Another team bites the dust to the US.

 

 

LONDON -- English Premier League team Aston Villa agreed to a $118.8 million takeover Monday by a group led by Cleveland Browns owner Randy Lerner.

 

 

 

Lerner's group, Reform Acquisitions Ltd., offered $10.37 per Aston Villa share, the principals involved in the deal announced to the London Stock Exchange. That represents a premium of about 47 percent over the closing price on Sept. 16, 2005, the last day before the beginning of the offer period.

 

 

"It is my belief and the basis for my bid to acquire Aston Villa Football Club that it can compete at the highest level within the Premiership and in Europe," Lerner said.

 

 

Lerner, former chairman of credit card company MBNA, would be the second U.S. National Football League owner to buy a Premier League club.

 

 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers owner Malcolm Glazer purchased Manchester United in 2005, sparking protests by fans worried Glazer would be more devoted to making money than to winning.

 

 

The board of Aston Villa recommended the transaction to shareholders, and said owners of 56.85 percent of shares had already committed to the deal.

 

 

Villa chairman Doug Ellis, who has owned the club since 1982 and has a 39 percent stake, put the club up for sale a year ago.

 

 

"It has been my sincere pleasure to have been involved with Aston Villa these many years, both as chairman and as a substantial shareholder," Ellis said. "The club has been an enormous and immensely enjoyable part of my life."

So has Manchester United tanked?

 

Why is the assumption made that a US businessman will only try and milk the team for money?

Oh fantastic. I'd better hide. I have a mate who's a Villa fan who' NOT going to be happy.

I find it incredibly amusing that the worth of Aston Villa as a club is about as much as the amount of money Chelsea blows in the transfer market each season.

MU's doing pretty well. My friend was saying they've sold 65k season tickets out of their 75k stadium capacity.

It's not really football, though, is it? I mean what's next? Someone buys the lower-wallop wanderers and buys everyone they can?

So has Manchester United tanked? 

 

Why is the assumption made that a US businessman will only try and milk the team for money?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

United are still going strong, we're the most successful club in the history of the premier league, it will take a lot more than 660million debt thanks to some American muppet to kill us.

 

Walsingham you don't need to hide from your mate either, if he's like any other Villa fan he's going to be in a great mood for the next few days. This is exactly what they've been praying for for the last couple of seasons now.

Yay, it's the free market! For all its imperfections, the free market remain a vital means of maintaining our prosperity and fighting global poverty. Personally, I don't care who owns a given football club any more than I care that half the players are from other countries! Non-US investors are presumably free to buy shares in, and potentially take control of, US sporting teams, right? Although I do recall some fuss last year when a UAE company tried to buy into US ports...

Yay, it's the free market!  For all its imperfections, the free market remain a vital means of maintaining our prosperity and fighting global poverty.  Personally, I don't care who owns a given football club any more than I care that half the players are from other countries!  Non-US investors are presumably free to buy shares in, and potentially take control of, US sporting teams, right?   Although I do recall some fuss last year when a UAE company tried to buy into US ports...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Actually, most American sports leagues are far less capitalistic than the various European soccer leagues. Most sales of teams have to be approved by the other team owners before they can take place. The leagues also institute salary caps and revenue sharing to maintain competitive balance between the teams.

So has Manchester United tanked? 

 

Why is the assumption made that a US businessman will only try and milk the team for money?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

United are still going strong, we're the most successful club in the history of the premier league, it will take a lot more than 660million debt thanks to some American muppet to kill us.

 

Walsingham you don't need to hide from your mate either, if he's like any other Villa fan he's going to be in a great mood for the next few days. This is exactly what they've been praying for for the last couple of seasons now.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

LOLLERSCATES "we"

we're the most successful club in the history of the premier league

 

*CoughLiverpoolcough* "

Let's not go into who won what 50 years ago, shall we?

 

Manchester United are still doing well, their relative, small 'slump' in playing quality is due to the players on the pitch rather than anything else. And since they just paid a ludicrous sum for Carrick, money isn't the issue.

 

Villa fans wanted a takeover for ages, there is nothing inherently bad about a takeover unless it leads to bad things for the club. And since Aston Villa isn't exactly suited for money-milking right now..

Sucky and Tigranes, I don't think either of us can talk about what ALL Villa fans wanted. But I know my mate is going to be annoyed. This will turn Villa into yet another corporate money machine.

Villa's nowhere near fashionable enough to be a money machine anywhere in the short term. If they could get their playing standard up to the current Spurs that'd be a massive achievement.

we're the most successful club in the history of the premier league

 

*CoughLiverpoolcough* "

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Liverpool were constantly winning the league in the 80's back when it was division 1,2,3 and 4 and the premier league didn't exist. Since the Premiership began in 1992 Liverpool have won it a grand total of 0 times. Whereas Man Utd have won it 8 times.

Yeah sorry, assumed that by Premiership you meant the top division. (Which of course Liverpool has won the most times).

Edited August 16, 200619 yr by Thingolfin

Good article on Lerner's bid on Villa http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story...england&cc=3436

United are still going strong, we're the most successful club in the history of the premier league, it will take a lot more than 660million debt thanks to some American muppet to kill us.

 

Walsingham you don't need to hide from your mate either, if he's like any other Villa fan he's going to be in a great mood for the next few days. This is exactly what they've been praying for for the last couple of seasons now.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Manchester United ROCKS!

Manchester United ROCKS! 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

there really isn't much in england that Americans want. ford bought aston martin a few years ago and there pretty much weren't nothing left worth buying in your country. if there was, we would probably have bought it by now.

 

HA! Good Fun!

Hey, Doctor Who, Red Dwarf, and Manchester United are very worth it!

as has been pointed out, an American already owned that crappy football team, and as for a couple of tv shows with really horrible production values...

 

sadly, there is some english tv that i do like, but it is best to let the bbc produce those programs as their commercial viability is suspect. i still get to watch those few good programs, and no American company has to suffer a financial loss.

 

HA! Good Fun!

How remarkably charitable of you! So you are quite happy to benefit from the work of others without contributing? Isn't that (apart from living in denial) a spin on taxation without representation ...

How remarkably charitable of you! So you are quite happy to benefit from the work of others without contributing? Isn't that (apart from living in denial) a spin on taxation without representation ...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

it really ain't a spin on taxation w/o representation at all, is it? meta trys for pith and just kinda misses. oh well.

 

in any event, it is simply good sense to benefit from the labor o' others w/o real contribution, if you can pull it off. such a basic grasp o' economic efficiency is why Gromnir is management.

 

am supposing we could send a nice check to the bbc and maybe a nice letter thanking

Edited August 19, 200619 yr by Gromnir

It'll be the ruin of civilization!