Sources: Southampton chiefs offered two Italian deals, full takeover possible
Southampton parent company Sport Republic have been offered the chance to buy stakes in two Italian football clubs, sources have told Football Insider.
Sport Republic were recently approached by a third party who informed the group that two clubs playing in the Italian third tier are seeking investment.
An Italian football finance agent who specialises in mergers and acquisitions told Football Insider that one club was available for a full takeover while the other was seeking significant minority investment.
It is not known whether Sport Republic have chosen to further explore the proposals.
Executives from the investment firm immediately outlined plans to construct a multi-club empire after their acquisition of Southampton in January.
The group, which is headquartered in London and backed by Serbian billionaire Dragan Solak, has since bought 70 per cent of Turkish second-division side Goztepe.
Southampton director of football Ramus Ankersen has identified talent development and knowledge sharing as two factors central to Sport Republic’s multi-club ambitions.
The post-Brexit points system introduced by the FA has reduced the Premier League’s recruitment pool, with several clubs now exploring multi-club networks to circumvent the regulations.
Serie C clubs are classified as Band 6 in the FA’s points-based system, the lowest rung on the ladder.
On face value, that makes the merits of Southampton owning a club in the division as part of a player pathway strategy relatively negligible.
But there are also commercial reasons for launching a multi-club operation, and promotion through the league system in Italy could make the player development model more viable.
In other news, Kieran Maguire claims Southampton putting Premier League in “awkward” position after big-money deal is signed.