THE Newcastle Jets hope to secure a new owner by Christmas after engaging financial advisory firm KordaMentha to sell the club.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
KordaMentha last week brokered the transfer of fellow A-League franchise Perth Glory to Melbourne property moguls Robert Brij and John Nekic.
Previous Perth owner Tony Sage had placed the club into administration in July and KordaMentha were appointed as receivers.
However, Newcastle executive chairman Shane Mattiske said that was not the case with the Jets.
The four owners of rival clubs, who have been bankrolling the Jets since Chinese businessman Martin Lee had his licence stripped in January, 2021, will continue to operate the club.
"It is very different," Mattiske said. "KordaMentha were the receivers at Perth Glory, but they have two expertises. One is as administrators, the other is selling businesses.
"The owners have followed the process they ran in Perth and are aware that they have talked to the market both domestically and also reached out internationally.
"We waited for the Perth process to be finished and have now moved to engage KordaMentha to use all the knowledge they built at Perth to assist with the process at the Jets. This is solely about finding permanent owners for the Newcastle Jets in Newcastle."
The Herald has previously reported that the price tag for the Jets is about $15 million.
KordaMentha partner Scott Langdon said he expected a lot of interest in the sale of the Jets.
The Glory sale came on the heels of American billionaire, Bill Foley, securing the licence for a new Auckland franchise.
KordaMentha partner Scott Langdon said he expected strong interest in the sale of the Jets.
"Our sale process is focused on the Jets having new owners prior to Christmas, so the Jets can enter 2024 with new ownership and a long-term vision for sustained success," Langdon said in a statement.
"The A-Leagues is expanding. With Auckland just announced as joining the competition, the game continues to increase its popularity and profile in the Australian market.
"Aside from growth here in Australia, football is the world game, so we anticipate expressions of interest from parties around the world who understand what it takes to run a professional sports club."
Mattiske said while the owners will continue to meet all obligations, the intention was for the arrangement to be temporary.
"When they stepped in to support the Jets, the owners were focused on building stability, establishing growth and sustainability and finally to support the transition to a more permanent owner," Mattiske said. "Now is the time for the final part of that plan to take place. "They've delivered on that plan and now we can confidently move to new ownership and a bright future."
There have reportedly been a number of interested parties, including a Melbourne-based consortium and an American one, in taking over the Jets in the past 18 months but nothing has come to fruition.
However, Mattiske believes the club is better placed now.
"Sponsorship has doubled over the last two years, as has membership, with the club targeting 8,500 members for the 2023/24 season," he said. "The club now has highly competitive men's and women's A-Leagues teams which are importantly underpinned by a strong academy containing 13 boys and girls teams which are delivering exciting talent into these teams."
