Melbourne Heart marquee man Harry Kewell celebrates with fans last Friday after the club beat Newcastle Jets 3-1 at AAMI Park to break a lengthy winless run Picture: George Salpigtidis Source: News Limited
ENGLISH Premier League club Manchester City is the major shareholder of a group that has acquired A-League club Melbourne Heart.
And, as revealed exclusively by The Australian in October, the ownership group involved with NRL club Melbourne Storm will have a 20 per cent stake in the embattled club.
Heart revealed the stunning news, which will send shock waves through Australian soccer, this morning.
The deal will take effect immediately.
Ferran Soriano, CEO of Manchester City, said: "We are excited about the opportunity to make Melbourne Heart one of the most successful football clubs in Australia and throughout the region.
" We believe the strong sports culture of Melbourne combined with the football and commercial expertise within our consortium will make for a powerful combination both on and off the pitch".
Bart Campbell, chairman of the holding company Heart Consortium Group and chairman of the Melbourne Storm NRL side, said: "Partnering with City to co-invest in Melbourne Heart will further strengthen the sporting landscape in one of the world's greatest cities and bring a range of new capabilities to AAMI Park.
"We are excited to be a part of this unique project. It is our shared ambition to replicate the model that City created with the New York Yankees around New York City FC and for both organisations to benefit as a result".
Current Heart chairman and shareholder Peter Sidwell said the time was right for him and the other shareholders to move on.
"The board feels that with the successful establishment and evolution of the Club over the last four years, Melbourne Heart now stands on sound commercial and financial foundations. The Board feels that the next phase of the club's development can be most fully realised with this new investment and the associated benefits that the enthusiasm of the consortium will bring".
The move has the full blessing of Football Federation Australia with CEO David Gallop hailing it as a vote of confidence in the future of the A-League.
"Football has moved into the mainstream of Australian sport and is ideally placed to benefit from the boom in football across Asia," Gallop said.
"Manchester City and their Australian partners have made a strategic investment and I welcome them to our growing competition. It's another sign that the world is taking notice of Australian football
"Manchester City and their partners will bring a high level of expertise in football and sports business matters and that can only strengthen the Melbourne Heart and the A-League as a whole."
City said it will not rush into decisions regarding the Heart. It said the current coaching staff will remain in place until the end if the season.
"The first thing we must do is take the time to listen and learn and then to develop our strategy for strengthening the Club over time, " Soriano said
Manchester City recently became involved in the US Major League Soccer, after the establishment of New York City Football Club in May 2013.
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