Business With Blain: Unfit & Unproper

777 Partners' bid to buy Everton is unravelling.

“It is through my lengthy discussions with 777 that I believe they are the best partners to take our great club forward, with all the benefits of their multi-club investment model… As a result of this agreement, we have an experienced and well-connected investor in football clubs who will help maximise the commercial opportunities, and we have secured the complete financing for our new stadium.”

Those were the words of Farhad Moshiri, back in mid-September 2023, when he announced that he had reached an agreement with 777 Partners, the Miami-based investment group, to sell his controlling interest in Everton Football Club.

At the time of the announcement, the Everton Football Club Shareholders’ Association (EFCSA), which represents more than 1,000 minority shareholders, expressed disappointment at the few minutes’ notice given by the majority shareholder and the poor timing of the announcement due to its proximity to a matchday, a game that they subsequently lost — 1-0 at home to Arsenal.

The owner and the club continue to treat shareholders and fans with disdain, and we encourage the current and [proposed future] owners to walk their engagement talk immediately — that fans are the most important asset at any football club.

- EFCSA

To their credit, and almost immediately, 777 engaged with key fan groups, and indeed the Shareholders’ Association too. They said the right things, and were confident that they would gain the necessary approval by the Premier League. 

Co-Founder and Managing Partner Josh Wander said: “We are truly humbled by the opportunity to become part of the Everton family as custodians of the club and consider it a privilege to be able to build on its proud heritage and values.”

Business With Blain: Easy Wins

Since then, 777 has been engaged in the Premier League’s Owners’ and Directors’ Test for an extraordinary 34 weeks. Although the process does not have a fixed timetable for conclusion, it was expected to take up to 12 weeks and yet still, 777 has not gained the formal approval they need to conclude their acquisition.