08 May 2008

A Canadian group which has been linked with Sheffield Wednesday have ruled themselves out of the running for a Hillsborough takeover.
Top officials from Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment met the Owls, Southampton and Reading on a recent trip to England.

They also watched matches at Spurs and Chelsea and attended a football business convention.

It started a wave of speculation in England and Canada that Maple Leaf, who own Toronto FC, could be launching a bid for an English club. But the company, said from the outset that their trip was a fact-finding mission and it was premature to link them with an English takeover.

It is understood that they have now decided that English football is not for them.

More: Canadian no to Owls bid

08 May 2008

Wednesdayite have welcomed the club's official announcement about a search for a buyer. Chairman Darryl Keys sees it as way of possibly stimulating interest - though the consortia led by Geoff Sheard and Jon Sotnick remain in the hunt.

Keys revealed that he has been in touch again with both men this week.

"We welcome anything that is going to stimulate meaningful investment in the club," said Keys, who is on a business trip in America.

"I've been in contact with both consortia in the last few days and they were reasonably satisfied with their progress.

"If the club's statement stimulates the negotiations with the two consortia and a formal offer is made, or if it brings someone new to the table, then that can only be a good thing.

"We have to think about the club."

Keys said he had no reason to suggest that the Sheard and Sotnick groups would not firm up their proposals.

Sheard told The Star: "We are in the middle of a takeover bid for Sheffield Wednesday and, because I am bound by Takeover Panel rules, I cannot comment further."

More: Owls stir it up - fans hope club announcement will spark takeover

08 May 2008

After appointing financial services giants Deloitte Touche to "actively seek" a buyer a club statement from Wednesday read:

"The board continues to be open to dialogue with any bona fide offeror and to working to develop any acceptable proposal such that it can be presented to the company's shareholders for their consideration.

"While certain discussions are still ongoing, there can be no certainty that a formal offer to shareholders will be forthcoming.

"As a result, the board have now requested that its financial adviser, Deloitte & Touche LLP actively seek a buyer that shares the board's vision for the long-term success of the club."

The statement added: "There is no certainty that such a party will be found at this time.

"The company will keep shareholders informed as to progress with this process as appropriate."

More: Wednesday look for buyer


07 May 2008

Sheffield Wednesday today widened the search for a buyer of the club.
They told the Stock Exchange that "certain discussions" on a takeover are continuing but aren't certain to result in a bid.

So the Owls have appointed financial advisors Deloitte and Touche - one of the biggest consultancy firms in the world - to seek fresh investment.

Rival consortium leaders Geoff Sheard and Jon Sotnick have already been talking to the club.

Chief executive Kaven Walker said he hoped dialogue with potential investors would continue and the club would welcome any future offer.

"There is always the potential, however, that an offer will not be forthcoming and as result the board felt the time was right to open and make more transparent the process of seeking new investment," said Walker in a statement on the club's website.

"We are delighted to have secured our place in the Championship.

"Deloitte will now work with us to actively seek buyers, which we believe is the right strategy in order to help the club look up the league, not down."

Walker said that if a buyer was not found the club's future remained secure.

"We are seeking new investment purely to help build future success both on and off the pitch," he said. "We are under no time constraints to find an investor. Business at the club will continue as normal"

He said that he would be meeting manager Brian Laws this week to discuss the summer transfer window. "Today's news does not change the way we view the market," he stressed

"We are under no financial pressure to sell any player."

More: Owls step up bid for buyer

02 May 2008

Former chairman Dave Allen insists that no deal has been struck with the Geoff Sheard consortium.

Wednesday have been visited by a delegation of high-powered sporting entrepreneurs from Toronto whose designs on buying an English club could widen the race for power.

The company - which owns top ice hockey, basketball and football franchises across the Atlantic - dispatched its leading executives to Hillsborough within the last month.

Sheard remains in pole position but the Owls - who are exercising caution after February's false dawn - have the safety net of other interest and are ready to entertain it.

Sources close to Hillsborough have confirmed a meeting took place with MLSE which was hosted by chief executive Kaven Walker.
The delegation, which included chief financial officer Ian Clarke, kept their intentions close to their chest. But the word from Hillsborough is that Wednesday would see an organisation of MLSE's stature - worth nearly two billion dollars - as a preferred bidder if an interest was pursued.

