A-League club Newcastle Jets could have new owners by Christmas
The owners of the Newcastle Jets have put the financially strained A-League club up for sale in an attempt to find a business or person that can provide long-term funding and support young talent.
A consortium made up of several A-Leagues clubs has controlled the Jets since January 2021, when previous owner Martin Lee was stripped of his licence for failing to invest in the club or pay off debts.
Newcastle Jets could have new owners by the end of the season. Getty
Shane Mattiske, executive chairman of Newcastle Jets Football Club, said now was the right time to find a permanent owner.
“The focus was to stabilise the club and turn it to growth. It was always a transitional ownership,” Mr Mattiske said. “We’ve had approaches from different parties … but this is the first time we’re running a formal process.”
“It’s important to find a more permanent owner who has the right background, credentials and expertise.”
The Jets club was formed in 2000 as part of the National Soccer League (NSL) and was one of only three NSL clubs to join the inaugural season of the A-League in 2005. It has been without an owner since January 2021, when Chinese-based businessman Mr Lee had his A-League licence revoked.
Mr Lee had purchased the club for $5.5 million in 2016 but had put it up for sale by 2019, having tipped in about $15 million in three years.
The owners of Western Sydney Wanderers, Sydney FC and Western United have kept the Jets alive since Mr Lee’s removal, and replaced him with Mr Mattiske.
Mr Mattiske said club sponsorship had doubled over the last two years and the club planned to achieve 8500 members by the end of the season.
The club has previously received inbound interest. In February 2022, The Sydney Morning Herald reported the Jets were on the brink of doing a deal with an American consortium with links to American, English and Welsh football clubs.
Scott Langdon, partner at KordaMentha, said he had been blown away by the support of the club by locals and the growth in popularity of the sport from the success of the Matildas in the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
“The soccer club is such a big part of the community. We want to find a long-term, dedicated person to run it,” Mr Langdon said.
The sale process comes four months after the resignation of the team’s coach, Arthur Papas, who walked away amid concerns about the instability at the club and lack of funding. Papas, who was once an assistant coach to Tottenham Hotspurs manager Ange Postecoglou, urged stakeholders last year to resolve the club’s ownership issue and warned it might not exist if a permanent owner wasn’t found.
Mr Mattiske said the new owner needed strong business credentials and an understanding of how important the club was to the Newcastle community.
“It’s going to be important to bring in an owner that’s aligned ... and that can take the club forward into its next chapter,” he said.
The Jets are the second A-League club to be put up for sale in the last few months. The Australian Financial Review revealed last week that another embattled club, Perth Glory, had found a buyer to replace its long-time owner Tony Sage. Melbourne property developer Robert Brij and entrepreneur John Nekic, signed a multimillion-dollar deal last week that will attempt to make the West Australian team financially viable.
KordaMentha, who advised Perth Glory, is also running this sale process, which will run in two parts. Mr Mattiske said KordaMentha had the right expertise in terms of selling an elite club. KordaMentha expects to find new owners before Christmas.
The Australian Premier League is planning to expand its competitions into Canberra and Auckland from next season – bringing the men’s and women’s competitions to 16 teams each. The APL announced earlier this month that billionaire Bill Foley was the preferred bidder for the New Zealand-based teams.
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