TEXAS, USA — Everton and a Texas-based group have entered into exclusive negotiations, according to the Premiere League club.
Friedkin Group, which boasts a portfolio that includes Italian club AS Roma, has been granted a period to buy a majority stake in Everton. According to the Associated Press, its portfolio includes luxury hotels, resorts, golf clubs and adventure industries.
Everton said it has received “significant interest from several highly respected parties” to invest in the club. Friedkin Group's move comes after a proposed takeover by Florida-based 777 Partners fell through earlier this month.
The Friedkin Group's other companies include Gulf States Toyota, which Forbes said sold $9.1 billion worth of Toyotas in 2022.
Its production company 30 West was behind the Martin Scorsese and Leonardo Di Caprio movie Killers of the Flower Moon.
The group bought Roma for $700 million in 2020 and since then the club has gone on to win the Europa Conference League in 2022 and finish runner-up in the Europa League a year later. That might give Everton fans hope after a troubled period on the field and uncertainty over its ownership.
Last season it received two separate points deductions for breaching the Premier League’s financial rules, but still managed to secure its top-flight status for another year.
Everton was a founding member of the English Football League in 1888 and Premier League in 1992. During the 1980s it was one of English soccer’s most successful teams, winning the league title twice, the FA Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup.
Everton has not won a major trophy since the FA Cup in 1995 and has gone through a period of frequent managerial upheaval.
