Burnley: US Investors ALK Capital Complete Acquisition of Premier League Club | Football news

US company ALK Capital has completed its acquisition of Burnley, acquiring an 84 percent controlling stake in the Premier League club.

Investors announced the completion of the deal, approved and ratified by the Premier League, in a statement issued Thursday night.

Delaware-based ALK, which specializes in investments in the sports and media sectors, said its managing partner, Alan Pace, would replace Mike Garlick as Clarets president.

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“Garlick, along with former shareholder John Banaszkiewicz, will remain on ALK Capital’s new board of directors in Burnley, ensuring a smooth transition to the new ownership and providing valuable insight from his eight-year tenure as club president,” says the release.

“This successful period has seen two promotions to the Premier League, the development of the Barnfield Training Center and European football at Turf Moor for the first time in more than half a century.”

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Garlick, who owned just under 50 percent of the club’s shares, said the deal represented a “natural progression” for Burnley.

“At Alan Pace and his team, we are welcoming committed investors to Turf Moor who will live here in the local community and invest in the club, both on and off the football field, for many years to come,” he said. Garlick in the statement.

“My term as president has always been to ensure that Burnley is a sustainable football club, and this investment provides a long-term plan to uphold that philosophy, while driving evolution and innovation.”

Pace, the former CEO of Major League Soccer’s Real Salt Lake, said the acquisition, completed through Velocity Sports Partners, ALK’s sports investment arm, marked “the beginning of an exciting journey for the whole family. Clarets “.

“Today marks a new era for Burnley as we became stewards of this historic football club and built on the impressive work that Mike Garlick, (manager) Sean Dyche and everyone at Burnley have done to make it a club of the Established and financially stable Premier League that is a cornerstone of the local community, “said Pace.

“With a rich heritage, a brilliant academy and a passionate fan base, this club has a solid foundation to build on.”

A meeting with Dyche is likely to be one of ALK’s first priorities, who can expect new support in the January transfer window.

The team manager insisted after Tuesday night’s win over Sheffield United that he was unaware of the deal, but it is understood that the new owner had already taken steps to update him on his future plans for Burnley.

Of the 13 players Dyche used against the Blades, only Dutchman Erik Pieters is from outside the UK or the Republic of Ireland, and one of the results of the change of ownership could be an expansion of the club’s transfer and transfer network. .

In August, ALK invested in two London-based soccer tech companies: AiScout and Player LENS. Both companies are involved in data analysis and predictive player evaluation.

Speaking at the time, Pace said: “The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for professional soccer to adopt new technologies and digital solutions, particularly in areas such as exploration and recruiting, which previously relied on human labor and traditional forms of communication and negotiation. “

Commenting Tuesday night on the likelihood of increasing his injury-reduced squad in the coming weeks, Dyche offered a cautious take.

“If there are things in the market that we think we can align, we will. If there are not, we will continue to operate with the group we have,” he said.

“If you have money available to spend, you can only spend it on the players who are available. If they are the right players, do it yourself. If they are not the right players, I’ve never seen the point of that … keep what you have.” .