Reports from a number of major media outlets say that the group fronted by AS Roma owner Dan Friedkin has agreed a deal in principle with Farhad Moshiri in negotiations to sell his majority stake in Everton FC.
Sky News, The Athletic, The Telegraph and BBC Sport are claiming that the Anglo-Iranian is set to grant the Texas-based Friedkin Group exclusivity in negotiations for his 94.1% holding in the Club, with Paul Joyce of The Times, reporting that that will occur once £200m is made available to cover the MSP Sports Capital loan and provide short-term operational funds.
Friedkin, 59, with an estimated net worth of around $6bn (£4.9bn), is the president of the Italian Serie A club, following an acquisition by the Friedkin Group (which includes his son, Ryan, and has assets of around £12bn) in 2020 totalling $700 million, and French fourth-tier outfit AS Cannes, and the pathway is now open for him to complete a deal for Everton.
According to the BBC’s Shamoon Hafez, Friedkin’s is an all-equity offer but he is “willing to be flexible on structure and [size of his] stake”. He “has the projected, long-term finances to safeguard the future of Everton and the new stadium”.
Under Friedkin’s ownership, Roma, a club the group regarded as a sleeping giant, won the Europa Conference League in 2022 under the guidance of manager Jose Mourinho and were Europa League finalists the following year. Mourinho was later sacked and replaced by Daniele De Rossi.
The Friedkin Group’s emergence as the front-runners to buy the Blues comes as something of a surprise given that reports in Italy only a few days ago claimed that Friedkin was only interested in a 45%, non-controlling stake in the Club,
Meanwhile, doubt had been cast on whether they would be put off by the possibility that Uefa might soon crack down on clubs from the same stable competing in the same European competitions.
Friedkin, a San Diego-born film producer — among his credits was last year’s Oscar-nominated feature, Flowers of the Killer Moon — conservationist, pilot and the heir to Gulf States Toyota, reportedly also faced a number of competing bids, not least from Evertonians Andy Bell and George Downing; MSP Sports Capital; a consortium led by London-based businessman and lawyer Vatche Manoukian; 777 Partners’ backers A-CAP; and, most recently, Vici Private Finance.
Manoukian’s group followed John Textor in officially pulling out of the running in a statement released on Friday evening and acknowledged the exclusivity about to be granted to Friedkin:
“Everton fans deserve to be competing for trophies once again and we hope this deal delivers success for the club on and off the pitch. I want to thank our world-class investors for their support and we are excited to turn our focus to new opportunities to take great clubs to the next level.”
Though Mourinho complained about Friedkin’s supposed lack of football knowledge following his “unfair” dismissal — “I was ‘eliminated’ by someone who knows little about football,” he said — Moshiri’s decision to go with Friedkin’s bid has been endorsed by financial commentator and ToffeeWeb contributor, Paul The Esk who posted to X (formerly Twitter):
“Moshiri’s choice of new owner (Friedkin) is a good choice. Professional, well resourced, know football, ambitious and sets high standards.
“They’ve got a plan and will stick to it. Importantly it brings an end to the chaos of the last eight years. It brings new finance, it brings professional management. We’ve a lot to turn around and it will take time, but these guys, are good, well respected throughout the game.
“They will provide stability, a platform for us to regain our competitiveness.”
Should the Friedkin Group opt to move forward with the takeover having done its due diligence, their ownership of Everton would still require approval from the Premier League, Football Association, and Financial Conduct Authority.