Thomas Sandgaard confirms purchase of Charlton Athletic after being approved as director by EFL
Thomas Sandgaard has announced he is the new owner of Charlton Athletic.
The Danish businessman, 62, posted an announcement on social media today.
And a press release issued by the Colorado-based businessman, who is a US citizen, said he had taken 100 per cent ownership of the League One outfit off East Street Investments.
The statement read: “The completion of the acquisition follows the successful conclusion of the English Football League’s Owners’ and Directors’ Test in respect of Thomas Sandgaard, in accordance with the requirements of the EFL Regulations.
“Sandgaard shared this about the acquisition: “While there was an injunction in place to prevent the acquisition of ESI, it did not prevent the acquisition of the club itself and so I am thrilled to announce that I have acquired the club from ESI.
“With the club about to run out of funds this month, it was important that I moved quickly to complete the acquisition and put funds in to the club to ensure its survival.
“The club will also be working quickly post-completion to recover any losses suffered as a result of the actions of the previous owners to the extent possible.
“I am truly humbled by all the support from Charlton fans, honoured to officially become part of the Charlton family and be part of a team that will lead the club into a successful future.
“The Charlton community is one-of -a-kind. They welcomed and embraced this change of hands with more openness than many others would have given Charlton’s history.”
“About his interest in English football Thomas said: ”I have always had two passions – rock music and football. I was a bit of a nerd when I was 13 so decided to go out and buy a guitar because I loved music and wanted to be one of the cool kids – and become a rock musician.
“I ultimately ended up playing in lots of rock bands in the seventies and early eighties. My love of football started when I played at an amateur level in Denmark and then really fell in love with the English game when I watched the FA Cup finals on Danish television in the 1970s. In the last few years, I’ve reached a point financially where I can really do something like this.
“Four months ago, a friend asked, ‘Have you thought about owning an English football club?’ And I thought, wow, that could be one of the most positive things that I could ever be a part of.”
The club has been under a transfer embargo since the start of January but the indications are that will be lifted and manager Lee Bowyer can press ahead with adding to his squad.
One deal set to be concluded is for Adam Matthews, who was on the Addicks books last season but has been a free agent since the last Championship campaign finished.
East Street Investments bought the club off Roland Duchatelet at the start of January for £1 – but then failed to obtain EFL approval for a takeover.
That had a major impact on Bowyer as he and director of football Steve Gallen were unable to significantly strengthen the squad at the start of 2020 – as well as losing star performers in Conor Gallagher and Jonathan Leko, who returned to Chelsea and West Brom respectively.
The EFL applied an even more stringent transfer embargo on the SE7 club from April which saw them only able to offer £1,300 a week to new signings – and they also counted Charlton as having a 23-man squad already as they counted any young players who had made a senior appearance.
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After my somewhat gloomy post this morning, my son phoned me to tell me the fantastic news that Thomas Sandgaard has acquired CAFC. There are a lot of negatives in life at present, what with Covid etc, but this is truly brilliant news and has lifted my spirits no end. I have been a Charlton supporter since I was 9 years of age and 60 years on, they are still a passion of mine. There is a lot to do before we can really get excited, but with the transfer embargo going to be lifted soon, I will be very interested who Bowyer and co have got lined up. As you say Richard, one is probably Adam Matthews. I was at the game on Saturday and I’m sure Ben Watson was sitting a few rows back from me. I’m sure we have heard the last from the ‘chancers’, Elliott and co, but we must all celebrate this takeover. I feel this is the real deal. COYR’s.