INSIDE STORY OF A NEW LEASE OF LIFE AT LEEDS
The 49ers full takeover of Leeds was met with scepticism in some quarters but Mail Sport goes behind the scenes and finds a club with ambitious and intelligent plans
PARAAG Marathe, the new chairman of Leeds United, negotiates player contracts with hard-nosed agents for the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers, so he is no stranger to a tough audience.
Perhaps that is just as well given that is exactly what he got in a suite in the West Stand of Elland Road as he addressed Leeds staff for the first time.
After he had outlined plans following the completion of 49ers Enterprises’ takeover earlier this month, it was time to throw it to the floor. ‘Any questions?’ Marathe asked. The first was more a demand: ‘You can’t change the name of the stadium!’ a long-serving stalwart shouted.
Marathe, a smile on his face, assured the staffer that there were absolutely no plans to do so.
There was scepticism. This is Yorkshire, after all. They do it well at a club that spent 16 years outside the top flight. But it is fading. At Leeds there is now optimism. It may sound strange following last season’s exhausting relegation from the top flight, but it is there — and it is growing.
There is another emotion floating around the offices: relief. While Andrea Radrizzani’s entrepreneurial reign, which is now at an end, restored the club to its rightful place for three seasons, it was also fraught with uncertainty. It felt temporary. The club existed month-to-month.
That is no longer the case. From the moment the ink dried on the completion of the 49ers takeover, there was surety of funding, a rare commodity in modern football. With it comes the ability to plan for the long term — that is already happening.
Mail Sport has taken a close look at the early days of the new Leeds United. What it discovered is an old institution taking the first steps of rebirth. While the 49ers had been part- owners for five years, the conclusion of the deal has already been transformative.
The Americans quickly got to work. Aside from promotion, the priority is Elland Road. Currently, Leeds bank £1million per match at their decaying home. That puts them £4m behind Tottenham.
Leeds have 24,000 season-ticket holders. There are 20,000 more on a waiting list. Plans are being drawn up to increase capacity to 55,000 from 38,000 with a raft of corporate hospitality offerings in revamped East and North stands. The gap to Spurs will be bridged.
Much-needed redevelopment, which was effectively on hold under Radrizzani, is gathering pace. Planning consultants have started work. Designs have been drawn. Costs have been estimated at £200m. The money is there, as is the expertise.
In 2014, the 49ers moved from the iconic but crumbling Candlestick Park to the stateof-the-art Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Silicon Valley.
It can be disclosed that the man who worked on the funding for that £1billion move is already doing likewise for Elland Road. A group who managed Levi’s construction has now switched its attention from the West Coast to West Yorkshire.
There has already been reassurance for the sceptics. Among the early drawings for redevelopment were a bunch of modern designs based on a futuristic bowl-like structure similar to so many newbuilds. The Americans were clear — they did not want that. Instead, they pointed down the M62 to the recent expansion of Anfield. Raucous Elland Road will keep many of its original fittings. It will just become a bigger, even more raucous Elland Road.
It is telling that there has been hesitation over the improvement of the WiFi within the ground. While the benefits are obvious, there is a view in the boardroom they have one of the few venues where fans keep their phones in their pockets and concentrate on backing their team for 90 minutes rather than filming themselves celebrating. Whether WiFi would dilute the atmosphere is part of the conversation. ‘These people get it,’ says one staff member. There is a level of cultural awareness that is lacking in some American owners now in charge of English clubs.
It is understood senior officials in the new ownership group have even demanded of English staff that if they ‘start to make mistakes Americans make’, then they must be told about it. The 20 acres surrounding the ground, neglected for so long, will also be put to good use. Among the investors the 49ers have brought on board is Peter Lowy, the leading Australian businessman whose family recently sold the Westfield Group for £26bn. Lowy, it can be disclosed, is in talks with Leeds City Council about that vast horseshoe-shaped swathe of land.
THEY are ambitious. Leeds has, for too long, been a city held back by a transport system that consists of buses and more buses. There is no underground, no tram network.
While it is early, discussions include the prospect of Elland Road becoming a transport hub to link neglected south Leeds with a city centre it has been disconnected from since the building of the M621 in the early Seventies.
Other work has been quicker to come to fruition. One example is staffing levels. Leeds, one of the big names of English football, had half the number of workers of Brighton and hove Albion. The
stadium manager not only also looked after the training ground but staggeringly tripled-up as the director of iT. a commercial recruitment drive will soon be launched. until recently, Leeds did not have an efficient Crm system — a customer database and a key component in maximising revenue. For a business of its size, that is unthinkable.
The size, and the opportunity to maximise revenue, was a reason the 49ers were first interested in the club. Leeds will sell 330,000 shirts this year. That puts them around sixth in the country.
On domestic sales, they attract similar revenue to Spurs and arsenal, with huge support bases in ireland and London.
