Barnsley FC Takeover Confirmed

20 Dec 2017 | tshego

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Barnsley FC has been taken over by a consortium headed by Chinese businessman Chien Lee and is led by investors Paul Conway and Grace Hung.

Other investors include former Major Leage Baseball player, Billy Beane, who also owns a minority stake in the Oakland Athletics and inspired the Hollywood film, Moneyball, as well as tech entrepreneur Neerav Parekh.

The takeover ends Patrick Cryne’s 13-year spell as owner of the club. Cryne has terminal cancer and wrote a letter in September telling fans he was “living on borrowed time”.

The EFL has approved the takeover of the second-tier club and – although financial details of the deal have not been made public – it has been reported the deal is likely to be worth around £10m to £20m.

Lee – also the co-owner of top-tier French football team Nice – will sit on the board alongside Conway. The pair will both sit as co-chairman at the club.

Hello Barnsley!
Hello The Reds! pic.twitter.com/ovtfFhv6K0

— Chien Lee (@NewCityCapital) December 19, 2017

Beane has been credited with pioneering the ‘Moneyball’ model for using computer-generated analysis to help with player recruitment and tactics. He has also previously been linked to Championship sides Middlesbrough, Hull City and Brentford.

Gauthier Ganaye, Barnsley chief executive, said: “We would like to thank every member of our loyal fan base for their patience and continued support over recent months. An exciting chapter is opening for Barnsley Football Club and we are looking forward to the future together.”

Lee said: “We are very excited to partner with the Cryne family and invest in Barnsley Football Club. The Cryne family have exhibited spectacular leadership building Barnsley Football Club over the last 14 years and we are excited to join them to further the growth of the club.”

Conway added: “Similar to our investment in OGC Nice, we expect to further enhance the academy, playing squad, commercial operations and fan experience of Barnsley Football Club. Barnsley has some of the most passionate fans in England and we look forward to meeting many of its supporters in the upcoming weeks.”