Keith Wyness drops Aston Villa takeover reveal as documents become public
Aston Villa’s former chief Keith Wyness has insisted there is no imminent takeover threat at the club despite Atairos Partners increasing their stake.
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, the 66-year-old – who served as CEO at Villa Park between 2016 and 2018 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – claimed it is a “happy ship” behind the scenes and there are “no long-term issues”.
Companies House submission documents released last month (8 October) confirmed Villa’s ownership have invested a further £50million into the club in the form of new shares.
The club are owned by V Sports, a holding company controlled by Wes Edens, Nassef Sawiris and Atairos Partners – a private equity firm.
Atairos have increased their stake and now own around 31% of the company – almost as much as Sawiris and Edens, who own almost 70% combined.
Villa are playing Champions League football this term after achieving an impressive fourth-place finish last term.
Aston Villa not set for Atairos takeover, says Wyness
Wyness told Football Insider‘s Insider Track podcast: “This is nowhere near a takeover situation.
“This is a friendly situation between Sawiris, Edens and Atairos.
“They’re all at around a third of the ownership, but Sawiris and Edens still have control.
“They’ve been able to bring in a good partner with deep pockets, which has helped repay that initial investment.
“But as I understand it, there are no ambitions for a future takeover.
“There’s no friction between the owners, it’s a happy ship at Aston Villa right now.
“Long may it sail on. There’s no long-term issues there.”
In other news, Jhon Duran could quit Villa for “huge fee”.
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