Stricter penalties urged on FX real estate purchases    Egypt allocates EGP 9.7bn to Suez governorate for development projects in FY 2023/24    20 Israeli soldiers killed in resistance operations: Hamas spokesperson    Health Minister emphasises state's commitment to developing nursing sector    Sudan aid talks stall as army, SPLM-N clash over scope    Madbouly conducts inspection tour of industrial, technological projects in Beni Suef    Taiwan's tech sector surges 19.4% in April    France deploys troops, blocks TikTok in New Caledonia amid riots    Egypt allocates EGP 7.7b to Dakahlia's development    Microsoft eyes relocation for China-based AI staff    Abu Dhabi's Lunate Capital launches Japanese ETF    Asian stocks soar after milder US inflation data    K-Movement Culture Week: Decade of Korean cultural exchange in Egypt celebrated with dance, music, and art    Egypt considers unified Energy Ministry amid renewable energy push    Empower Her Art Forum 2024: Bridging creative minds at National Museum of Egyptian Civilization    Niger restricts Benin's cargo transport through togo amidst tensions    Egypt's museums open doors for free to celebrate International Museum Day    Egypt and AstraZeneca discuss cooperation in supporting skills of medical teams, vaccination programs    Madinaty Open Air Mall Welcomes Boom Room: Egypt's First Social Entertainment Hub    Egyptian consortium nears completion of Tanzania's Julius Nyerere hydropower project    Sweilam highlights Egypt's water needs, cooperation efforts during Baghdad Conference    AstraZeneca injects $50m in Egypt over four years    Egypt, AstraZeneca sign liver cancer MoU    Swiss freeze on Russian assets dwindles to $6.36b in '23    Climate change risks 70% of global workforce – ILO    Prime Minister Madbouly reviews cooperation with South Sudan    Egypt retains top spot in CFA's MENA Research Challenge    Egyptian public, private sectors off on Apr 25 marking Sinai Liberation    Debt swaps could unlock $100b for climate action    Amal Al Ghad Magazine congratulates President Sisi on new office term    Egyptian, Japanese Judo communities celebrate new coach at Tokyo's Embassy in Cairo    Financial literacy becomes extremely important – EGX official    Euro area annual inflation up to 2.9% – Eurostat    BYD، Brazil's Sigma Lithium JV likely    UNESCO celebrates World Arabic Language Day    Motaz Azaiza mural in Manchester tribute to Palestinian journalists    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



US billionaire invests in English amateur club
Published in Daily News Egypt on 05 - 11 - 2010

LONDON: It's hardly on the same level as the takeovers of Liverpool or Manchester United.
But American tycoon Robert Rich Jr.'s investment in an amateur soccer team in northeast England has fans of Bedlington Terriers dreaming of the big time.
“Mr. Rich said he wants to help the underdogs and he wants to help Bedlington achieve what they are capable of,” Terriers club secretary David Collop told The Associated Press on Thursday. “This is like a fairytale come true with him getting involved.”
Bedlington is nowhere near the stature of Liverpool, which was bought by the owners of the Boston Red Sox last month for $476 million. And it's hardly on a par with Manchester United, which was bought in 2005 by the Glazer family, the owners of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, in a leveraged buyout worth $1.4 billion.
Instead, the tiny club way up north is in the ninth tier of English soccer and only five years ago nearly went out of business. Now the club has a wealthy benefactor in Rich, a 69-year-old businessman from Buffalo, N.Y., who owns three minor league baseball teams.
“Could the Bedlington Terriers become an international brand—even an international icon?” Rich said in The Journal in Newcastle, without answering his own question. “We're having fun.
“I've been in baseball for a long time, so I know the fun you can have with a business. But we're not in that—we're helping people who need help.”
Rich is No. 488 on the Forbes rich list after making his $2 billion fortune in the food manufacturing and catering empire. He hasn't bought
Bedlington, but he has become the shirt sponsor and lavished the club with a new electronic scoreboard valued at $47,000.
Rich's association with Bedlington, a town devastated by the collapse of the coal industry in the 1980s, charts back to last year. He discovered he had ancestral links to the town, which is located 10 miles north of Newcastle and bears similarities to his native Buffalo.
For a Christmas present last year, his wife bought him the title “Lord of Bedlington” and he soon became interested in the local team, into which he is putting a tiny part of his vast fortune.
The chairman of Rich Products Corporation saw one Terriers match—a league game against northern rival Dunston UTS—and has been in touch with club chairman Dave Holmes.
Rich is planning to sell Bedlington shirts around the stadiums of his baseball teams—the Buffalo Bisons, the Northwest Arkansas Naturals and the Jamestown Jammers—with the aim of making them a cult item for American sports fans.
“He is merchandising all our replica shirts and scarfs in America, through his teams and through his corporation,” Collop said. “His PR team are giving us advice on merchandising and marketing and I'll sure he'll be investing more in the future.”
But will the Terriers, in seventh place in the STL Northern League Division One, soon be marching up the league ladder? Not according to Collop.
“We're not going to be splashing the cash,” the club secretary said.
“Everybody is asking us what our ultimate ambition would be. Mine would be to see the Terriers run out for a (fourth-tier) Football League game. But that's a while off yet.
“We aren't looking for a quick-fix promotion. Remember, five years ago, the Terriers were within five minutes of going out of business, from folding. That would have been the end of Bedlington Terriers.”
Bedlington is hardly a household name in English soccer. The club's most famous player may be Trevor Benjamin, a journeyman striker who played for former Premier League side Leicester from 2000-05. The team has an average attendance at Welfare Park that barely reaches 100.
“I haven't made any promises,” Rich said The Journal. “Having said that, I would love to see them do well and let them challenge me to increase our participation, whether to increase sponsorship or whatever.
“I'm still learning about British football, and I understand that if they do well on the field it can move up in divisions. If this is the dream the community has, I want to help. I don't want to become an owner, I just want to help.”


Clic here to read the story from its source.