Sunderland have responded to their increasingly disgruntled fan base by confirming that the owner, Stewart Donald, is actively attempting to sell the League One club.
A concerted alliance of assorted supporter groups bolstered by a social media campaign has urged Donald to quit Wearside and, in a statement on Tuesday, Sunderland outlined his plans to grant their wish.
In reality the owner has been attempting to find a buyer for several months, coming close to selling Sunderland on more than one occasion. Moreover matters are complicated by the £9m loan from FPP, a group of American investors with close links to Michael Dell, of Dell computers. Should Donald default on repayment, the terms of that loan would lead to the club falling automatically into FPP’s hands next season.
Supporter groups underwhelmed by the owner’s choice of Phil Parkinson as manager after sacking Jack Ross in October would prefer much swifter action but, first, a realistic purchaser must be identified and the FPP relationship potentially untangled.
Matters came to a head after a Boxing Day draw with Bolton at the Stadium of Light and, despite results subsequently improving, Donald is clearly attempting to smoke out possible buyers.
“Given Stewart Donald’s sincere commitment on his arrival at Sunderland AFC that ‘I won’t outstay my welcome’, the board feels that it has no option but to sell the club,” Sunderland said. “That process has now commenced.”
Donald bought Sunderland from Ellis Short, a billionaire American businessman, in May 2018 after successive relegations had plunged the club from the Premier League into the third tier for only the second season in their history. When Ross narrowly failed to secure promotion supporters became increasingly critical of the former Eastleigh owner and his board.
Short’s successor evidently hopes this latest move will serve as an appeasement tactic and has called for harmony until new owners are installed and he can return to his former life in Oxfordshire.
Significantly Donald, who is understood to feel wounded by the supporter campaign, signalled there would be money to spend in January – almost certainly thanks to the FPP loan – and has pleaded with fans to support Parkinson who, after the slowest of starts, has lifted Sunderland into ninth place, only a point short of a play-off position.
Accordingly Sunderland’s statement attempted to challenge the gloom-laden narrative. “Whilst progress on the pitch has been slower than all associated with Sunderland AFC would have liked, the club has become one of the very few in the EFL to be debt free and break even on an operational basis. With that stable base, the significant investment by FPP, and the team now back in contention for promotion, the board believes that Sunderland continues to head in the right direction.
“Given the scale of the task on arriving at the club and the amount of hard work put in over the last 18 months, the current owners would have preferred more time to complete the job and fully implement the vision originally laid out. However, recent events indicate that is not what some fans wish for – and, as football supporters themselves, the board understands that long-term success cannot be achieved by a disunited club.”
Donald then signed off with that plea for unity. “We would like to reassure loyal fans we are placing sufficient funds in the club to support the manager as he seeks to improve the first team in the next few weeks,” he said. “Finally, I just ask that fans now unite to support the players and the coaching staff.”