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EPL side West Bromwich Albion "agreed to sell the club to Chinese investment group" Yunyi Guokai (Shanghai) Sports Development Ltd., according to Nick Mashiter of the London INDEPENDENT. The group will buy Albion, "subject to approval of the deal by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Premier League." No price has been announced but former Chair Jeremy Peace "put the club on the market over a year ago and was initially looking" for over £150M ($196M). Chinese entrepreneur Guochuan Lai "holds a controlling stake in the investment group and will become the Premier League club's new owner." He said, "My immediate priorities will be to maintain the club's stable structure, respecting its well-run nature and its heritage. I have no intention of changing the club's ethos. I am proud that I will be the first mainland-Chinese owner of the Premier League club." Former Owner Peace has "also resigned as chairman with immediate effect" and will be replaced by ex-Blackburn Chair and CEO John Williams. Peace, who held an 88% stake in the Baggies, will "help advise during a transition period" (
INDEPENDENT, 8/5). In London, Khan, Clover & Fanjing reported West Brom said that the deal would "usher in an exciting new phase of the club's development." It added that Lai, who will remain based in China, "is a passionate football fan and long-term investor" who was "drawn to West Bromwich Albion by its rich history, community focus and dedicated fan base." Lai made most of his fortune from horticulture group Palm, which he described as "the IBM of landscape gardening" in an '11 press interview (
FINANCIAL TIMES, 8/5). The BBC reported Williams said that his "immediate focus is on our activity in the transfer window" a day after the club pulled out of a move for West Ham striker Diafra Sakho. He said, "(Manager) Tony Pulis and (Technical Dir) Nick Hammond have told the board we are two or three players short." West Brom "came close to being sold to a Chinese consortium last summer before Peace, who owned 88% of the club, broke off negotiations" (
BBC, 8/6).
