Kieran Maguire: Tottenham could be in trouble as Joe Lewis probe intensifies
Problems could arise at Tottenham if Joe Lewis is judged to still be in control of the club following his charges.
That is the opinion of finance expert, Kieran Maguire, who spoke exclusively to Football Insider about how Lewis’ charges could affect the North London club.
As reported by The Athletic, former Tottenham owner Lewis has been charged with insider trading by American authorities.
The 86-year-old founded Enic Sports Inc, which owns a majority share in Tottenham following their takeover of the club in 1991.
Lewis is set to go to court over the charges after travelling to the United States to respond to the allegations last week.
The charges include 13 counts of securities fraud and three counts of conspiracy, all of which could result in a prison sentence.
Maguire believes Tottenham should be safe from issues unless Lewis is deemed to still be in control of the club despite transferring his shares last year.
“The main issue with the Joe Lewis insider trading story is that Spurs, on the face of it, won’t have a problem,” Maguire told Football Insider’s Sean Fisher.
“This is because Joe Lewis effectively transferred his shares to a trust.
“However, if the authorities see this as a way of trying to distance himself from the club but he does have effective control, then it could open a can of worms.
“We will have to wait and see what the American authorities do and how his allegations progress, but he is innocent until proven otherwise.
“If it is deemed that he has shadow control over the club, it could make things very difficult.“
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