Randy Lerner purchased Aston Villa on August 14th 2006 for £62.6 million and has since pumped north of £300 million into the club, both on the pitch and off.
Lerner buying the club sent waves through the fan base as we all believed this new ear was about to start for our claret and blue heroes. What none of us anticipated is the kind of era that has been presented to us and now, Lerner has decided his reign should come to an end,
“I owe it to Villa to move on, and look for fresh, invigorated leadership, if in my heart I feel I can no longer do the job.”
the only issue is findin a new owner to tame these lions.
Lerners original asking price was steep and shocked a lot of us at £250 million, but a club with such heritage and presence in the footballing world is potentially worth that amount regardless of finishing 16th in the league again, right? Wrong. The lack of progress intiated a reasonable price drop to the tune of £200 million. Sadly, all interest collapsed with the summer arriving and season restarting.
To Lerners credit, he came out and postponed all dealings (or lack of) to do with the sale and resumed his passion for the club. Not only did he fund Lamberts 6 million spending spree but he also found a new CEO and has allowed contract negotitations to continue. We are still awaiting some player signatures on this front! Now to more recent news or rumours. The asking price has been slashed again, and this time it is down to a whopping £100 million. Comforted by the handsome sale of the Browns, Lerner must really want the club of his back!
Now all of this is speculative and rumoured, but it does raise an interesting question. How much is Aston Villa worth? A lot of money and time has been invested ensuring that we became a debt free club. We had exiles and a mass clear out and turning everything upside down after the MON days which left us spilling at the sides and licking our paws at the bottom. Lambert slashed wages and initated a new game plan that is now being followed by game plan version 2… I digress, the point is that we are a club with a lot to say and I believe we still have a lot to offer the world.
So how much are we worth? What are your expectations from the next owner?
My answers
I honestly think that AVFC is worth around £100 million, or I would like to think this, but that figure is a complete guess based on information coming from the club and it’s history. Having brought it for just above 60 and pumping the amount into it that Lerner has, he has put it on a good path, business wise. He is also losing a heck of a lot if this is his true asking price, but like I mentioned above, the sale of the Browns is a comfy sum to help ease the loss.
Going forward I see us having much more investment as I believe Lerner wouldn’t sell us to an uncaring owner. He has been very vocal about leaving us in the right hands, and i’d like to continue to trust those words. The first transfer window will be a big one, and there will once again be the excitement of supporting a club with money.
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Badger; Villa’s published accounts would suggest otherwise as would RL’s recent debt for equity swop which was definitely to improve his tax position following any sale. The question remains as to who or whom were responsible for the rather cavalier way in which the club were run during MON’s reign? I have no idea how RL stands personally in terms of losses but recent articles would suggest he wants out of incurring any further downside. As to his overall sales strategy, I believe his due diligence over a ‘fit and proper person’ to buy our club will stand up to more scrutiny than that carried out by the EPL!
Its worth watching the Tom Fox interview, I personally do not think Rand is going anywhere which is the reason Tom Fox joined us…… Have to say very refreshing interview shows a bit of clarity and vision, something I think we have all been looking forward to !!
“An owner making £15-20M a year would be in a good position tax wise due to the accumulated losses of the last few years.”
DSVilla,
That’s exactly my point and it’s why I think there is no chance whatsoever that Lerner will sell at £100 million.
Hitchens,
Do not believe the books in the short term.
Even I can fiddle, sorry offset, those and I know next to nothing about it!