Sports briefs
By NewsPress Now
Friedkin Group completes purchase
of Everton
Half of the Premier League is under majority American ownership after Texas-based Friedkin Group completed its 98.8% purchase of Everton on Thursday.
The takeover ended Farhad Moshiri’s turbulent eight-year tenure at the storied English club, which joins the Friedkins’ wide-ranging portfolio of investments that includes Italian team Roma. The size of the deal was undisclosed but the BBC and other British media valued it in excess of 400 million pounds ($500 million).
Fronted by Dan Friedkin — who has a net worth of $6.4 billion, according to Forbes — and his son Ryan, the group has investments in the automotive industry, entertainment, hospitality and sports. The Friedkins made a fortune distributing Toyotas in Texas.
“I take immense pride in welcoming one of England’s most historic football clubs to our global family,” Dan Friedkin said. “Everton represents a proud legacy, and we are honored to become custodians of this great institution.”
Everton is a nine-time English champion which has been an ever-present in the top division since 1954 but is without a major trophy since 1995 and has been battling relegation in recent years.
The Toffees, as they are nicknamed, are 16th in the 20-team league approaching the halfway mark of this season.
US owners
The most lucrative and popular domestic league in the world now has 10 teams with U.S. owners.
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Chelsea, Fulham, Crystal Palace, Ipswich, Liverpool and Manchester United are majority owned by Americans. Manchester City has minority U.S. investors in Silver Lake.
Leeds and Burnley, who both have U.S. owners, were recently relegated from the Premier League but are in a decent position to get promoted from the second-tier Championship this season. Leeds is second and Burnley is third.
Chaos under Moshiri
Moshiri, a British-Iranian businessman, sold his stake in Arsenal to become Everton’s major shareholder in 2016 and, by the end of his reign, had a 94% stake at the club.
His eight years in charge will be remembered for wasting hundreds of millions of pounds (dollars) on players, going through eight permanent managers and plunging Everton into financial uncertainty, which led to the team having two separate points deductions last season because of reckless spending.
The club’s finances were particularly hit in March 2022 when Everton announced it halted its major sponsorship with companies belonging to Russian metals tycoon Alisher Usmanov, a business partner of Moshiri, after he was sanctioned by the European Union in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Moshiri departs with Everton set to leave its long-term home of Goodison Park at the end of this season and move into a new state-of-the-art stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock, on the Mersey waterfront.
The sale was “the best outcome for the club and its future success,” Moshiri said.
“Despite a challenging geopolitical backdrop, a significant amount has been achieved over the last couple of years including the delivery of a new sporting department, the stabilization of our finances and the delivery of our iconic new stadium,” he said. “I now hand over to new owners confident in the outlook for the club and that our incredible fans will see the success on the pitch that they so thoroughly deserve.”
There may be some concern, however, among Everton fans about the Friedkins, who have never spoken publicly in the four years since they purchased Roma and are unpopular with supporters after making contentious management changes — including firing Daniele De Rossi, the club’s beloved former captain, early this season.
Everton’s search for owners
The Friedkin Group reached an agreement in principle in June to buy Moshiri’s stake, but talks were called off a month later. Everton was then in negotiations with American businessman John Textor, who said he had an exclusivity agreement with the club but needed to first sell his stake in Premier League rival Crystal Palace.
Earlier, a proposed takeover of Everton by 777 Partners collapsed amid worries about the financial stability of the company.
“We understand the club has faced significant challenges on and off the pitch for several years,” said Marc Watts, the new executive chairman. “That’s why our immediate priority is stabilizing the club and improving results on the pitch.”
Friedkins’ goals
Watts said the group has provided an undisclosed injection of capital to ensure the completion of the new stadium, converting most of Everton’s debt either to equity “repaid or refinanced on terms more favorable to the stability of the club.”
The new owners said they had six goals, including “strengthening the men’s first-team squad through thoughtful and strategic investment” and “enhancing Everton’s reputation as a unique and historical name in world football.”
There was no mention of Sean Dyche, who has been Everton’s manager for nearly two years and whose future may come under scrutiny if the new ownership wants to make a fresh start.
DC Mayor corrects misinformation over RFK Stadium land
WASHINGTON | District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser tried Thursday to correct misinformation amplified online by Elon Musk about how Congress’ end-of-year spending bill will impact efforts for a potential new stadium for the NFL’s Washington Commanders.
Incorrect reports on Musk-owned X were reposted by Musk claiming that Congress’ spending bill includes $3 billion for a new football stadium. The resolution, which has been roundly criticized by Musk and President-Elect Donald Trump, includes a provision to transfer control of the land including the husk of old RFK Stadium from the federal government to the District for 99 years.
That transfer is necessary to pave the way for the Commanders to potentially build a new stadium in the franchise’s old home, though the team is still considering locations in the District, Maryland and Virginia.
“It was stated that the CR contains $3 billion for a stadium,” Bowser said. “All wrong. There are no federal dollars related to the transfer of RFK, and in fact the legislation does not require or link at all to a stadium. We’re talking about how the District can invest in removing blight.”
Musk reposted a false report about the $3 billion and said “This should not be funded by your tax dollars!”
Bowser made the comments while celebrating the start of an $800 million arena renovation for the NHL’s Capitals and NBA’s Wizards. She stood alongside Monumental Sports president and CEO Ted Leonsis, owner of both teams, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and others for a wall-breaking ceremony to mark the beginning of work on Capital One Arena downtown. Keeping those teams in D.C. after a planned move across the Potomac River to Virginia fell apart is considered a major victory for Bowser and the city.
