With British Sailing for two years before joining Saints in April 2019. Jisheng Gao has finally sealed his investment in Premier League outfit Southampton. While Saints owner Katharina Liebherr has described this new investment as a partnership, the reality is that the Gao family - father Jisheng and daughter Nelly - are now 80% majority owners. Promoted to current role in December 2019 and also Executive Director for Girls and Women. "Together, we have the passion and motivation to build on Southampton's excellent progress in recent years as we look forward to an exciting next chapter for the club.". VIDEO: Southampton FC owner Katharina Liebherr and chairman Ralph Krueger officially open the Markus Liebherr Pavilion, and pay tribute to its late benefactor - http://youtu.be/lTxDK-mQaww #TheNextChapter youtube.com Owner and chairman pay tribute to Markus Liebherr Today we have found the perfect solution for our club. Industry experts have valued Southampton FC between 160m and 220m and the club's annual turnover is set to hit 105m this season. That combination is very hard to find, and we are thrilled to have reached an agreement that secures our short and long-term future. They show that the club made a 12m loss in 2011-12, up from 11m the year before. The takeover marks the end of the reign of Gao Jisheng, after almost four and a half years as the majority shareholder. Liebherr, whose father Markus bought the club in 2009 but died a year later, installed herself as director following the departure of chairman Nicola Cortese in January 2014. For other inquiries, Contact Us. Worked for the FA for six years after that, as Head of Coaching and Player Development. His holding company, DMWSL 613 Limited, bought English Football League side Southampton in July 2009, which took the club out of administration. Also his siblings Hubert, Willi and Isolde held shares of the company. Most recently, Kraft spent 10 years at KKR where he was a Partner and head of the Technology and Telecoms team in Europe, playing leading roles in investments including TDC, Versatel, Visma and United Group. We use cookies to optimise website functionality and give you the best possible experience. Dragan Solak, the businessman behind cable-TV operator United Group, has bought Southampton from Gao Jisheng; Sport Republic acquire 80 per cent controlling stake as Katharina Liebherr. Sport Republic gives us the power to improve our operations at every level, helping us to reach for the success our staff work so hard for, and our fans crave. It has a great management team, excellent talent development, talented teams playing attractive football and a dedicated fan base. Watch the manager speak ahead of Wednesday's cup clash. We use cookies to optimise website functionality and give you the best possible experience. She has done this to keep the club moving forward, albeit I suspect in a measured way, not with a sudden splashing of cash. "Please understand that I can only make limited comments regarding this process but I can assure you that any steps we do take will be in the best interests of the club. All Rights Reserved. Explains in this video how the department has changed during his time at the club. outhampton fans desperately scouring the internet for information on Katharina Liebherr, the little-known figure who is now owner and chair of their club after the sudden departure of Nicola Cortese, will be hoping that the story of a small printing company in Bern does not prove prophetic. Extended Highlights: Chelsea 0-1 Saints . Has extensive experience in rugby league, having worked for Bradford Bull and Leeds Rhinos. After Hans Liebherr died in 1993, his son Markus handed most of his shares to his brothers and sisters and founded Mali Holdings in 2000. I am very pleased to be able help the club by stepping up to the CEOs job on an interim basis. During his previous time as Academy Manager, from 2006 to 2013, they had produced the likes of Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott and Luke Shaw. However, the company was not satisfied with the tried-and-tested transmissions, so the project was initially put on hold.[8][9]. Ms Liebherr has honoured her father's wishes for the club so far in the way she has handled the club. Sport Republic are experienced investors, but also experienced within the world of elite professional sports. From 2015-2021 he has overseen Brentford FCs football department as a Co-Director of Football, culminating in winning promotion to the Premier League for the first time in 74 years in May 2020. mens black shirt Ab 1889 hinter sich lassen deren Heimstadion The Dell". 8h Alex Kirkland. We were attracted to Southampton because it is already a well-run club that follows a clearly defined strategy. Whilst Southampton is Sport Republics first acquisition, we expect more investments to follow over the coming years. She said both parties have "full trust" in the Premier League club's chairman Ralph Krueger and his management team and support plans to follow the "Southampton way". Saints fan here - lots of jealous comments. Although she says she has built "a close relationship" with the Gaos, she'll soon learn that minority "partners" have little or no say. And yet while Cortese had become used to running the club as if it were his own, totting up the large investment made by the Liebherrs in Southampton since 2009, it is perhaps not unreasonable for Katharina to insist on having more of a say. Ankersen was an integral part of Brentfords impressive rise to the Premier League, implementing a data-driven recruitment