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O/T Fulham gets new owner

Modric THFC said:
If he was perpared to actually spend proper money on football he wouldnt have bought a cheap club like Fulham.
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Why not?

Fulham is in an excellent location (same as Chelsea, and that was one of the attractions for Abramovic). And from what ive heard, there is room to expand the stadium a bit. And other than that, he just needs to spend on the playing staff.

But, i doubt he is a Abramovic or Mansour. From reading the reports, he doesnt seem to be in that league in terms of net worth. And he is from American Sports. These guys tend not to splash out, and are really looking to make profits long term. In the cases when they do spend, ie. Liverpool/ Aston Villa, it is/was more of an investment, rather than for the "glory" of chasing sporting acheivments. And after an initial period of investment in the squad has occurred, a period of tighter financial control follows.
 
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New Fulham owner Shahid Khan - Ron Jeremy
 
Gutter Boy said:
9/10 new owners seem to be asset strippers, rather than sugar daddies. For every Chelsea and City there are nine Liverpool, Villa, Portsmouth etc.

He's also only half as rich as Joe Lewis
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This.

Although not envious of the league portsmouth find themselvess in i think the ownership at the club is rather nice, would not like to see us drop through the leagues but it would be good to have the club part owned by us.
 
Neymar said:
Why not?

Fulham is in an excellent location (same as Chelsea, and that was one of the attractions for Abramovic). And from what ive heard, there is room to expand the stadium a bit. And other than that, he just needs to spend on the playing staff.
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Fulham have a League Two size fanbase. They've already had a sugar daddy that's brought them way above their station. Blimey they have a neutral section of their ground because they don't have enough home fans.

London is also already pretty saturated for big clubs - 3 of the top 5 in the country.

Not a wise investment at all.
 
Gutter Boy said:
Fulham have a League Two size fanbase. They've already had a sugar daddy that's brought them way above their station. Blimey they have a neutral section of their ground because they don't have enough home fans.

London is also already pretty saturated for big clubs - 3 of the top 5 in the country.

Not a wise investment at all.
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I agree that they have a "smallish" fanbase considering that they are an established mid-to-low end epl club. But, its still not abnormally low given their status relative to other clubs with a similar status.

I believe with investment in their playing staff, the size of the fan base will grow. People are attracted to glamour and success, and if Khan can bring this to Craven Cottage, i beleive new fans will come.

I think this because i don't agree with the statement: "fans are the only ones who show any loyalty in football". Although it is a bit of a generalisation. I think "no one has any loyalty in football" is a far more accurate representation of reality. This is because, we see clubs like Leeds and Portsmouth drop down the leagues, and guess what? their attendance figures dropped too. Conversely, when you see newly promoted teams their fan numbers increase. Ie. look at Fulham and Wigan. Compare the attendance figures of these clubs when they were in the 3rd/4th tier, with their epl attendances.

Hence, i strongly believe, as long as Khan brings success to Fulham, in the long-term their attendances will reflect the extent of their success.
 
So essentially the new owner is paying off the loan Al Fayed built up while keeping Fulham in the top flight.

As an American owner, I'd say the main question if whether he will he be neutral like Kroenke, Lerner and FSG or a parasite like the Glazers and Hicks-Gillet? As an NFL owner (they are heavily scrutinised before being allowed in) he is unlikely to be a clown like some at Portsmouth and Blackburn.
 
Gutter Boy said:
9/10 new owners seem to be asset strippers, rather than sugar daddies. For every Chelsea and City there are nine Liverpool, Villa, Portsmouth etc.

He's also only half as rich as Joe Lewis
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it wont be hard for him to spend more on his team than Lewis has on Spurs
 
Interesting bit on Khan:

Khan is the owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars American Football franchise, which he purchased in 2011, having made his estimated £1.7bn fortune in the manufacture of car parts. The 62-year-old, who will become the sixth American owner of a Premier League club, has been actively seeking to promote the Jaguars in the UK, with their potential relocation to London having even been mooted in the US.

The NFL side have already signed a deal to play four of their "home" games at Wembley over the next four years – starting with a match against the San Francisco 49ers in October – with Khan having described London as the "missing piece" for a club who do not sell out all their home games at their base in north Florida. While the purchase of Fulham is not overtly connected to that ambition, it would allow Khan to promote both brands in tandem on either side of the Atlantic.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jul/12/fulham-takeover-shahid-khan-jacksonville
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If an NFL franchise was ever granted for London he would be in a strong position, with an existing NFL team and a ground in London.
 
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Neymar said:
I agree that they have a "smallish" fanbase considering that they are an established mid-to-low end epl club. But, its still not abnormally low given their status relative to other clubs with a similar status.

I believe with investment in their playing staff, the size of the fan base will grow. People are attracted to glamour and success, and if Khan can bring this to Craven Cottage, i beleive new fans will come.

I think this because i don't agree with the statement: "fans are the only ones who show any loyalty in football". Although it is a bit of a generalisation. I think "no one has any loyalty in football" is a far more accurate representation of reality. This is because, we see clubs like Leeds and Portsmouth drop down the leagues, and guess what? their attendance figures dropped too. Conversely, when you see newly promoted teams their fan numbers increase. Ie. look at Fulham and Wigan. Compare the attendance figures of these clubs when they were in the 3rd/4th tier, with their epl attendances.

Hence, i strongly believe, as long as Khan brings success to Fulham, in the long-term their attendances will reflect the extent of their success.
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That's not quite true. Portsmouth have sold 9k season tickets for their 22K stadium already and the deadline is not until the end of the month. Projected figures are 10k-12k season tickets for this upcoming season.

They will sell out most matches.
 
How would am NFL franchise work exactly in a country so far away from the US, both in terms of distance and timezones?

All the other NFL teams have to fly long haul every time they play this team? And the London team gas to fly back to the US almost constantly?

I'm also not even sure theres enough interest long term to sustain a franchise here (though they'd do all the research I'm sure). People watch the superbowl and the match here despite having no idea what is going on because its a fun day out and you're having a great time with your friends/ partner doing something new. If its something they have to support on a regular basis? I'm not so sure..
 
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I don't know how serious the proposal is or how viable, but it is something that has been mooted on and off for a while.

On specific points. NFL teams have to fly across the continental US so long flights is something they already deal with. For most teams its just one extra (in both senses) long trip. For the London team perhaps they can play blocks of home and away games and stay in the US for periods. Of perhaps they allow Jacksonville to gradually play more home games in London to see how it goes. There are only 8 regular season home games and a fairly large ex-pat population and some genuine British fans of the game. They could even play a game or two in Germany or another European location to try and spread the interest further. And with the franchise system they can always experiment. If it doesn't work there will be other US cities with interest in taking the team.
 
the theory is they will batch matches, they'll only have 8 road games so 4 trips back to play 2 then back to London

there can be plenty of travelling around the states anyway so a trip to London (although a longer flight) probably isn't that much more hassle for the visitors

personally I don't think it can work, I always go to the wembley game (I'll do both this season) but I already have a team, I'm not gonna shift my allegiance just because there is a franchise on my door step
 
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