The extended lead time on 49ers Enterprises’ Leeds United takeover has given fans years to acclimatise to the idea, but there are still questions and concerns they need answering. If it’s less about if, it’s more about when and what it’s going to look like.
In 2018, when vice-chairman Paraag Marathe first fielded interviews with 15 per cent of the club in the hands of San Francisco 49ers, the outlook on a future takeover remained nascent and tentative. When the stake swelled to 37 per cent in January 2021 the long-term plan became clear.
An organisation like the 49ers does not start sloshing tens of millions of its own, and investors’, dollars in someone else’s pot without some degree of control and long-term plan for deciding the fate of that money. Taking on more than one-third of a firm was a sign of intent and then going to 44 per cent within 10 months was the latest stop-off in this inevitable power shift.
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That last shred of news came on November 5 last year. It’s been more than a year since anything meaningful was heard on the subject, about the future and where this is all going.
Andrea Radrizzani and Enterprises are in something of a holding pattern, at least publicly, and while the on-pitch form has stalled since the start of last season, Leeds seem to be between phases and in need of a boost, a catalyst or just some clarity. Marathe has done interviews, but there’s been nothing new or forward-thinking in what he has said.
Helpfully, The Times put the subject back on the table this month with a report on San Francisco ducks being put in a row before the trigger is pulled. It was The Athletic who first reported a deal has already been agreed between Radrizzani and Enterprises on a takeover which has a deadline in January 2024.
If 49ers or Leeds feel there is nothing to address because nothing is imminent, that’s entirely understandable. Nobody is expecting Radrizzani, Marathe or even Jed York, who we are still yet to hear from on this subject on this side of the Atlantic, to rush anything through, but a status report might just reassure the fan base.
If there are still another 14 months to run on this 49ers takeover option, then by all means use the time as you wish, but tell the public where things stand right now, how the transition could look or what the vision is for the future. York and 49ers top brass were at Elland Road last weekend around a visit headlined by talks about January transfer plans.
They remain active and engaged in what Leeds do day to day. 49ers uniforms are seen now and again in and around Elland Road and Thorp Arch throughout the season, underlining that transition.
Seeing 49ers personnel is one thing, but fans deserve to know hard details on where this ship is sailing given how long it’s been since that last tranche of shares was divvied out. Peter Lowy, the lifelong fan and successful businessman, has been on the board for almost 18 months after his investment in Enterprises, but he remains a voice we have not heard from.
After scraping to survival last season and seeing a challenging start to this campaign, the club’s, potential, future owners need to be heard as well as seen. What did they make of last season? Are there any reservations? What are their long-term ambitions for United? How would a takeover be financed?
The clock is ticking.
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