It has been a challenging tenure for Farhad Moshiri as the majority owner of Everton Football Club. During his spell at Goodison Park, Everton have dealt with their fair share of Financial Fair Play concerns and poor results in the Premier League. In back-to-back seasons, The Toffees have finished just mere points off a relegation spot, and in all likelihood, they will be back in the scrap to stay up again this season.
Everton fans will be entering into a bit of a monkey paw’s curl as they look to be getting their wish of Farhad Moshiri leaving the club. What prompts the “well, here’s the catch” scenario for Everton is that they are reportedly close to being bought by 777 partners, at least according to the business site Bloomberg. 777 Partners is an American investment company that holds shares in a significant amount of football clubs. The likes of Red Star FC, Standard Liege, Sevilla, Vasco da Gama, Genoa and Hertha BSC.
Football fans who follow the business side of the sport will know that a few of these clubs have dealt with financial issues since the takeover of 777 Partners. The company has also seen many of their clubs get relegated under their ownership, including Hertha, Genoa and Vasco de Gama. In addition to investing in football, the company also holds shares in Canadian airline Flair and British Basketball side London Lions.
With such a wide spectrum of responsibilities, it is hard to believe Everton and their fans will get the dedication and effort they deserve from their new owners. In fact, as the Telegraph has covered, 777 Partners has been under fire for alleged illegal loans and not paying off loans in the United States. The Telegraph states that the Premier League will surely look into the matters should a purchase go through, as the league has introduced new ‘tests’ to background check potential directors.
Fans of Standard Liege and Red Star FC, in particular, have heavily protested the ownership of 777 Partners since their takeovers, which will be a worrying sign for Everton supporters. If this takeover does happen, it will be an interesting situation to watch in the next few years as a passionate supporter base deals with American owners who do not have the best interests of the club at heart.