Newcastle United Premier League rivals provide official £400m takeover update after Saudi interest

Reports from Italy earlier this week claimed the deal was ‘practically official’ with The Friedkin Group, who also own a controlling stake in AS Roma, set to pay around £400million to complete the takeover of Everton.

Should the deal go through, Friedkin’s group will take a 94.1% majority stake under Blue Heaven Holdings Limited from current owner Farhad Moshiri. 1.3% will remain with Bill Kenwright’s estate and the remaining 4.6% will be floating.

Now, the club have provided an official statement on the takeover situation. “Everton Football Club would like to provide fans and stakeholders with an update regarding new investment into the club,” the statement read.

“Blue Heaven Holdings has received significant interest from several highly respected parties interested in investing in the club.

“The club can confirm today [21 June] that a period of exclusivity has been granted to The Friedkin Group to progress discussions to acquire a majority shareholding in Everton. 

“All parties will now work together to conclude this process. In the meantime, the club will continue to operate as normal. When there is further news to share, it will be provided via the club’s official communication channels.”

Any takeover would be subject to suitable checks from the Premier League and Football Association.

It comes after Everton were subject to a takeover bid from a consortium linked to the Saudi Arabian royal family. The consortium have since withdrawn from the process.

Everton’s Premier League rivals Newcastle United were taken over by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund in 2021. As a sovereign wealth fund, PIF have links to the Saudi royal family with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as chairman.

The Toffees were targeted by 777 Partners for an extended period during the 2023-24 campaign but a deal failed to materialise despite an exclusivity agreement being in place.

Everton were deducted eight points last season after being found guilty of breaching the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules. Despite the deduction, The Toffees were able to comfortably avoid relegation and secure a 15th-placed finish on 40 points.

Prospective Everton owner Friedkin is an American film producer with an estimated net worth of around £4.8billion, according to Forbes.