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The English Premier league is the premier sports league in the world for a reason. Not only is the footballing action a notch above almost all other leagues, but it also attracts the world’s leading business barons.
The owners of Premier League clubs are some of the richest people in the world. From Abramovich to Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, we take a look at the owners of the clubs playing in the Premier League.
The clubs have been arranged in alphabetical order.
AFC Bournemouth – Maxim Demin
Owner of newly promoted Premier League team AFC Bournemouth, Maxim Demin is a Russian businessman who lives in Switzerland. The Russian first became co-owner of the club in 2011 before taking full ownership of the club in 2013.
Maxim Demin spent around £25 million to get Bournemouth to the Premier League. In 2015, he sold a 25% share in the club to Peak 6 Investments, although he still remains the majority shareholder of the Cherries.
Demin is in the petrochemical industry and he owns the company Wintel Petrochemicals Limited. Extremely reclusive, the Russian tycoon is yet to ever give an interview to the English media. Demin is one of the main reasons why Bournemouth are currently playing in the Premier League.
Arsenal – Stan Kroenke (Arsenal Holdings Plc)
The largest shareholder of the Premier League giants Arsenal is American Enos “Stan” Kroenke. As of June 2015, Kroenke owns 41,698 shares (67.02%) and Red & White Securities own 18,695 shares (30.04%).
Red & White securities is owned by one of the richest people in the world, Alisher Usmanov. Arsenal is among the most valuable football clubs in the world with the Deloitte Money League ranking them as the seventh most valuable club in the world.
Kroenke owns a number of sports team across the world with the Colorado Rapids and Los Angeles Rams some of the other famous teams he owns. The American was estimated to be worth around USD 8 billion by Forbes in 2016.
Aston Villa – Randy Lerner
The club which is sure to be relegated this season, Aston Villa also has an American owner – Mr. Randy Lerner. Villa fans however, have not been pleased with their principal owner and they have been asking him to give up ownership of the club.
The BBC reported on 5 September 2006 that Lerner had now moved closer to taking full control of the club, after increasing his share to 85.5%. On Spetember 19th 2006, Lerner became the main owner of Aston Villa.
It has not been smooth sailing for the American and he even put up the club for sale in 2014 for an estimated value of £200 million.
His personal fortune has been estimated at over US$ 1.1 billion.
Chelsea – Roman Abramovich
Enigmatic Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is probably the most famous club owner in the Premier League. The Russian tycoon is the 12th richest person in Russia and the 137th richest person in the world.
Abramovich took over at Chelsea in 2003 and ever since then, thanks to his huge investments, Chelsea has become one of the premier clubs in Europe. The Russian has sacked plenty of managers but it can be defended by the fact that Chelsea have always managed to win trophies ever since he took over.
The Russian is the primary owner of the private investment company Millhouse LLC.
Abramovich's net worth in 2015 was USD 7.8 billion.
Crystal Palace – Steve Parish, Josh Harris and David Blitzer (CPFC)
Crystal Palace F.C. is currently owned by CPFC 2010 Limited, a Private Limited Company registered at Company House. CPFC 2010 was established by a consortium of four businessmen, Steve Parish, Martin Long, Stephen Browett and Jeremy Hosking in 2010, each owning a 25% share of the company.
On 18 December 2015, it was announced that a new deal had been signed with American investors Josh Harris and David Blitzer. The club stated that Steve Parish would continue as chairman alongside Harris and Blitzer and that Browett, Long and Hosking would also retain a substantial investment.
Parish is widely loved by the Crystal Palace as under him, the Eagles have become a regular fixture in the Premier League.
Everton – Farhad Moshiri
Farhad Moshiri recently became the major shareholder of Everton football club owning 49.9% shares of the Merseyside club. He bought it from popular long time owner Bill Kenwright who still owns 13.15% of the club’s total shares.
Moshiri after taking over said:
"Indeed it is this strong sense of tradition which appealed to me as I discussed the opportunity with Bill Kenwright to become part of the future of the club.
"It is a testament to the enduring quality and consistency of the club that Everton has remained in he top flight of English football since 1954.”
The British-Iranian businessman Moshiri owns and has shares in numerous steel and energy companies in the UK and Russia. Moshiri has vowed to spend big for Everton and he is currently worth around USD 1.84 billion.
Leicester City – Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha (King Power group)
Probably the happiest man on the planet right now, Leicester City owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha is a Thai billionaire businessman, and founder and CEO of the King Power group which owns Leicester City.
The Thai tycoon has become an extremely loved person at Leicester especially after he gave a free beer and doughnut to all Leicester fans on his birthday.
