When it comes to takeovers and investment, there is no doubt that Leeds United is the club to go for. Rich history, massive support, one-club city and bags of potential for whoever buys the club. Right now, while Leeds are in the Championship with a squad on a low wage structure, the investment shouldn't be anything like it cost to buy Man City. So why are buyers not queuing all the way to Sheffield to get their hands on a sure thing? It is clear Bates is a difficult man to deal with, and this exercise in driving supporters mad has shown that he clearly wants to try and take every penny he can out of the club. He is no doubt waiting for a gazillionaire to rock up with so much cash he won't blink at paying Bates off to get rid of him. So now what? We have what seems a second bidder joining the fray (unconfirmed of course) who is willing to keep Bates on. Why? Probably because he can't afford to pay Bates enough to leave, so he will pay him a fat salary to be a consultant. I am concerned with the takeover possibility as it stands regardless of which party we talk about, because they don't seem to have the money available to spend on the purchase. Surely if they were flush they would have blown Bates away by now and taken control? If they are struggling to do the deal now, what are they going to be able to invest? The danger is that the buyers finally get Leeds, then risk high wages and fees to try and get promotion, fail, and Leeds are bankrupted. We won't get a do over like Rangers, it will be the West Riding leagues on Saturdays. All this cloak and dagger isn't great, because Leeds fans are blindly hoping someone gets Bates out. We should be told who is trying to buy our club, and be able to question their credibility and ambition. Where do they want to go with Leeds? Premier League obscurity? Champions? A European trophy? Chelsea were a very average club going nowhere slowly until Roman stepped in. His ambition was to win everything going, and he's done that. His ego means he won't accept second best. How would you feel if a richie bought Leeds and threw millions at the squad, and we won things? Would you celebrate loads or would it feel contrived? For me it would feel like cheating at Football Manager!! Now, here's another thing. Would Leeds fans staying away and damaging club revenues potentially scare off buyers? We can already see what the loss of revenue is doing to our ability to sign players, would a buyer think twice looking at this situation? A buyer may, after all, be worried about investing in a club where fans turn their backs at the first sign of failure on the pitch. It's a difficult one. Leeds had a similar situation in the 80s when in the Second Div, with crowds of 14000 not uncommon. Do we have too high an expectation of our club? Are we expecting far too much of whoever takes over? Or are Leeds really the last sleeping giant? Does our club genuinely belong at the top table, by that I mean breaking into the elite group? The truth is that financially we are now light years behind the Prem clubs, and only a seriously cash-rich buyer would be able to really take us forward.
Good Argument Billy. I don't think fans are turning their backs at the first sign of failure on the pitch.. and investors can see through that. I've wanted to go to ER this season, but I'm staying away until we have a regime change. God question though, Why aren't the oligarks / shieks clamoring to get hold of Leeds. Bates only bought us because of the SUPERCASINO licences back in the day and he was wanting the one for Yorkshire, turning the parking areas into a mini Vegas. (with plenty of Hotels!)
Really good post. It's often baffled me why more people haven't tried to buy the club and can only imagine that having to deal with Bates and his cupboard full of financial skeletons has put people off. It's a sad indictment that no wealthy people in Yorkshire seem interested in buying the club (I remember reading somewhere that Yorkshire has more millionaires per capita than Surrey) but perhaps that reflects a view that owning a football club is a way of losing, rather than making, money. On the surface though it would seem that Leeds are one of the few clubs that could make an investor money for many of the reasons you list above. I wouldn’t want a Man City type investor to come in and buy success by bringing in a load of mercenaries. City have gone from a club with a proud history and with the wide-spread respect of football fans to one that has bought a sullied league title. I would just like an owner who will treat the fans with respect (maybe even have a fans’ representative on the board like Swansea); put sustainable investment into the club which will allow us to compete for and retain the best players in our division in order to gain promotion and stay in the Premier League and to invest in the youth system so that we bring through quality home-grown players. Most of all I want an owner who understands and cares for the club, its supporters and our city. Finally, on the question of whether it’s disloyal to stay away from games, I wouldn’t argue with any fan who refuses to attend under the current regime. As consumers we all have a choice where to spend our money. There's no shame in refusing to pay over the odds for dreadful football, in a stadium where you’ll be treated with disrespect by your own stewards and where the money only goes to a discredited owner who doesn’t give a damn about the club.
If I win the Euromillions tonight, I promise to buy Leeds my beloved team and aim to take us back to the promised land PL. I will invite a fans representative to join the board. I will reduce ticket prices. Open the closed tier.
The "blow Bates away" comment is based on other takeovers happening swiftly because the buyers wanted the club, had serious money to spend and had no issue paying a premium to buy the club. Chelsea, Man City and even PSG spring to mind as good examples where serious investors didn't mess about, they opened their cheque books and bought the owners out quickly, knowing they probably paid a bit too much for the shares but no matter, they wanted control so it had to be done. Do the current bidders have the desire and CASH to drive Leeds into the upper eschelons of European football? Doesn't look like it.
