Hibs reveal multi-club ownership stance as UEFA clampdown influences 'always on the cards' investment talks
Billionaire Bournemouth owner’s Black Knight 25 per cent stake sold back after ‘feeder club’ disagreement
Hibs will not put European football at risk by accepting investment from a multi-club ownership group, following the annulment of their short-lived partnership with the Black Knight organisation. And Easter Road chief executive Dan Barnett explained more about the differences that led to the Gordon family re-acquiring billionaire Bournemouth owner Billy Foley’s minority stake.
Barnett revealed that chairman Ian Gordon is fielding “a lot of inbound interest” from potential investors, with a deal “always on the cards”. But he cautioned against doing anything that might raise red flags with UEFA, who relegated Crystal Palace from the Europa League to the Conference league for breaching multi-club ownership rules earlier this season.
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Despite reports of talks with Midtjylland owner Anders Hoch Povlsen, Hibs expect European football’s governing body to become increasingly strict in their application of rules on investment groups taking stakes in clubs across different member nations. And, with David Gray’s men still in the hunt to qualify for Europe for a second straight season, they’re not willing to take a chance.
Barnett, quizzed on the prospect of inward investment today, said: “Yeah, so I think, as Ian mentioned last night (at the Hibs AGM), the family gets a lot of inbound interest for a minority interest. A lot.
“And so really he's in no rush to do anything. In fact, he doesn't need to do anything at all in order for us to execute on a long-term strategy.
“But if somebody comes in with a proposition that will enhance the club and our ability to get where we want to go, he would always be open to that.
“I can't really go into any details of who it is. I mean, it's just not appropriate given the confidential nature of the conversations, but that is always on the cards.
“I do think it's fair to say that the multi-club ownership model is a sensitive topic with UEFA right now. And so I think that would form part of our assessment if a group did come in where that may be potentially an issue.
“Because the last thing we ever want to do is jeopardise the club's ability to play in European football, which is a huge plan for us year-on-year.”
Minority investors interested
Invited to describe the ideal minority investor acceptable to the Gordon family, who will not give up their controlling interest, Barnett said: “So we've had conversations on that. And I think particularly given what we're seeing around the UEFA sensitivities on the MCO model, I don't think it would be a silent partner.
“I think it would be somebody can come in and they can come with ideas and challenges. You know, we're always talking about accountability. We have healthy challenges of each other all the time.
“You know, that could even be someone who's driving us forward commercially or somebody who is helping us unlock the brand equity that comes with telling people about the magic of Hibs. And so I think we want someone who could help us meaningfully drive the club forward.”
Gordon has defended his decision to repay Foley’s £6 million to buy back the American’s 25 per cent stake, insisting that the multi-sport magnate’s vision of Hibs as a “feeder club” did not match up to the Hibs owner’s long-term strategy. There was frustration within the football department at East Mains over the quality of players offered by Bournemouth, while the presence of a number of Black Knight clubs – or teams within their sphere of influence, as UEFA would put it – in European competitions prompted a rethink by both parties.
Barnett, offering up his take on the dissolution of the investment deal, said: “Yeah, so that was actually an amicable difference of opinion in terms of the vision going forward. Black Knight wanted certain things from their multi-group ownership, whereas I think we had a vision, Ian, the board, the executive committee had a vision that we did not want to be part of a system like that.
“And that our priority first and foremost always has to be win football games, as many as possible, be competitive at the highest level on the pitch and make the fans proud.”