Four Parties Offer to Acquire Everton and Put an end to Farhad Moshiri’s Reign as Owner.

Farhad Moshiri’s dismal ownership of Everton takes a bizarre turn with reports that the eccentric businessman is in discussions to sell the club to Donald Trump and Steve Bannon’s close friends.

Moshiri and his backer Alisher Usmanov are considering cutting their losses at Goodison Park after getting offers to sell their interest from FOUR separate parties, according to The Mirror. However, the consortium led by controversial former Manchester United and Chelsea CEO Peter Kenyon, who recently founded a firm that specializes in football club acquisitions, has made the greatest headway.

Kenyon was part of an unsuccessful effort to acquire Newcastle, and now he’s leading a group that includes Maciek Kaminski, an American real estate magnate, and John Thornton, a gold mining millionaire.
Thornton has significant links to former President Donald Trump’s administration and functioned as Trump’s envoy in trade discussions with China, where he has substantial business ties, for which he has been chastised in his home country.

He is also a former president of Goldman Sachs, an American financial bank, and has strong ties to the controversial Bannon, who also worked for the firm.

There have reportedly been multiple discussions between Kenyon’s consortium and Moshiri, with further meetings planned to discuss a potential transaction. However, Everton’s price, following a catastrophic six years under Moshiri that saw them flirt perilously with relegation this season, might be a major stumbling block to any agreement with any of the four bidders…with a total value of more than £1 billion anticipated.
Moshiri’s total investment in the Merseyside club since acquiring a controlling stake in the club in 2016 is now close to £600 million, following a series of cash injections into the club via loan conversions. After initially purchasing 49% of the club’s shares, his interest has grown to 94 percent, and he would need to invest at least £600 million to break even on his overall investment.

But that is before the majority of money for a new stadium has been acquired, with the overall cost of the project currently estimated to be in excess of £500 million with the majority of that cash still to be secured.
That would put the club’s price tag at above £1 billion, which would be too expensive for a team in Everton’s position.

Moshiri has privately told the club’s board that he does not want to sell, but with Usmanov, his business partner and main sponsor, sanctioned by the UK, EU, and US authorities for his close links to Russian President Vladimir Putin, they may be obliged to accept bids.

The latest links with such divisive potential owners are just the latest in a long line of bizarre episodes during Moshiri’s reign, which has seen the British-Iranian businessman, who was Usmanov’s former accountant, spend more than £500 million on largely disastrous transfer dealings since his arrival at Goodison Park.