“I’ve got to say, what a difference a year makes,” Ward 2 councilmember Brooke Pinto said at the unveiling of renderings for what the arena in Chinatown should look like when construction is complete in the fall of 2027. “Ted Leonsis, thank you so much for believing in this city.”
Leonsis called it a landmark day for the District and his company. The project includes $515 million in public funding as part of the agreement for the Capitals and Wizards to stay, with the rest paid for by Monumental.
“When you see those signs, ‘Please excuse our dust,’ there’s going to be a lot of dust here,” Leonsis said. “This project is massive. It’ll probably take three seasons to do it, and it’s $800 million. It is a significant, significant program. But after you see what we’re going to do for the players, the fans and the city, it’ll be worth the wait.”
The Commanders have been looking for a new stadium site for several years, including since the summer of 2023, when a group led by Josh Harris bought the team from former owner Dan Snyder for a North American professional sports record $6.05 billion. Harris and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell lobbied lawmakers on Capitol Hill earlier this month on the RFK Stadium land provision, and its involvement in the spending bill looked like a major victory for the team and league.
Bowser said she did not see another path forward for the legislation this session if it is not part of the bill, a bipartisan negotiation to avoid a government shutdown and provide billions of dollars in disaster relief, among other things.
“We’ve done all we’re supposed to do, and this is the vehicle that has been identified — and agreed to by Democrats and Republicans,” Bowser said. “Have you been to RFK? Anybody? (It is) 177 acres surrounded by asphalt and a stadium that hasn’t been used in 10 years that is a blight on the nation’s capital. Now, I agree with the president-elect on this point: We want to make our nation’s capital the most beautiful capital in the world, so we have to move and free RFK.”
Sammy Sosa appears
to acknowledge PED
use, apologizes
CHICAGO | Sammy Sosa appeared to acknowledge using performance enhancing drugs during a career in which he hit more than 600 home runs, and the Chicago Cubs said they were ready to welcome back their former star.
In a statement released Thursday through Aurora Global Consulting, Sosa said he is sorry for mistakes.
“There were times I did whatever I could to recover from injuries in an effort to keep my strength up to perform over 162 games,” he said. “I never broke any laws. But in hindsight, I made mistakes and I apologize.”
Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts said the team is “ready to move forward together” with Sosa and plans to invite Sosa to the annual fan convention Jan. 17-19 in Chicago.
“We appreciate Sammy releasing his statement and for reaching out,” Ricketts said. “No one played harder or wanted to win more. Nobody’s perfect but we never doubted his passion for the game and the Cubs. It is an understatement to say that Sammy is a fan favorite.”
Sosa, the franchise’s record-holder with 545 home runs, was traded to Baltimore after he showed up late for the 2004 finale at Wrigley Field and left early.
Sosa, Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire, all tainted by allegations of performance-enhancing drugs use, fell well short of Hall of Fame election in 2022 on their 10th and final appearance on the Baseball Writers’ Association of America ballot.
Sosa received a high of 18.5% support in his final appearance, less than a quarter of the 75% needed. His next chance for consideration would be if he is placed on the ballot for the contemporary player committee, which meets next December.
Now 56, Sosa was a seven-time All-Star and the 1998 NL MVP for the Cubs. He hit .273 with 609 home runs — currently ninth on the career list — with 1,667 RBIs and 234 stolen bases in 18 major league seasons from 1989 to 2007 with Texas (1989, 2007), the Chicago White Sox (1989-91), the Cubs (1992-04) and Baltimore (2005).
During congressional testimony in 2005, Sosa denied using performance-enhancing drugs.
“We accomplished great things as a team, and I worked extremely hard in the batting cage to become a great hitter,” Sosa said in his statement. “Cubs’ fans are the best in the world, and I hope that fans, the Cubs and I can all come together again and move forward. We can’t change the past, but the future is bright. In my heart, I have always been a Cub, and I can’t wait to see Cubs fans again.”
76ers win city council nod to build $1.3B downtown stadium
PHILADELPHIA | The Philadelphia 76ers won city council approval on Thursday for a $1.3 billion downtown arena despite vocal opposition from nearby Chinatown residents and other activists.
Council voted 12-5 to approve the project at a packed meeting at City Hall. Owners of the NBA team hope to move in to 76 Place by 2031. However, opponents say the fight is far from over.
Mayor Cherelle Parker, a Democrat who had championed the plan, said the entire city will benefit from what she called a “historic game-changing economic development project,” according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Supporters hope the 18,500-seat arena can help revive a distressed retail corridor called Market East, which runs from City Hall to the Liberty Bell. The area has struggled for years despite several redevelopment efforts.
The team owners, Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, are eager to end their Wells Fargo Center lease with Comcast Spectacor in South Philadelphia. They have pushed for city approval by year’s end so they can meet their target opening date.
They vowed not to ask the city for any construction funding, although they are free to seek state and federal funds. Instead of property taxes, they would pay about $6 million in annual Payments in Lieu of Taxes.
Protesters who locked arms on the council floor and delayed the start of the Thursday’s meeting said they would continue their fight.
“The mayor and City Council kowtowed to the billionaires’ artificial timeline,” said opponent Mohan Seshadri, a member of the No Arena Coalition who also serves as executive director of the Asian Pacific Islander Political Alliance.
Opponents fear the arena will bring gridlock on game days – and go dark at other times – and also bring gentrification and rising rents to the area.
The Chinatown community has fought a series of proposed developments since the 1960s, including casinos, a prison, a baseball stadium and a highway, the last of which dissected the neighborhood when it opened in 1991.
Council members on Thursday approved 11 bills that address zoning changes, land transfers, public safety and other issues to accommodate the 76ers’ plan.
—From AP reports
