Golf superstar Jordan Spieth has confirmed he is now part of San Francisco 49ers Enterprises’ takeover of Leeds United.
Spieth was speaking to Sky Sports journalist Keith Downie earlier today, where he revealed both he and Justin Thomas now have minority stakes in Leeds, though Rickie Fowler has pulled out.
Despite now having withdrawn, Fowler first revealed the golfing trio’s interest in joining 49ers’ Enterprises’ investment group almost a month ago.
This came just days after an agreement had been reached between 49ers Enterprises and Andrea Radrizzani’s Aser Ventures, with EFL approval still yet to arrive over four weeks on.
The group is said to have as many as 60 investors in it which fall into two categories, with 11 of them classed as the ‘big players’ and source of much of the funds needed to complete the purchase of Leeds.
Spieth confirms he has joined 49ers Enterprises alongside Thomas
Spieth and Thomas, however, fall into a large group of minor investors viewed as contributing ‘added value’ to the takeover, which NBA star Larry Nance jr is already confirmed as apart of.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Spieth revealed that an agreement had been reached between the golfing duo and the 49ers, and it is something he is very pleased to be apart of.
He said: “It’s done. Myself and Justin (Thomas) with a minority stake. The 49ers beat my Cowboys every year, so if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em!
“I’m excited to have a team I’m emotionally invested in. I’ve watched The Premier League intently for a few years. Hopefully we’ll be back there very soon. It was cloudy on the flight up (from London — at Wimbledon). We were hoping we’d see the stadium on the way up but we couldn’t.
“I was thinking we’re not too far from Liverpool (at The Open) next week. I don’t know if it’ll work on this trip but I hope to get there.
“We thought it would be a cool opportunity. It’s a big city, historic club, great venue in Elland Road, and once we looked into it we realised it could be really exciting.”
On the face of it, this only looks as though it could be positive for the club. The more investors, the more money Leeds are going to have to invest into improving both the football side of things, and infrastructure.
The aforementioned NBA player Nance jr has already confirmed he has absolutely no say in the big decisions at Leeds, meaning even if there is over 60 investors, only a minority will be making the calls.