Currently worth around USD 2.90 billion, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha will definitely be looking to strengthen his amazing team as they will be participating in the Champions League next season.
The Thai owner has run the club very well making some astute and clever decisions in his tenure as Chairman.
Liverpool – John W Henry and Tom Werner (FSG)
Fenway Sports Group are the current owners of the Merseyside giants Liverpool after they took over from the hugely unpopular duo Tom Hicks and George Gillet. FSG have not hesitated to spend big in recent past and recent big money signings like Benteke and Firmino show that the suo remain committed to Liverpool.
John W Henry has become something of a fan favourite after he stood firm in denying Arsenal the services of his star striker Luis Suarez. FSGare also famously in charge of the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool fans will be hoping that FSG leads them to a new era of glory and trophies.
The American’s net worth is estimated to be around USD 2.2 billion.
Manchester City – Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan (City football group)
The deputy prime minister of United Arab Emirates, Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, also known as Sheikh Mansour, hails from a moneyed family with a fortune of about $500 billion. Mansour is also the step-brother of the incumbent president of the UAE, Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
He is the head of the Supreme Petroleum Council, and a part of the board of directors of International Petroleum Investment Company, besides possessing shares in Virgin Galactic, a commercial spaceflight company. In 2008, he bought Manchester City for a whopping $1.5 billion. If that wasn’t enough, he also launched his MLS club, New York F.C. in 2015.
Sheikh Mansour tops this list of Premier League owners by a mile, with an estimated net worth of $31.5 billion.
Manchester United – Glazer family
Malcolm Glazer who passed away at 85, was an American-Lithuanian businessman. He was the founding chairman of First Allied Corporation (FAC), a company owning several shopping centers across the United States. Moreover, he has stakes in Tonka and Harley Davidson.
In 1995, he bought the NFL franchise, Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Under him, the Buccaneers won their first Super Bowl Championship in 2003. In the same year, Glazer purchased about 28% shares in Manchester United, hence gaining the controlling power. By 2005, he went to acquire 100% stake in the club. Increase in debt, however, meant that he had to take the club back to the share markets, in 2012, to raise funds.
The Glazer family net worth is valued at $4.5 billion.
After Malcolm Glazer passed away, the club is now run by Joel and Avram Glazer.
Newcastle United – Mike Ashley
Mike Ashley, the owner of Newcastle United, is also the proprietor of British retail, Sports Direct. It took him around $222 million, in total, to be the sole owner of the club. Ashley’s journey as the owner of the club has been restless and jouncing, to say the least; the debt of the club being on the higher side all the time.
Pressured under debt, he has already made several unsuccessful attempts to trade the club. He was ranked as the 15th richest Britisher in 2012 according to Forbes.
With Newcastle fighting relegation this season, Ashley will be hoping that he finds a buyer soon.
Ashely’s net worth is estimated to be around USD 6 billion.
Norwich City – Delia Smith and Michael Wynn-Jones
Hugely popular English cook and television presenter Delia Smith along with her husband Michael Wynn-Jones are the majority shareholders of Premier League club Norwich City. Both Smith and her husband have been long time fans of the Canaries and they were even season ticket holders before they took ownership of the club.
Both Smith and Michael Jones are regularly spotted at Norwich City matches and the club will be hoping to stay in the Premier League as the revenues from the League are absolutely astronomical.
Delia Smith was appointed the Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in 2009 for he immense contribution to television cookery and recipe writing.
Delia Smith and Michael Wynn-Jones own 53% of the shares with Michael Foulger who own 15% being the other major shareholder.
Southampton F.C. – Katharina Liebherr
The only non-executive EPL owner apart from LeBron James, Katharine Liebherr became the de facto owner of Southampton F.C. in 2010, after the death of her father, Markus Liebherr, who bought the club for €15 million in 2009. The operations of the club were left in the hands of Nicola Cortese, an Italian investor.
In recent times, though, Liebherr is having more of a say in the functioning of the club. Liebherr’s affection for the club can be fathomed from her clarification stating her ‘zero intention’ of selling the club. The Liebherr family business is that of construction machinery where they are the world’s leading manufacturers.
Southampton have enjoyed some good seasons in the Premier League since she has taken over and their next aim will be to qualify for Europe regularly.
Liebherr’s net worth is £3 billion making her one of the richest owners in the Premier League.
Stoke City – Peter Coates (Bet365)
Chairman of Stoke City and founder of Bet365 which now owns Stoke City, Peter Coates has been listed as the 25th richest person in British football. One among 14 children, Coates has never been afraid to take risks in his life.
After the Bet365 company was set up in 2000 by him and his daughter Denise, it has become one of the world’s largest online betting companies with an operating profit of £104 million. Coates has been a Stoke fan all his life and he ended up becoming the Chairman of the club he loves.