The club are committed to acting on concrete approaches but will keep their options open. Although MLSE appear not to be as wealthy as Sheard's backers have been said to be - rumours of Russian, as well as European, involvement are still circulating - the source of the money would be out in the open.

That said, Sheard will have a clear edge if and when the exact identity of his financiers can be revealed and the considerable obstacle of the shares can be resolved.

Allen is understood to have spoken out to show that he and the club - who can't comment under takeover rules - are as keen as supporters to do a deal, and to correct any suspicions that they are blocking it.


More: Takeover turmoil


01 May 2008

Sheffield Wednesday this afternoon appeared to cast doubt on the Geoff Sheard takeover by announcing they had not yet received a "sufficiently clear or developed" proposal from any party.

It follows claims from sources close to the Sheard camp yesterday that a deal for the shares held by Dave Allen, Keith Addy and Geoff Hulley had been agreed.

The Owls today made a statement to the Stock Exchange and published it on their website.

It is the club's first official comment on the saga since they told the City in February that they had received interest that may or may not lead to a takeover.

Today the Owls also made it clear that they remain open to offers.
Their statement says: "The board of Sheffield Wednesday announced on February 29 that it had received an indicative non-binding expression of interest which may or may not lead to an offer being made for some or all of the shares in the company.

"The board notes recent press comment relating to the imminence of an offer for Sheffield Wednesday and to certain shareholders in the company having agreed to sell their shares to Mr Geoff Sheard, one of the parties referred to in the recent press as a potential offeror for the company.

"The board wishes to confirm that it has not at this time received any offer proposal from any party that is sufficiently clear or developed with regard to, inter alia, terms, source of finance, timetable or the process by which any offer for the company is to be implemented.

"The board continues to be open to dialogue with any bone fide offeror and to working to develop any acceptable proposal such that it can be presented to the company's shareholders for their consideration.
However, the board does not currently have the required evidence to suggest that the posting of any offer document to shareholders is imminent.

"The board also wishes to confirm that none of the company's directors including Mr Geoff Hulley, has entered into any arrangement with any party regarding the sale of their own respective shareholdings in Sheffield Wednesday.

"Further, the board has received written confirmations from Mr David Allen, former chairman of the company and Mr Keith Addy, a former director of the company that they too have not entered into any such arrangements at this time.

"The board will keep shareholders informed of any further material developments."

Two consortia are known to be aiming to take over the Owls: one led by Sheard, a Lancashire businessman, and another fronted by Jon Sotnik, former chief executive of Darlington.

More: No Sheard bid, says board

30 April 2008

Progress is being made in the takeover of Sheffield Wednesday by businessman Geoff Sheard.

A bid of around £5m by Sheard to buy the shares held by Dave Allen, Geoff Hulley and Keith Addy is believed to have been accepted.

A timescale for a takeover is unknown - with the Owls currently focusing on Sunday's match against Norwich and ensuring Championship safety.

But Sheard appears to be ahead of former Darlington and Boston chief Jon Sotnick in the £40m takeover battle.

Sheard has appointed the country's fifth biggest firm of accountants, Grant Thornton, who handled a takeover at West Brom, to administer the purchase of shares. If that goes through then Sheard's full takeover will be on course.


26 April 2008

Jon Sotnick's consortium are "extremely close" to making a bid for the Owls, says the former Darlington chief executive.
Sotnick says that he is working with UK investors who have substantial funds.

He sees himself as potentially an executive chairman of the Owls.

Money - thought to be up to £50m - is currently lodged offshore, and a bid to Hillsborough is planned when the funds have been switched to a British or European bank, said Sotnick.

"My understanding is that we are extremely close to making the offer, but I am not willing to take an offer to the board until we can show that the funds are onshore."

Sotnick said he has "three or four" backers and they are "substantial individuals."

He also said: "I would not have entertained starting a consortium unless the consortium could satisfy me that it will - A. Solve the club's financial crisis and alleviate the debt, and B: Put enough money into the pot for transfers."

Sotnick is also targeting promotion - "from whatever league we are in" - and says that his group's bid is not dependent on Wednesday staying in the Championship.

"What interests me in the history, heritage and size of the club, and the fan base," he added.

"I know what I am doing. I have contacts in the League. I did a good job at other clubs, and Wednesday would be my biggest challenge.

