Simon Jordan raises Rangers concern in Leeds United multi-club ownership
Leeds United owners 49ers Enterprises being involved in takeover talks elsewhere led to Simon Jordan to speculate over a multi-club model.
The 49ers are at the centre of developing takeover talks with Rangers, and Leeds chairman Paraag Marathe is reportedly spearheading these talks as the consortium look to expand.
Leeds were fully bought out by Marathe’s investment group in 2023 after five years of the 49ers increasing their shares at Elland Road, and they’ve since sold a roughly 10 per cent stake to Red Bull.
Rangers would become only the second (association) football club in the 49ers’ stable should a takeover be greenlit, and that would see Leeds become part of a multi-club model for the first time in their history.
Leeds United tipped to rule over Rangers by Simon Jordan
Speaking on talkSPORT (20 February, 11:53am), Simon Jordan wondered how a 49ers takeover of Rangers would affect Leeds in the pecking order, given the huge financial pull of the Premier League.
Jordan said: “The rule around multi-club ownership is very convoluted and complex, but the world’s moved on – you’ve got a variety of clubs that have got more than one interest in more than one club.
“They’re invested in clubs like Leeds, that have opportunities to go into the Premier League and play in a league that is undoubtedly incredibly valuable to be involved in.
“What you don’t want is Rangers being utilised as an opportunity to provide a feeder club mentality, because your vested interest with a potential ownership model is primarily with Leeds.
“The opportunity for Rangers is an interesting one, because they’ll get more cash [and] they’ll probably get better commercial outcomes than they’ve currently got.
“But in the longer game, I don’t know how much value there is in Rangers as opposed to some of their other investments, like Leeds.”
| Category | Leeds United | Rangers |
| Founded | 1919 | 1875 |
| Stadium Capacity | 37,792 | 51,700 |
| League | EFL Championship | Scottish Premiership |
| Latest Financial Losses | £33.7million (2022/23) | £17.2million (2023/24) |
Leeds United fans will worry at 49ers Enterprises development
Although a successful takeover of Rangers would likely still leave Leeds as top dogs in the 49ers’ eyes, there’ll be plenty of United fans who want to see their club becoming part of a multi-club model.
Though the Premier League – which the Whites see themselves playing in for the forseeable future – gives them much more financial clout than the Scottish Premiership, such models still cause concern.
It’s arguable that this development has been in the pipeline since a restructure of the recruitment model at Elland Road last November, with Gretar Steinsson becoming a football director for 49ers Enterprises.
At the time, that left fans scratching their heads, given Leeds were the only club which Steinsson could pay much attention due to the 49ers possessing no shareholding of value in any other clubs.
That, however, now appears set to change, and Steinsson will no doubt have been casting his eyes over developments at Ibrox, with Marathe and co lining up their takeover pitch across the past few months.
Supporters will worry that the 49ers’ next move could be to invest in a ‘bigger’ club than Leeds, and if the Whites remain a second-tier side, they could be joining the food chain, rather than sit at the top of it.