Premier League side Southampton rejected an offer of £180M ($226.5M) from Lander Sports Development to buy the club, according to the LONDON TIMES. Negotiations with the Chinese property company are "continuing despite considerable irritation inside the club" at Lander's announcement on the Shenzhen stock exchange Thursday that an agreement had been reached in principle, but the two parties are "a long way apart in their valuation of the club." Southampton Owner Katharina Liebherr is understood to value the club at £270M ($339.8M) "so a sale is unlikely to be completed imminently." Moreover, it is unclear how much of Southampton Liebherr is willing to sell. In an open letter to the fans, the Swiss heiress referred to a "potential partnership" whereas Lander's aim is to buy the club or secure a controlling interest. Industry "experts" have valued Southampton at between £160M ($201.4M) and £220M ($276.9M), as "the club's sound financial footing and huge success in player trading is offset by a seemingly limited potential for significantly increasing its match-day and commercial revenue." In the club's most recently published accounts to June '15, Southampton recorded turnover of £113.7M and profits of £14.9M, down almost £15M from the previous year, "almost exclusively because of a reduction in the value of player sales" (LONDON TIMES, 1/27).