While internationally they are nowhere near the Big Six, the potential is huge. Take parachute payments out of it and nobody in the Championship would get near to their turnover. That they spent 16 years outside the Premier League is viewed as gross mismanagement.
relegation itself, while not wanted, also presented a positive. in adding radrizzani’s share to the 44 per cent they already owned, the value of the club was set at £170m — some way short of the £400m retaining Premier League status would have demanded. That ‘saved’ money can now be ploughed into the club.
While the approach to infrastructure has been hands- on, it is a different story when it comes to what happens on the field.
‘They’ve taken more of a strategic approach,’ one insider says. ‘They want to hire people who know what they are doing and then find out why they are doing it.’ That has been the case with the plans for promotion back to the Premier League. While those involved want to keep the precise details to themselves, a third-party data company was commissioned to uncover what it takes for a relegated club to immediately win promotion.
Their findings were myth-busting. While they are not being treated as gospel, they have become part of the strategy.
Know-how formed a key element. That explains the arrival of Daniel Farke. in his first full season with Norwich, the Canaries won the Championship with 94 points.
after subsequent relegation, they won it again, this time with 97. Other managers were considered, including enzo maresca and russell martin, who are now in charge of fellow relegation sides Leicester City and Southampton respectively.
Those with knowledge of the process say that Farke, unlike many, did not come to his interview armed with a glitzy PowerPoint presentation. instead, he spoke not only of promotion but focused on establishing Leeds in the Premier League. The german told them he was determined not to become known as a Championship specialist and that he wanted an opportunity to go into the top flight armed with the resources needed to succeed.
That struck a chord. as did his work on his arrival. Following the takeover, marathe asked to speak to the new manager and his players and was told he was welcome to do so, but would have to fit his introduction around the team’s intense schedule.
Some in the building cringed at that — given the man who now effectively runs the show was being given an order. By all accounts, marathe loved it. Training — with incredible focus on fitness — is at a level not seen since Bielsa. One insider described it as ‘ Bielsa with love’.
‘marcelo would destroy them on the training ground with his fitness drills and Daniel is similar. We’ve had players throwing up at the side of the pitch after his sprint drills. The difference now is that they get the next day off.’
INKeePiNg with the hirepeople-who-know-what-theyaremantra, Farke will be assisted by Nick Hammond. The former Celtic head of football most recently oversaw Newcastle’s post-takeover transfer window, which saw the arrivals of Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn and Bruno guimaraes.
Former Tottenham performance director gretar Steinsson has also arrived, with the club moving away from the director of football role which saw Victor Orta ruling the roost. adam underwood, head of the conveyor belt academy, has also taken on extra responsibility while angus Kinnear remains as chief executive.
There are barriers. The club’s fanbase, while loyal, is notoriously demanding, as some would argue it should be.
and then there are the eFL’s profit and sustainability rules. even if the americans wanted to inject tens of millions to invest in players, they would not be permitted to do so.
and these are different times. For many players, it is now about the division rather than the club. While it may seem belief-defying, some targets would prefer Luton or Burnley over Leeds purely because they are in the Premier League, despite being offered the same money.
However, 22-year- old defender ethan ampadu is a shrewd signing from Chelsea, and talks are advanced with Newcastle over goalkeeper Karl Darlow.
all in all, Leeds are looking to add a keeper, two centre backs, two midfielders, a winger and a striker. Swansea’s Dutch forward Joel Piroe — who scored 19 Championship goals last season — is being considered and Liverpool’s Nat Phillips is also in the frame if Leeds are willing to stump up £10m for the defender.
much has been made of Leeds allowing players to leave on loan rather than selling them permanently. But there is method in the madness.
Take the case of Brenden aaronson. Leeds paid £25m for the uSa midfielder. given current circumstances, they would be lucky to get £15m should they put him up for sale.
instead, they have loaned him to union Berlin, who are paying 100 per cent of aaronson’s wages. That cost is gone for a year. There is also a loan fee which, while small, is not insignificant.
immediately, space is created on the balance sheet.
union are in the Champions League. Should aaronson impress, in a year’s time his value would be higher than it is now.
and should Leeds be in the Premier League by then, they may well want to bring him back into the squad. While that may seem unthinkable to some supporters, fans are pragmatists, and in 12 months the picture may well be very different.
in 12 years’ time, it certainly will be. The americans are investors. They are here to succeed and to make money. With Leeds in a 55,000- seat, revenue-generating stadium and part of the Premier League furniture, the club’s value would be through the roof and offer a huge return on their outlay. at that point, it may well be time to cash in — and let someone else answer the tough questions from the floor.
‘Marcelo destroyed players with his fitness drills. Daniel is similar. Players are throwing up after his sprint drills. The difference now is that they get the next day off!’