Everton’s proposed sale from he hands of Farhad Moshiri to Miami-based 777 Partners has seemed doomed the longer it has gone on, and now it appears the club are finally shopping around for a new buyer. The Premier League has held off on approving the sale to 777 for some time now even as mounting debts, new court cases and financial downgrades have been impacting the investment firm.
The current state of the club’s accounting picture makes for grim reading with the Toffees relying on periodic loans to keep the lights on and the players paid. MSP Sports Capital, another US-based firm that had been linked with a purchase bid for the club, ended up providing funding in the form of a £158 million loan that by the league’s stipulations would need to be repaid first before the change in ownership from Moshiri to 777 can be ratified. That loan was due to be repaid a week ago, but 777 then had to ask for an extension in the payment window since they could not put together the requisite funds.
Meanwhile concern continues to mount with 777’s other football clubs — Sevilla, Genoa, Vasco da Gama, Standard Liege, Red Star FC, Hertha BSC and Melbourne Victory FC — also wondering about their futures, and the Belgian side apparently being offered for sale too.
Everton greatly improved their prospects of staying in the Premier League ahead of their Goodison Park swansong next season with a win over fellow relegation rivals Nottingham Forest on Sunday.
While their brand new stadium is still scheduled to be completed by the end of this calendar year with the Toffees subsequently moving in to start the 2024-25 season, it appears any new owners will be stuck with footing the completion costs for the incomplete stadium rising up on the banks of the River Mersey.
The New York Times is reporting today that accountancy firm Deloitte have been directed by Moshiri to seek out other potential buyers. There is no mention of if MSP wants to come back into the reckoning, but the sovereign wealth funds of several Gulf nations including 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar have been contacted by Deloitte in an attempt to bring in new bidders.
More to come, but for now the club’s future both on and off the pitch remains shaky.
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