Former Swansea City owner John van Zweden has detailed how he ended up owning the club, without his wife knowing.
ELF Voetbal have an interview with the Dutchman today in which he explains how he ended up as part of a takeover at Swansea in 2002.
He was a minority shareholder and director at the Welsh club as part of a local consortium that saved them from financial ruin back in 2002. The ‘Swansea Jacks Ltd’ group, made up of local fans and businesspeople stabilised the club after seizing control from Tony Petty.
Under their guidance, Swansea secured several promotions, won a League Cup and were in the Premier League for seven seasons as well. Van Zweden was a passionate and vocal board member during this period.
They eventually sold their shares in 2016 to an American consortium led by Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan. Van Zweden’s 5.3% stake netted him around £5.5m at the time.
He, though, insists he was never in it for the money. His love for Swansea runs much deeper than that, having started when he was a child. In fact, it ran so deep he had to hide his role in the purchase of them from his wife.
“Isn’t it a dream? That you, like a ‘wallpaperer’, buy the football club you’ve been playing for years together with your friends?” he said.
“I’ve been friends with them for years. That friendship started when, as a teenager, I was given a school assignment to find a British pen pal to improve my English.”
“After attending the Fulham-Swansea match with my father, I placed a request for a pen pal in the club magazine. That’s how I got in touch with David Morgan, a fanatical Swansea supporter. After that, I attended more Swansea matches and made more and more friends. I really loved that club.
“That evening (of the sale), I called home to say I was in England for a match. That happened often. I always let them know where I was. But then, suddenly, I wasn’t just sitting there as a regular fan in the stands, but as the owner of the football club. Bizarre.
“Normally, I flew back on Sunday after a match, but now I had to stay until Monday to fill out all the paperwork. I called with an excuse that the plane was delayed and thought I’ll tell her when I get back. But my wife already knew.
“Before Roman Abramovich took over Chelsea, I was the first foreign investor in a British club. So, the BBC wanted to know who this guy was and showed up at our house early Sunday morning. Once home, I had some explaining to do.”
