Revealed: Local group approach Huddersfield Town about administration-dodging takeover
A local group has approached the owners of Huddersfield Town with a view to opening discussions about a potential takeover, Football Insider has learned.
Huddersfield-based business investment company DA Capital have made contact with the leadership, who they believe can oversee a clean sale of the club.
Significantly, that would see a new ownership group take responsibility for the club’s debts, negating the risk of a points deduction that would all but relegate the Terriers to League One.
Huddersfield’s current owners – Dean Hoyle and Phil Hodgkinson – have been considering administration, which would come with a 12-point penalty this season if actioned before Thursday (23 March).
If the West Yorkshire club call in the administrators after that date, they would be docked points next season instead.
It is understood that two other groups are also exploring the possibility of a takeover.
It has been reported elsewhere that Rene Neelissen, owner of Dutch side AZ Alkmaar, and an unnamed American investor are the parties interested in taking control.
DA Capital characterise themselves as “turnaround specialists” and say that a takeover without administration “is the best outcome for the club and everyone with its interests at heart.”
Huddersfield Town, who are under new management in Neil Warnock, are 22nd in the Championship, three points from safety.
Huddersfield have actively explored pre-pack administration, which would see the club enter administration momentarily before a takeover deal, which would be at a pre-agreed price with the administrators, is signed off.
In this scenario, the new owners would inherit only Huddersfield’s assets and not their considerable debts, while the club’s creditors would be paid a dividend from the sale.
A clean sale of the club, by contrast, would see a new majority investor swerve a points deduction but take ownership of the club’s liabilities as well as its assets.
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