Ever since Bet365 has taken over Stoke, the Premier League club has become a force to reckon with as can be seen from buys like Shaqiri, Bojan and Imbula.
Coates has an estimated worth of around £750 million.
Sunderland A.F.C – Ellis Short
Ellis Short is an American-born British businessman. In 1995, he chaired a private-equity firm, Lone Star. He went on to buy a Scottish hotel resort, in 2003, for about $30 million. Bolstered by surpluses in other investments, Short took over Sunderland FC in 2008
In 2013, he set up a private equity firm, Kildare Partners, which invests in hard-pressed real estate opportunities. His club currently is embroiled in a relegation battle and Short will be hoping that Sunderland manage to avoid the drop like last season.
The net worth of Ellis Short is estimated to be around £2.4 billion. Short is also the chairman of Sunderland.
Swansea City – Mr & Mrs Martin Morgan, Huw Jenkins, Brian Katzen, Swansea City Supporters Trust
One of the few clubs to have a supporters trust owning a major part of the club, Swansea City has been one club which has earned everyone's admiration for the way it is run. The major shareholders of Swansea City include:
Mr & Mrs Martin Morgan who own 22.5%, Brian Katzen who owns 20%, Huw Jenkins who owns 12.5% and the Swansea City supporters trust which owns 20%.
Huw Jenkins is the Chairman of the Welsh Club and he has managed to get Swansea City from the Championship to playing in the Europa League which is a huge achievement for the club the size of Swansea.
With Premier League survival guaranteed again, Swansea will be looking forward to playing well in the next season.
Tottenham Hotspur – Joe Lewis (ENIC International ltd)
A Bahamian businessman, Joe Lewis, is the owner of the Tavistock group. Tavistock is a huge conglomerate, comprising of 200 companies spread over 15 countries; the fields of investment being oil and petroleum, retail chains, real estate, life sciences, etc.
In 2012, Lewis, through his investment company ENIC Investments Ltd., took over the ownership of Tottenham Hotspur capturing 70.6% of the holding company which owns 85% of the North London club.
Daniel Levy who is the Chairman of Tottenham owns the remaining 29.4% of the ENIC Investments Ltd. Tottenham have recently started challenging for top honours again and both Joe Lewis and Daniel Levy will be hoping for Tottenham’s good form to continue.
The net worth of Joe Lewis is estimated to be around USD 5.4 billion.
Watford F.C. – Pozzo family
Giampaolo Pozzo and son Gino Pozzo are currently the joint owners of English club Watford. The Italian family own famous clubs like Granada and Udinese along with Watford.
In June 2012, Giampaolo acquired Watford from previous owner Laurence Bassini. Over time he has invested heavily in the club, including sending over multiple players from his other teams Granada and Udinese. Some of these players include Almen Abdi, Matej Vydra and Gabrielle Angela. As well as sending multiple players over from his other clubs he signed a £18 million maintenance deal to renovate their stadium.
He has now handed over ownership and running of the club to his son Gino, who is based in London.
The Pozzo family is loved by the Watford fans as their investments have made Watford a credible Premier League team.
West Bromwich Albion – Jeremy Peace
Born in West Bromwich, Jeremy Peace is now the owner of the football club he grew up supporting when he was young. He mainly worked in investment banking and as a stockbroker. Peace joined West Brom as a non-executive director in 2000 and he ended up becoming Chairman in June 2002.
On 31 May 2013, Peace transferred his 59.9 per cent shareholding in West Bromwich Albion Group Limited to a new company, West Bromwich Albion Holdings Limited. Peace is the sole director of West Bromwich Albion Holdings Limited and owns 100 per cent of the new company.
In 2013, the Daily Express reported that Peace "runs the club with a rod of iron. Any manager has to accept the title of ‘head coach’ and be prepared to slot into the way Peace does things."
West Ham United – David Sullivan and David Gold
Popular and charismatic owners David Sullivan and David Gold have ensured West Ham United become a force to reckon with in the Premier League. Sullivan along with his partner Gold own about 86.2% of the club’s shares.
Sullivan and Gold first started off in the softcore pornography industry and they later expanded to sex shops and low budget adult films which made them millionaires at a very young age. They first tried their hand at football ownership when they took over Birmingham City in 1993.
However, after a takeover in 2009, the duo acquired ownership of West Ham in January 2010. They have bought in quality players like Payet and Enner Valencia and their move to the Olypic Stadium next year will only serve to increase the duo’s ambition for the Hammers.
The net worth of David Sullivan is estimated to be around £850 million while that of David Gold is estimated to be around £350 million.
