Southampton FC Bought By Sport Republic

Sport Republic, a holding company led by Serbian media tycoon Dragan Šolak, has acquired a controlling stake in Premier League football club Southampton.

The deal, reported to be worth £100m, has secured 80% of the club from Chinese businessman Gao Jisheng, who acquired his stake for £200m in August 2017. The remaining 20% shareholding is owned by Katharina Liebherr, who will retain her stake after having inherited the club from her late father in 2010.

Rasmus Ankersen, a former Co-Director at fellow Premier League club Brentford, and London-based investor Henrik Kraft, are also involved in the takeover.

Šolak is the Founder of United Group, a pay-television and telecommunications company that operates across southern and eastern Europe. United Group, now controlled by British investment vehicle BC Partners, recently sealed Premier League rights deals through its pay-TV platform Nova in Greece and Bulgaria, with both agreements starting with the 2022-23 season.

“Southampton has so many of the qualities we have been looking for in a major sports organisation,” Šolak said. “It has a great management team, excellent talent development, talented teams playing attractive football and a dedicated fan base.”

Southampton’s current Chief Executive Martin Semmens will remain in his role following the takeover, with Kraft taking over as Chairman.

“Over the last two years, together with the shareholders of our club, we have searched for the right partner to take the club forward. Today we have found the perfect solution for our club,” Semmens said.

“Sport Republic are experienced investors, but also experienced within the world of elite professional sports. That combination is very hard to find, and we are thrilled to have reached an agreement that secures our short and long-term future.”

Kraft added, “Whilst Southampton is Sport Republic’s first acquisition, we expect more investments to follow over the coming years. Our ambition is to build a portfolio of high-influence stakes in football clubs and other sporting assets across the world.

“At the same time, we will also invest in early-stage sports technology companies and use our portfolio to accelerate the development of these companies. The acquisition of Southampton is a great first step and we are very excited about the journey ahead.”