"I want the team to be successful and the fans to enjoy that success.
"I want see Hillsborough as a stadium that is back at the forefront of British football, and for fans to enjoy the facilities."

Sotnick's consortium are rivalling a group led by Lancashire businessman Geoff Sheard.

More: Owls takeover bid 'extremely close'

25 April 2008

Former Darlington chief executive and Boston United chairman Jon Sotnick is understood to be the man rivalling Geoff Sheard in the battle for control of Sheffield Wednesday.

Sheard is well known as the front man of a consortium trying to take over the club.

The identity of a second, rival group putting together a multi-million pound package has been a mystery - until now.

Sotnick moved into Boston in 2004 and left two years later after what the then team manager Steve Evans called a "magnificent job." He switched to Darlington where he worked under millionaire owner George Houghton and left last December.

As with the Sheard group, the exact identity of his backers and extent of funding has yet to emerge - though it has been reported that Sheard is offering £40m.

The takeover saga has been going on for months and it is not yet clear why the affair has been so protracted, with a deal yet to be struck between any consortium and Wednesday's four main shareholders: Wednesdayite, Dave Allen, Geoff Hulley and Keith Addy.

Wednesdayite, who have yet to receive an offer for their 10 per cent stake, have confirmed that they and the Shareholders Association met Sheard at a Leeds hotel on Monday.

Chairman Darryl Keys has spoken within the last 24 hours to Sheard and to the rival consortium.

Though not commenting on the identity of the second bidder, Keys said: "Geoff Sheard seemed relaxed and happy. The other party have told me they are making good progress. Because of what I have been told, I am convinced that ultimately some sort of deal can be done."

He feels that the issue may have been complex, partly because of the spread of the Wednesday shares.

Keys added: "I think everybody wants to see investment in the club. All we can do is to is to encourage any parties who are interested.
"I think this all has to come to head fairly soon, because discussions have been taking place for some time."

The club and any bidders have yet to comment on the takeover as they are restricted by Stock Exchange rules.

23 April 2008

Leading officials of fan groups Wednesdayite and the Shareholders Association, and consortium front man Geoff Sheard are understood to have met at a Leeds hotel this week - which is seen another step in the attempted takeover of the Owls by the Sheard group.

More: Owls takeover latest


18 April 2008

There remains a huge divergence between the noises coming out of Hillsborough and the word from the Geoff Sheard group.

In such circumstances - where neither party can speak openly - it's not copping out to say that the truth is impossible to pin down. And the same applies to the rival London-based consortium which appears to be gaining ground.

It's worth noting that it was the same club sources who gave the Sheard deal the thumbs-up at the outset - and was the basis of a Telegraph story proclaiming it. What has changed? The untimely rise in season ticket prices for next season, understandably controversial, might suggest the club are digging in for another difficult year.
Certainly, the signals being sent out by the two parties can't both be right. It's a question of who people believe.

More: Sheffield Wednesday boss looks for boost from walking wounded

10 April 2008

Sources close to Hillsborough have confirmed that a formal offer has yet to be received from the Geoff Sheard group who had at one stage convinced the club a takeover was imminent.
Nor, it seems, is an acceptable bid anticipated.

The reason for the delay is unclear but it has intensified doubts that the deal will happen, whether or not Wednesday stay in the Championship.

It is understood that the London-based group who have been interested in the club are emerging as a more viable option, though this potential bid remains at the formative stage.

More: Still no formal offer for Wednesday takeover

04 April 2008

No news could be good news on the takeover front. At least it is keeping attention fully focused where it should be right now - on the field.

More: We'll win it for the boss, says upbeat Grant


20 March 2008

Sheffield Wednesday are understood to have had no contact with takeover middle-man Geoff Sheard for over a month.

This has sparked fears within Hillsborough that the deal could be dumped amid conflicting versions of a delay that has left the ball in Sheard's court.

Reports believed to have emanated from the Lancashire businessman have referred to an unexplained "hitch" rather than a total breakdown. Fan group Wednesdayite's optimism does not seem to be shared by the club at this stage, as it was a month ago. But, though the Owls won't want to be left dangling, while ever there is hope of a resolution Wednesday won't do anything to jeopardise the earlier negotiations.

One theory is that the timetable for the Russian-backed venture has shifted to the end of the season. If so, the need to stay in the Championship becomes even more pressing.

