Birmingham City FC owners enter into 'exclusive negotiations' with potential buyer

Birmingham City Football Club’s owners have entered "exclusive negotiations" with a potential buyer to sell the club and St Andrew’s stadium.

Company Birmingham Sports Holdings Limited, the major shareholder of the club, announced on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange that two letters of intent have been submitted from potential purchasers.

Reports earlier this year suggested businessman Jeremy Dale was part of a consortium looking to buy the Sky Bet Championship club.

Cambodian businessman Vong Pech has fronted Birmingham Sports Holdings Limited’s ownership since a takeover in 2016, but this latest move would involve the disposal of 24% of their shares and 21.64 per cent of shares owned by Oriental Rainbow Investments Limited.

A club statement reads: "The parties involved will now enter a period of exclusive negotiation to agree the final terms of the transactions which will formulate the Definitive Agreements."

"The Definitive Agreements are expected to be entered into within two months of the date of the letters of intent, at which time the potential purchaser will also be announced."

Birmingham City FC was charged by the EFL in February over alleged breaches of league regulations.

At the time, the EFL said: "Having comprehensively reviewed all relevant issues, the EFL has now determined there is sufficient evidence to justify issuing various charges of misconduct."

Birmingham City FC confirmed on Wednesday (12 April) that it will seek the approval and consent of the EFL during this process.

It was revealed last month that the Blues recorded a £24.8m loss in the financial year ending in June 2022.

The EFL announced later on Wednesday the punishment handed out to Matthew Southall, Paul Richardson and Maxi Lopez for the breaches they made during a failed takeover bid of Birmingham last year.

"Matthew Southall, Paul Richardson and Maxi Lopez have all admitted to breaching EFL Regulations in respect of the Owners and Directors’ Test (OADT) following their unapproved involvement with Birmingham City Football Club in 2022," an EFL statement read.

"Following a thorough investigation, the three individuals have accepted that they had acquired control of the club without going through the appropriate sign-off procedure with the EFL.

"In addition, Mr Southall also accepted a charge of misconduct after admitting to signing a false declaration regarding his role as a relevant person under EFL regulations.

"As a result of admitting the charges, Mr Southall is now prohibited from being a relevant person for a period of six months, three months of which are to be suspended until the end of the 2023/24 season.

"Mr Richardson and Mr Lopez are also banned from being a relevant person for a period of two months and one month respectively, which are to be suspended until the end of the 2023/24 season.

"All three individuals, who are liable for £45,000 of the associated costs with the investigation, have entered into an agreed decision with the league as provided for in the regulations."

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