Everton takeover causes 777 house to crumble claims US lawsuit with Liverpool link
777 Partners’ ongoing attempt to takeover at Everton has caused their “house of cards” to start “crumbling down”, according to a US lawsuit.
The Athletic’s Matt Slater reported via the outlet’s website on 8 March that Obra Capital, a company owned by RedBird Capital Partners, are seeking “punitive damages” from the Toffees’ prospective owners amid a dispute over a debt repayment from what was originally a $55million [£42m] loan, and accusations that 777 have attempted to “shield” assets from creditors.
Documents filed with the Supreme Court of the State of New York on 7 March reportedly note that the still incomplete takeover attempt at Goodison Park is part of a “flashy shopping spree” within football, while the fact it has not been given the go ahead raises questions over the company’s finances, which “it has not been able to answer”.
The lawsuit claimed that “with this enhanced scrutiny, 777’s house of cards began crumbling down”, while it also noted that there have been nine legal claims made against the company in the past year, totalling over $100m [£77.8m].
Obra’s owners RedBird also own AC Milan and Toulouse, and hold a minority stake in Liverpool.
777 declined to comment on the case and have previously dismissed legal issues as “baseless or opportunistic”.
Merseyside derby element in 777 court case amid Everton takeover delay
All lawsuits will sound bad otherwise they wouldn’t have got to that point in the first place, but while or one or even a couple could perhaps be written off as “baseless” or “opportunistic” it does become a pattern if there are nine.
777 will argue their case and until there is a verdict it is unclear who is in the right with this one, but involvement in this sort of thing will look like a red flag with regards to the takeover.
Aside from this legal dispute, Everton must be vital for the American firm from a business perspective or they surely wouldn’t be sat waiting for months while providing around £190m in loans to date.
Josh Wander is said to believe the delay from the Premier League is due to the ongoing profit and sustainability complications for the club, but the legal issues for the company must be having an impact too.
Maybe the matter is far enough removed from the Toffees that it can be ignored, but the fact that the incomplete takeover is being directly cited in a court dispute over the would-be news owners’ finances it suggests that it not irrelevant at all.
In other Everton news, an ex-Toffees ace claims the “very aggressive” situation he was in at Goodison made his new teammates “hate” him.
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