strategy. Worked for the FA for six years after that, as Head of Coaching and Player Development. The first league game of the new era will, neatly, be against Brentford next Tuesday. For a while it continued wandering around without a sense of direction, then it bled to death.". overcame a ten-point deduction for going into administration to mount a late challenge for the play-offs, missing out by seven points. For latest updates, follow us on Twitter at @ground_guru. Which teams are in which group?Group AEngland, Austria, Norway, Northern IrelandGroup BGermany, Denmark, Spain, FinlandGroup CNetherlands, Sweden, Russia, SwitzerlandGroup DFrance, Italy, Belgium, Iceland. Before that, he was a senior manager at the accounting firm Deloitte. Southampton fans desperately scouring the internet for information on Katharina Liebherr, the little-known figure who is now owner and chair of their club after the sudden departure of Nicola Cortese, will be hoping that the story of a small printing company in Bern does not prove prophetic. The Mali group contains five independent businesses, all belonging to the MALI Markus Liebherr International group whose head offices are in Fribourg, Switzerland. Southampton's current owner Katharina Liebherr will retain 20 per cent of the club. Sport Republic is being built to provide a network of people, clubs, and technology that allows the clubs within it to grow every day and gain the advantages you need to be successful. Talks with Chinese company Lander Sports Development are ongoing, but contrary to news on Thursday, there has been no fee agreed for the sale of the club. However, the way they were developed after that was completely different, as former Brighton Academy Manager John Morling tells TGG. In her letter, Liebherr makes clear that she IS looking for a cash injection into the club, that has had its own fair share of financial problems over the years. Southampton executive chairman Nicola Cortese Chairman Nicola Cortese could leave Southampton over divisions with the club's owner, Katharina Liebherr. He said: My partners and I have experience in long-term investments in the sports and entertainment industry and Sport Republic has been founded to combine this expertise and deliver something unique to the market. Copa del Rey semifinal: Barcelona vs. Real Madrid preview, key players, prediction. The Saints are enjoying their most successful Premier League season and are on course to secure European football, despite having sold the likes of Adam Lallana, Calum Chambers, Luke Shaw, Rickie Lambert and Dejan Lovren. Liebherr, her advisers, Semmens and the managing director, Toby Steele, oversaw the takeover process. Statement from Mr Jisheng Gao Copyright 2023 Southampton Football Club. Watch the manager speak ahead of Wednesday's cup clash. I am pleased to confirm that talks to bring in a new partner to our club have been concluded. MALI Spezialfahrzeuge GmbH in Schnebeck filed for insolvency in 2012. Together, we have the passion and motivation to build on Southamptons excellent progress in recent years as we look forward to an exciting next chapter for the club. No English owners, no English managers and no English players. Sport Republic is a London-based investment firm in the sports and entertainment industry. I hope you enjoy what will be a brilliant day for our club and look forward to a successful future together. Our ambition is to build a portfolio of high-influence stakes in football clubs and other sporting assets across the world. The Chinese businessman has been keen to sell for the past 18 months, only for interested parties to withdraw. Updates from Tuesday, Jan. 21. The news comes as annual results for the 2013-14 period show further loans totalling 29.1m from Liebherr. outhampton have confirmed that the club has entered into partnership with Chinese businessman Jisheng Gao and his family who have bought 80% stake in the club. Saints owner Katharina Liebherr confirmed the deal had been completed in a statement released to Southampton . They have purchased the shareholding of the club held by Mr Gao and will work in partnership with Katharina Liebherr who retains her minority shareholding. cookie settings, Season Tickets and Match Tickets available, Get supporter benefits including priority access on tickets, Apply for your child to be a Saints awayday mascot, Saints appoint Destination Sport Travel as Official Business Travel Supplier, Support Sells and the squad as they arrive at St Mary's. Read about our approach to external linking. His last role there was as Director of Performance Solutions. ", A third company is the German-based BSG Bodensee Steuergerte its primary business being the research, design, manufacturing and sales of electronic control units for common rail injection and transmissions. "It really demonstrates her commitment to the club to a certain extent," Southampton chief executive Gareth Rogers told BBC Radio Solent. Since when has having 80% of your business bought by someone been "entering into a partnership"? Katharina Liebherr and Gao Jisheng of Southampton FC have been excluded from the list because Liebherr sold 80% of her shares in the club to Jisheng in 2017, and the Chinese businessman's. The accounting firm Deloitte into a partnership '' players, prediction four and a half years as majority! English players play-offs, missing out by seven points year before hard to,! The Premier League outfit Southampton to bring in a statement released to Southampton because it is already a club! 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