Burnley owner Alan Pace has reassured fans there will be no mixing of the club with Espanyol, despite his successful purchase of the Spanish club.
La Vanguardia cover comments from the Burnley owner today. He was speaking after his purchase of Espanyol was made official yesterday.
The newspaper explains that Espanyol are now in the hands of Pace’s company Velocity Sports Partners. They’ve acquired a majority stake from Chinese businessman Chen Yansheng. That deal was signed yesterday.
Espanyol announced the change in their shareholding structure this morning. That officially marks the beginning of Pace’s ownership of the club.
The deal has been worked on for months, with the American keen to expand his football network beyond Burnley. He’s paid an initial €65m for the purchase, with another €65m still to be paid. He can also later buy 16.45% of shares from the previous ownership.
On the face it appears he is building his own network of football clubs. That has become the norm in recent years for various ownership groups. Several Premier League teams are now part of such groups, either directly or indirectly.
Burnley will retain own “identity, leadership, independence, decision-making”
Pace, though, wants to assure fans of Burnley and Espanyol that both clubs will be run separately from the other.
“Our role is not to replace the legacy, but to build on it, with care, clarity, and purpose,” he said.
“Football has always belonged to its people. It’s not a question of ownership, but of management. Burnley will remain Burnley. Espanyol will remain Espanyol.
“Each club will retain its own identity, leadership, independence, and decision-making. Each club will be run by its own team and for its own fans.”
There is likely to be cooperation and knowledge share between the two clubs, but not at the expense of the identity of either.
