Exeter Chiefs set for US investment as Prem Rugby flurry continues
Exeter Chiefs are set to become the latest in a flurry of Prem Rugby clubs to take fresh investment, with American backing set for Sandy Park.
An extraordinary general meeting will be held next month to vote on plans which would see an unnamed US backer make a multimillion pound investment in the Devonshire club.
The Guardian reports that members will be urged to support the motion.
The club’s chairman, Tony Rowe, who has bankrolled Exeter Chiefs’ journey from the second tier to European champions, has said he can no longer fund the club in the long term and has explored and aborted plans to list on a stock market.
“The proposal is for the members to accept,” Rowe told the Guardian. “At the moment I can’t discuss what that proposal is in any shape or form, other than it is an American investor. They want to get involved in English rugby.”
Exeter Chiefs set for new investment
Should the fresh investment be approved, it would follow energy drinks tycoon Red Bull’s entry into England’s top flight Prem Rugby league with Newcastle and the multimillion pound investment from billionaire Sir James Dyson into defending champions Bath.
Exeter Chiefs’ West Country rivals Gloucester Rugby, too, appear to be seeking investment from across the Atlantic, with owner Martin St Quinton stating in promotion for a crowdfunding aimed at fans that the lack of relegation makes the league more attractive to American investors.
The Devonshire club, whose ranks include the likes of England player Henry Slade and former Wales captain Dafydd Jenkins, posted losses of £10.3m in their most recent accounts amid a billow of negative returns across the Prem.
Investing in England’s top flight guarantees a share of the central revenue, 27 per cent of which goes to private equity giant CVC Capital Partners, which recently spun its disparate sports assets into umbrella company Global Sports Group.
Global Sports Group features CVC Capital Partners’ Prem Rugby investment alongside stakes in the Guinness Six Nations and multi-national United Rugby Championship.
A review of Prem Rugby conducted by Big Four firm Deloitte and the merchant Raine Group bank concluded that the top flight should franchise itself by the end of the decade before expanding to up to 20 teams by 2040.