Top 5 Football Clubs owned by billionaire Asians
Football clubs across Europe are spending huge bucks on signing players. Top players receive wages to the tune of €400,000 a week. The transfer fee that is charged has grown ridiculous than ever.
Before all this action took place many of the top clubs were close to shutting down and were on the verge of bankruptcy. The pumping of oil money in the form of these billionaires has breathed life into these clubs.
Here are 5 Top Clubs owned by the billionaires from Arabia and Asia:
#5 Hull City
Hull City was established in 1904, in Yorkshire, England. The club officially took part in the Second Division in 1905. In the beginning, Hull City didn’t have a stadium of their own; this led to much inconvenience for the club. The club played their first few football matches on a cricket ground, as they had no place of their own.
The club didn’t have much success in the Second Division. It was relegated to the Third Division in 1930. In the same year, the club managed to reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup, their greatest achievement till 2008.
The club was in a steep decline as they failed to win any silverware. They often found themselves relegated at the end of the season. The club was relegated to the Fourth Division in 1980. They faced a severe financial crisis and faced a collapse in the early 1980’s.
After decades of financial uncertainty and disappointment, the club finally made a comeback in 2001. Its performance in the Third Division improved drastically. The club management made positive change. They moved to their new stadium - KC Stadium in 2002 after spending 56 years at Boothferry Park.
The club was promoted to the Second Division in 2005. In its first season, the Tigers finished in the 18th place, their best finish in 16 years. Under manager Phil Brown, Hull City’s performance improved tremendously. For the first time in history, they were promoted to the Premier League in 2008. The club was relegated to the Second Division in 2010 after a string of disappointing performances.
The club brought in manager Steve Bruce in 2012. He successfully guided the club in earning their second promotion to the premier league in 2013. The club played in the FA Cup finals for the first time in 2014. They also qualified for the UEFA Europe League in the same season, their first European campaign ever. The club was relegated to the Second Division in the 2016-17 season.
In 2010 Egyptian businessman Assem Allam bought the club. Mr. Allam studied at the reputed University of Hull and he hoped that he could give back to the society through the club. He has promised to invest over £40 million in the club.
After his arrival, the club was promoted to the premier league in 2013. His style of management met with severe protests from the fans. His inability to sign new talent and his controversial decision to change the name of the club to Hull City Tigers has resulted in disaster. The fans were not happy with the name change and this led to a decreasing attendance.
The club’s relationship with its owner has been rocky. The team's performance has declined as the squad is often plagued by injuries and a lack of experienced players. By the end of 2017, Mr. Allam had announced that he would be willing to sell the club to potential buyers. The club's future looks gloomy as it hopes to find investments from new owners.