Players of AS Roma pose for the picture during the Serie A match between AS Roma and Lecce at Stadio ... [+]
Italian Soccer giant AS Roma has officially announced that the Friedkin Group, a consortium run by U.S. billionaire Dan Friedkin, took over the majority of the club.
In a statement released on Thursday on the club website, the club confirmed that the group owned by Dan Friedkin has signed a binding Equity Purchase Agreement with the former owner, James Pallotta, Friedkin’s compatriot and executive board member of the NBA's Boston Celtics.
“I am pleased to confirm we have reached an agreement with The Friedkin Group for the sale of AS Roma”.
“We have signed the contracts tonight and, over the coming days, will now work together to complete the formal and legal process that will result in the club changing hands”, Pallotta said.
The Serie A side confirmed that contracts were signed on Wednesday, for a deal worth in the region of $700 million, including a capital increase of around $100 to be completed by December, Italian newspaper La Repubblica reports.
CHINO, CA - MAY 03: Lucas Bacardi Shriftman (L) and pilot Dan Friedkin attend The Horsemen Flight ... [+]
The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of August.
The Houston-based Friedkin Group has been reportedly interested in Roma for quite a while.
The deal - which was ready to be closed before February - came to a halt after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This prompted the Friedkin Group to re-evaluate the offer on the table, which was reportedly around $1 billion in November 2019.
James Pallotta, a businessman of Italian descent, bought two-thirds of club shares for US$100m in 2011.
ROME, ITALY - MAY 28: AS Roma President James Pallotta plays with the ball during the Serie A match ... [+]
In the eight years under his management, the club failed to win any major competition both in Italy and in Europe, managing to only get into the semi-final of the UEFA Champions League (Europe’s biggest soccer competition) in the 2017/2018 season.
Chairman of the Friedkin Group, Dan Friedkin, said after the announcement: “All of us at The Friedkin Group are so happy to have taken the steps to become a part of this iconic city and club.
“We look forward to closing the purchase as soon as possible and immersing ourselves in the AS Roma family.”
The Friedkin Group represents a huge opportunity for Roma, given that they have an even greater financial capability than the current owner.
According to Forbes' official profile, the group CEO Dan Friedkin is worth $4.2 billion in terms of personal fortune, as the owner of Gulf States Toyota - which sold $9 billion worth of Toyotas in 2018 alone.
The Houston-based tycoon will now have to deal with the Italian bureaucracy over the construction of a new stadium, which was planned to be finished by 2016 and is yet to receive the final approval by Rome mayor Virginia Raggi to begin the construction work.