More: No word on Sheffield Wednesday takeover

18 March 2008

Sheffield Wednesday appear to be inching closer to a takeover deal - with hopes rising that it could be clinched within the next few weeks.

There has been no sign of a firm offer for shares yet, almost three weeks since the Owls confirmed interest, in a statement to the Stock Exchange. But Sheard has confirmed to Darryl Keys, chairman of fan group Wednesdayite, that the takeover bid is on track.

Wednesdayite were promised three weeks ago that an offer for their 10 per cent stake in the club was imminent. The Sheard group are also likely to have been in close contact with the club.

It is understood that the consortium could make offers within the next week for the shares of the Owls directors, including the 10 per cent stake held by Geoff Hulley, and for the 20 per cent shared by former directors Dave Allen and Keith Addy..

Once 30 per cent was secured, this would effectively give a buyer control of the club and, under City rules, trigger a bid for all the other shares, including Wednesdayite's stake.

Wednesdayite are set to ballot their members to change the group's rule that says shares cannot be sold. Then the group would hold a second ballot on any definite offer.

More: Owls takeover 'still on track'

07 March 2008

Sheffield Wednesday's takeover trail may have cooled and is currently shrouded in confusion - but one factor that remains constant is the link with Russian billionaire Vladimir Yevtushenkov.
The Telegraph was first to float the name of a mystery backer and a week later the connection with the Moscow-based telecommunications tycoon has not been severed.

A £60m deal apparently backed by Yevtushenkov and brokered by Lancashire businessman Geoff Sheard seemed on the brink of completion last Friday when Wednesday informed the stock exchange of the approach and the possibility of a bid.

Now there is a lull in the proceedings and the Telegraph understands that no formal offer has been received.

More: Russian tycoon still in the frame

29 February 2008

Wednesday today officially told the London Stock Exchange that they have had an approach that may lead to a takeover.
The statement says: "The board of Sheffield Wednesday has received an indicative non-binding expression of interest which may or may not lead to an offer being made for some or all of the shares in the company.
"A further announcement will be made when appropriate."

It also confirms that a definite offer has not been received.
A spokeman for the Stock Exchange said: "Companies have to apply the Takeover Panel rules on disclosure; they have to issue information to the market so that shareholders have the information they need."

More: Owls inform stock exchange of takeover approach

28 February 2008

A RUSSIAN billionaire is understood to be at the centre of the Sheffield Wednesday takeover mystery.

Wednesday are being promised colossal funding of up to £250m as the club move to close a revolutionising deal in the Hillsborough ownership race.

Overseas backers leading the frontrunning bid are believed to be from Russia. They are ready to transform Wednesday's profile and prospects under the terms of a transaction that was nearing completion this week. Another group, believed to be London-based, are pursuing a rival enterprise.

Identities have yet to emerge but the Telegraph believes that one Russian billionaire - and possibly two - could be financing the first venture.

More: Owls promised colossal funding

26 February 2008

THE man fronting an attempted takeover of Sheffield Wednesday has told fan group Wednesdayite that everything is going to plan.

Wednesdayite chairman Darryl Keys has revealed that he has met Geoff Sheard once and spoken to him many times on the phone.

"I have been told in no uncertain terms that everything is going to plan," said Keys, awaiting a formal offer from Sheard's consortium for Wednesdayite's 10 per cent in the club.

More: Owls takeover 'on course', says fans group

15 February 2008

Former Sheffield Wednesday suitor Paul Gregg's apparent advance on Southampton has added a new - and old - ingredient to the Hillsborough takeover teaser.

The ex-Everton director was pressing a bid for control of the Owls when former chairman Dave Allen revealed a solicitor's letter in which Gregg expressed unease about Wednesdayite's 10% shareholding.

Agreement from two former directors - Allen and Keith Addy - plus fellow 10% stakeholder Geoff Hulley, and the fan group, will all be required when the identity of bidders emerges. Gregg, I understand, has found a more viable route into Southampton and negotiations are verging on a deal.

More: Gregg adds to Owls takeover teaser


11 January 2008

Hillsborough insiders insist Sheffield Wednesday are likely to be in new hands by the end of the month as manager Brian Laws battles to keep body and soul together on the football side of the business.

More: Laws fights on as takeover looms