Our expectations are ridiculous Not only from fans but the regime falls for it too Yorkshire has 25% unemployment for 16-24 years olds and wages have stagnated while inflation has eaten up disposable income alongside 20% vat People have less money and can't prioritise so much of what they have left to the bad fare offered at lufc. However, there remains a latent desire to support our club irrespective how well the players appear to be doing. Any buyer that reduces prices and appears to have a focus on the team rather than non football industries will make a fortune and will have a support that will be unparalleled We dont need an oligarch. They won't care about reducing prices and making lufc available to the general yorkshire public, just marketing the club to the rich and those without other commitments. We would lose our soul in 10 years
Excellent comment Sheldon. For me, Chelsea are now a soulless club with a stadium filled with people who "go to be seen because its cool". That will wear off, and sadly Man City seem to be going the same way. The ticket pricing, focus on fans and team strategy is spot on. Leeds is a potential gold mine for any serious investor, and as you say unbelievable support to help drive success on the pitch. So what is going on with the current talks? Are the buyers struggling with cash? The thing is, you can be very wealthy on paper with shares etc, but are you liquid and have great cash flow to be able to fund a successful football club? It does make you wonder about the takeover.
No football club is a gold mine, very few actually make money. Wealthy men don't buy football clubs to make money - they buy them for prestige. The same way they buy race horses. To buy real success in football, you don't need to be a multi-millionaire, you need to be a multi BILLIONAIRE. I've no idea why a bank would want to buy Leeds United, there has to be some individuals behind this who just want to be seen in the royal box at Wembley.
Wholeheartedly disagree Poly LUFC is a gold mine, as long as you are very clear about controlling the costs while getting the fans to spend money like Billy-oh But if the owner gets bitten by the bug and tries to force promotion through huge player purchases and ridiulous wage agreements, and gives out expectations of a "massive" future, then it will cost a fortune. Trying to get into the upper echelons of the Prem also costs loads if you get promoted ot the Prem (or even just staying in the Prem costs a fortune)
I don't think so, has any football club in England ever made big money? Perhaps Man Utd with their global name but even then wouldn't the Glazers make more money putting their $$$ in a deposit account? I think a club can trade in the black if it's well run and accepts a middling position in a lower division but would we want that? If we are to win promotion this year, we'll need to spend quite a bit in January (assuming the takeover/investment actually happens. If we do win promotion, we'll have to spend big money to survive in the EPL. If we do win promotion and survive, and we want to challenge for honours again, we'll need to spend mega bucks.
Poly - with all due respect, you just proved my first point. Too many fans' expectations are waaaaaay out there. This club's football side of things has made millions in the last few years, only frittered away because of the chairman's desire to take litigious actions and generally lose, his ambition to break into difficult industries that have the smallest profit margins, and playing around with the books to feed his own bank account, allegedly. And those millions were made with a half-full ground, with many fans fans really unhappy and not spending when at the ground, and in economic recession in general. This club can make £5m a year in straight profit.
I've suffered enough heartache following Leeds all my life. If a billionaire finances us to the extent that like city, we can take the premiership title from scum in the last kick of the season, I'll be ecstatic. I want to see quality football again at Elland road, top class players in the white of Leeds and I don't give a flying feck who pays for it or what it costs, once we don't end up bankrupt again. Probably main reason our crowds are so poor is the piss poor value for money being offered at the club. Most supporters are intelligent people and can figure out when they're being ripped off
The name of the club and it's prestige as a footballing entity is what will negate the soulless aspect you speak of. City were no way near as big as Leeds when they got taken over, neither we're Chelsea! If we get taken over we will be a totally different monster to contend with.
How can you equate a clown buying rangers for a pound, subsequently totally ruining them to what's happening at Leeds?
Any potential investor can be either good or terrible, and really terrible ones will bankrupt any club using Lord knows what kind of unkempt business acumen. I do not equate us in the manner you describe to Rangers; it does not matter exactly what someone does to bankrupt a club, it is the fact they bankrupt it that is the problem. We currently have a terrible owner who, as far as we know, is not bankrupting us but many of us feel his current plans may well do that quite soon. As for a new investor, the future is unknown - hopefully we will be run well with good intentions and someone who has the team and club and supporters at heart. That's all I am saying. What I am not saying is that we will definitely be bought by a great benefactor who will only do great things for LUFC and spend all his money on us (by the way, the new rules outlaw this). So, given the new rules, do not expect any big money Charlie coming in, and as the indications are tha tthe new investors (read owners) may not have the full readies, let's hope like hell that we are not being playerd like Portsmouth or end up in their or Rangers' position. In summary: there is NOTHING to suggest any new buyer will have money to burn on even getting us promoted, let alone a top 4 club. On the contrary, the implications are that they will rely on inherent growth by the club itself. And any buyer that is not strong enough to resist the demands or the bug, could end up bankrupting us.
Excellent arguments made by all!! The financial fair play rules mean Leeds are an even better proposition if a good squad is built up and things happen on the pitch. Our support will mean we have a higher percentage of revenue to spend, and will be more profitable than most clubs. I'd love to see the Youth Academy get serious investment so we can develop a good squad with say around 60% local talent, now that would be awesome.
You have a good point there I accept, however the fans want money pumped in, successful football teams require a massive investment that owners don't get back...though it will be interesting to see the effects of UEFA's new financial rules. We're making millions? I highly doubt that. Bates is no fool, he wants Leeds in the EPL and doesn't want to siphon away a few million rather than make an investment. If all he was interested in was making a few quid, why would he fire Grayson? Where did you get that figure from? Perhaps Leeds could make a nice profit but only if it didn't invest and then the profits from future years won't look so rosy... 5 million (less tax) isn't really much at all.
