Debt-laden Leeds United has been taken over by a consortium of local businessmen, saving one of English soccer's most famous clubs from financial meltdown.
The consortium had been negotiating for several weeks with the northern English side, which is also threatened with relegation from the premier league. A consortium member said it had raised over £20m sterling to fund what the club said was an eight-figure deal.
The consortium, Adulant Force Ltd, now owns the club's Elland Road ground and its training grounds. Solicitor Gerald Krasner, spokesman for the consortium, has been appointed as the new chairman of Leeds United.
Earlier, the Leeds group said financial administrators had been appointed to two companies, but not the soccer club. Shareholders in Leeds United Plc will receive no money.
'Following an extensive period of marketing the group for sale and negotiating with key creditors and potential acquirers, it became clear that there were no parties considering an investment into the group which would have resulted in the survival of Leeds United Plc,' a company statement said.
Leeds, which dominated English soccer in the late 1960s and early 1970s, has cumulated debts of over £80m. The deal has been accepted by the group's creditors and ends months of uncertainty over Leeds' future. The group reported a financial loss of almost £50m in the year to June 2003.
Its problems date back to a player spending spree under former chairman Peter Ridsdale and ex-coach David O'Leary, their confidence buoyed by Leeds' progress to the Champions League semi-finals in 2001.
This burst of success did not last and Leeds was forced to cut back on its wage bill as it plummeted down the table. The club is bottom of the league with 22 points from 28 games.
