the threat to fairness of competitions.”
777 Partners’ Everton takeover faces UEFA risk
A direct consequence of this could fall at Everton’s feet. 777 Partners were name-checked in the speech as one of the groups attempting to take over due to their involvement with Standard Liege in Belgium, Red Star in France, Genoa in Italy and Hertha Berlin in Germany – many of whom have seen fan protests.
If her speech had any effect on the audience, which included UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin, a change could come quicker than expected as Ceferin detailed potential changes to their ownership rules, stating: “It has to be quick because, you know, everything has to happen quickly in football.” [AP, 15 March]
Should that change be fast-tracked as a result of the French sports minister’s speech, it would come as a huge blow to Everton and the 777 Partners takeover, with their own concerns now beginning to mount up.
The current UEFA rules prevent multi-club ownership in their competitions, stating that nobody may be simultaneously involved in the management or administration of more than one club in UEFA club competitions.
However, there are ways for clubs to get around these issues as Oueda-Castera highlighted as part of her demand for change, which were likely things 777 were looking into ahead of their takeover of Everton.
In a deal that seems to get more and more complicated by the day, still, no clarity has emerged about whether this takeover will be passed by the Premier League – with outside influence possibly taking hold.
In other Everton news, Tony Bellew exploded at the Premier League live on talkSPORT.
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