Staff Reporter.
Tottenham Hotspurs chairman Daniel Levy would be “open” to selling his stake if it was in the best interest of the club.
Levy has been chairman since 2001 and his family are 29.88% investors in Spurs’ majority shareholder ENIC, who own 86.58% of the club.
Some Tottenham fans called for Levy to step down last season.
“I’ve got no real interest to leave Tottenham, but I have a duty to consider anything that anyone may want to propose,” Levy told Bloomberg.
“It’s not about me, it’s about what’s right for the club. We have 30,000 shareholders who own approximately 13.5 per cent. We run this club as if it is a public company.”
The mood at Tottenham has lifted this season following the appointment of Ange Postecoglou in the summer, but issues off the field continue to keep Levy under the spotlight.
Fans protested before last month’s win over Manchester United due to the club’s decision to increase match day ticket prices for 2023-24.
Meanwhile, Joe Lewis – Tottenham owner until October when he ceased to be “a person with significant control” and the club shares were handed over to his family trust – was indicted on charges of insider trading in America in July, although he pleaded not guilty.
Spurs are unbeaten after five games – winning four and drawing one – and sit second in the Premier League.
Levy admitted earlier this week that the club made “mistakes” in appointing “trophy managers” Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte.
The 61-year-old confirmed that several parties have previously expressed an interest in the club, especially since they moved into a new 62,850-seater stadium in 2019.
“If anyone wants to make serious propositions to the board of Tottenham, we will consider it along with our advisors. And if we felt it was in the interests of the club, we would be open to anything,” Levy said.
Levy also revealed that Spurs have received offers in the past from investors in the Far East, Middle East and the United States. But he also admitted that “nothing had been put on the table” that was in the interests of the current shareholders.
PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi reportedly held talks with Spurs back in January over the possible purchase of a stake in the club. Though the likelihood of that coming to pass was played down by former Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan.
“I find it curious to understand why Qatar would want to own a minority stake in Tottenham. They’ve got plenty of money and they don’t need to be minority shareholders in any football club,” he said at that time.