Farhad Moshiri’s Blue Heaven Holdings and The Friedkin Group have issued a joint statement confirming that the Texas-based firm have agreed a deal for the purchase of the Anglo-Iranian’s majority stake in Everton Football Club.
The announcement comes after Sky Sports correspondent, Alan Myers, reported earlier today that Dan Friedkin was in advanced negotiations with Moshiri for the takeover of his stake in the Club, just a couple of months after he had withdrawn from talks due to concerns over the complexities of Everton’s various debts.
The Friedkin Group are one of Blues’ three major creditors, having fronted the Club £200m earlier this year to pay off another loan from MSP Sports Capital. They were initially granted exclusivity by Moshiri in June and, just as was the case with their negotiations with AS Roma prior to completing a $700m purchase of the Italian club, the Americans came back to the table to complete a buyout.
Myers said that it was his understanding that TFG were prepared to make an equity investment of £400m-500m into the Club and that the deal had accelerated following a “huge change in the situation over the weekend”. Meanwhile, in The Times, Paul Joyce claims that deals have been struck with Everton’s major creditors, Rights & Media Funding and A-CAP, the backers behind previous bidders, 777 Partners.
This came after a claim from Bloomberg last week that Friedkin had revived his previous interest in the Blues, with a possible agreement thought to be much closer than it was before.
Missouri-based billionaire, John Textor, appeared to the front-runner to buy the Blues having also held extensive talks with Moshiri while also attempting to find a buyer for this Eagle Football Holdings’ 45% stake in Crystal Palace.
Last week, it was claimed that Textor’s proposed takeover of Everton was ‘progressing well’. However, Myers clarified the situation with Textor, who was unable to be granted true exclusivity due to his involvement at Selhurst Park:
“Textor’s agreement was never exclusive, just an understanding with Moshiri, they agreed a certain time to get things done, nothing to do with anything else, just a personal agreement between the two.”
A statement posted on evertonfc.com at 2pm read:
Blue Heaven Holdings and The Friedkin Group confirm that they have reached agreement over the terms of the sale of Blue Heaven Holdings’ majority stake in Everton Football Club. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval, including from the Premier League, the Football Association, and the Financial Conduct Authority.
A Friedkin Group spokesperson said: “We are pleased to have reached an agreement to become custodians of this iconic football club. We look forward to providing stability to the club, and sharing our vision for its future, including the completion of the new Everton Stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock.”
Dan Friedkin, 59, is worth a reported $6bn and his firm, which owns Gulf States Toyota and has interests in resorts, golf courses, aviation and cinema, double that.
In addition to Roma, where TFG attracted protests from supporters this weekend following the sacking of manager Daniele de Rossi just four games into the new season, have a controlling interest in French fourth-tier club AS Cannes.
The process of vetting Friedkin via the Premier League’s Owners and Directors Test while also getting approval from the Football Association and Financial Conduct Authority is expected take a matter of weeks rather than months, with the hope that the takeover could be completed by the end of the year, perhaps sooner given that TFG are existing owners of another club from one of Europe’s biggest leagues and Dan Friedkin himself is on the board of the European Club Association.