Sunderland fans are furious after learning about the club’s ownership structure, feeling as though they have been “misled and lied to.”
The French billionaire Robert Louis-Dreyfus’s son Kyril Louis-Dreyfus secured an agreement to purchase “a controlling interest” in the club, the club announced in February 2021.
Supporters of Sunderland are not pleased with the most recent disclosures regarding the club’s ownership.
Consequently, it was reported that Stewart Donald, Juan Sartori, and Charlie Methven—all of whom are part of the Madrox group—were holding a minority stake.
But according to information released last week by The Athletic, Dreyfus truly owns 41% of the team, with Donald owning 34%, Sartori owning 20%, and Methven holding 5%.
The Madrox group’s current members own a combined majority of 59%, which has infuriated fans as, despite Dreyfus’s claims of having “executive control” at the Stadium of Light, the club’s share structure clearly indicates otherwise.
“A few people raised their eyebrows, and at first it seemed like something novel and necessary, but as time passed, it became clear that might not have been the case.
“While Sunderland fans are amiable and friendly and want everyone involved to succeed, there is clearly something wrong with the club, as evidenced by several different parts of the organization.
For several supporters, the revelation served as confirmation that this isn’t what we’ve been promised. Others feel that the football team, and Louis-Dreyfus in particular, have deceived them or lied to them because he essentially claimed to be in charge.
“It’s just a genuine sense of disappointment over being duped and told lies.”
Following the first news, Donald has released a statement stating that his “only active involvement” has been to meet his fundraising pledge. Methven has also echoed Donald’s statement, stating that he would be “happy” to sell his remaining shares under the same circumstances previously agreed upon.
However, Barker from the Wise Men Say Podcast feels that it’s all talk when asked how the followers feel about the two important members of the Madrox group.
In his words: “I don’t think there’s much sympathy left for them; they left the building a long time ago.
“Those remarks carry a hint of irritation because Charlie Methven and Stewart Donald have been actively marketing the club ever since they first entered.
As the level of frustration reached an all-time high towards the end of his chairmanship, he commented that if “every Sunderland fan chucked in a tenner they could buy my shares,” for the £37 million he believes he’d command for those shares. This was because it was chronicled on “Sunderland Til I Die.”
There is an intriguing subplot here about Louis Dreyfus purchasing the club at a time when Donald and Methven were at their most vulnerable to the pandemic and were reportedly facing bankruptcy. One must wonder why Dreyfus chose not to take advantage of this and purchase additional shares at that time.
“I get the impression that [Donald and Methven] are merely waiting to be paid in some way, should the team advance and their stock appreciate in value.”
“The real worry is that you have someone like Stewart Donald who owns 34% of the club and he’s basically checked out,” Barker continued.
“We have a big stakeholder who doesn’t really care, so how are we expected to push forward when someone who owns a third of the football team is entirely passive?
“He is merely waiting for a reimbursement, which he believes is his right.
There is a tangible sense of irritation and rage among the supporters due to the lack of clarity surrounding the club’s ownership structure. Barker stated that the best course of action would be for Dreyfus to buy shares from Donald and Methven.
“It seems like people want to see Madrox’s involvement with the football club end,” he clarified. I’m not sure how that comes to be.
Since Louis-Dreyfus has been spreading a falsehood for the better part of a year, a lot of people have taken offense and are accusing him of being a contributing factor to the issue, so the goodwill there seems a little suspect.
“I believe that for the time being, people would be willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, hoping that some sort of miraculous event would occur where he simply buys them out, allowing us to write Madrox off and move on.”
“There are hints that Charlie Methven is still active in decision-making, and the documentary portrays him as a crucial, regular participant in the club’s operations.
“People want to see that end because they fear that’s still the case because he’s been seen sitting next to Louis-Dreyfus and engaging in club business.”Evaluating the changes that Louis-Dreyfus brought about is challenging. We don’t know why Johnson was fired and a new manager was sought after, therefore it will be challenging to evaluate Louis-Dreyfus’ performance once he has resolved this issue.
“People simply don’t want to see the Madrox investors still having a say in the football team.
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