- Oct 20, 2003
- 11,415
- 30,053
Have pasted in relevant section from this article from Matt Slater this morning
Game on, Spurs for sale again’?
On Wednesday, Joe Lewis pleaded guilty to charges of insider trading in the U.S.
This was news because the 86-year-old Londoner owned Tottenham Hotspur between 1991 and 2022, when he quietly passed control of the Premier League club to a family trust.
Back then, the vibe from the club was very much “nothing has changed; business as usual”, but that became “Joe who?” when he was charged last summer.
At that point, Lewis also strongly denied the charges, which were related to him passing on stock-market tips about companies he part-owned to his girlfriends, assistants and the pilots of his private jet.
Billionaire former Premier League club owner pleads guilty to fraud: 'I am so embarrassed'
But on Wednesday he changed his tune, holding his hand up to three of the charges and saying he was “so embarrassed” and would like to apologise.
Of course, this has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with Spurs and it must just be a coincidence that within half an hour of the story breaking, a leading football dealmaker contacted The Athletic to say “Game on, Spurs for sale again”.
We shall be watching this space.
The Business of Football: A Jurgen Klopp-shaped hole for Liverpool and 'game on' for Spurs?
It's been a remarkable week in the business of football. Matt Slater takes you through it
theathletic.com
Game on, Spurs for sale again’?
On Wednesday, Joe Lewis pleaded guilty to charges of insider trading in the U.S.
This was news because the 86-year-old Londoner owned Tottenham Hotspur between 1991 and 2022, when he quietly passed control of the Premier League club to a family trust.
Back then, the vibe from the club was very much “nothing has changed; business as usual”, but that became “Joe who?” when he was charged last summer.
At that point, Lewis also strongly denied the charges, which were related to him passing on stock-market tips about companies he part-owned to his girlfriends, assistants and the pilots of his private jet.
Billionaire former Premier League club owner pleads guilty to fraud: 'I am so embarrassed'
But on Wednesday he changed his tune, holding his hand up to three of the charges and saying he was “so embarrassed” and would like to apologise.
Of course, this has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with Spurs and it must just be a coincidence that within half an hour of the story breaking, a leading football dealmaker contacted The Athletic to say “Game on, Spurs for sale again”.
We shall be watching this space.