Talking of Takeover's - Gareth Bale part 2 UPDATED

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/644...city-takeover/

Not sure what to make of this

Gareth Bale is leading a consortium that has made an approach to buy Cardiff City.

Bale’s group sent a letter of intent to Cardiff owner Vincent Tan last month, which expressed their desire to purchase the Welshman’s hometown club and included financial numbers.

The proposal was rejected but interest from the former Real Madrid winger in Cardiff remains strong — whereas he is not in the frame to acquire Plymouth Argyle, despite recent reports. Cardiff declined to comment.

Cardiff were mooted as a possible destination for Bale, 35, in 2022 after he left Real Madrid but he signed for LAFC instead, where he made 14 appearances before retiring after the World Cup in Qatar.

The Welshman’s potential involvement in Cardiff comes after his former Tottenham Hotspur and Madrid team-mate Luka Modric became a co-owner of their south Wales rivals Swansea City earlier this month.

Bale, who announced his retirement as a player in January 2023, would be the latest big name to attach themselves to an ownership group of a team in the English Football League.

NFL legend Tom Brady became Birmingham City’s minority owner in August 2023, while American golfers Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas bought shares in Leeds United before their promotion to the Premier League in May.

Cardiff have been a Premier League side as recently as 2018-19 but finished bottom of the Championship last season, two points off Plymouth in 23rd, recording only nine wins.

Head coach Omer Riza was sacked in April and replaced on an interim basis by Bale’s former international team-mate Aaron Ramsey, though he could not change their fortunes.

Brian Barry-Murphy has been appointed head coach ahead of the 2025-26 season, as Cardiff prepare for their first campaign in the English third tier since 2003.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">�� EXCL: Consortium led by Gareth Bale has made approach to buy Cardiff City. 35yo’s group sent letter of intent with financial numbers to <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CCFC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CCFC</a> ownership last month. Proposal rejected but desire remains strong + no Plymouth Argyle interest <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthleticFC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAthleticFC</a> <a href="https://t.co/OobojojTkS">https://t.co/OobojojTkS</a></p>&mdash; David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) <a href="https://twitter.com/David_Ornstein/status/1936097251807371533?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

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Originally Posted by MOZZER2

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/644...city-takeover/

Not sure what to make of this

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Pleased would be one emotion

If David Ornstein is reporting it then there’s certainly something in it.

Timing of the leak etc curious, assume it has been leaked as it has been dismissed completely and maybe some fan pressure could alter things. Would be a fitting final slap in the face from the Emperor if he refuses to sell or asks for a stupid fee.

Well that's not a Mickey Mouse source

never know if theres any juice to it as plymouth would be a fraction of the cost... tan just needs to be realistic about it, hes not selling a PL club now...

but would get some serious enthusiasm going if bale was serious about this

gathering pace it seems...

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/...nTKa3MgOeccT-g

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Originally Posted by bluemoon

gathering pace it seems...

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/...nTKa3MgOeccT-g

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It's certainly doing the rounds - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football...s/cd78nyzrjd0o

This is in if Carlsberg did take overs territory.

Oh please let it happen. I'll have something to br excited for, even if its after the Sala case.

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Originally Posted by skunkatron

This is in if Carlsberg did take overs territory.

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Yes just believe it when it happens. I can't get too excited until then.

I don't even know anything about the money behind Bale but even just steady competency would be an improvement at this stage.

he'll probably change his mind at the last minute and buy LAFC

Player owner?? please

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Originally Posted by MOZZER2

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">�� EXCL: Consortium led by Gareth Bale has made approach to buy Cardiff City. 35yo’s group sent letter of intent with financial numbers to <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CCFC?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CCFC</a> ownership last month. Proposal rejected but desire remains strong + no Plymouth Argyle interest <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthleticFC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAthleticFC</a> <a href="https://t.co/OobojojTkS">https://t.co/OobojojTkS</a></p>— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) <a href="https://twitter.com/David_Ornstein/status/1936097251807371533?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

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If Tan had any sense he’d sell asap, unfortunately I think we will be stuck with the stubborn fool for a bit longer. I don’t believe the numbers he gets his minions to spout about what he thinks he’s owed, nobody who has failed so badly would stick around if they were losing millions a month. Half of any losses are purely down to his mgt anyway….do the ‘honourable’ thing vinnie…..

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Originally Posted by Rjk

he'll probably change his mind at the last minute and buy LAFC

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lol

How will this affect the BBM appointment if it did go through?

Tan has never said that the club is not for sale at any price. Quite the opposite, he maintains that any of his businesses are for sale at the right price. In any negotiation the prospective buyer will never make their best offer at first and an owner will never accept the first bid. Probably not even the second bid . Could be a protracted period of negotiation so I, for one, will not be expecting an early agreement but if these guys are serious, ultimately I can foresee a successful outcome.

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Originally Posted by MOZZER2

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/644...city-takeover/

Not sure what to make of this

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It's happening........

To buy us, Tan has refused at the time.

Is this heat stroke madness, or is this leading traction? Reliable source not Steve Day on this occasion

https://x.com/David_Ornstein/status/1936097251807371533

Trouble is Tan thinks he'll get all his money back, wanting many times the actual worth of the club.
?He has to be made to see sense - the longer he hangs on, the more he will need to sink in (lose).

It's for itk stuff like this why I keep coming back here, keep us updated mate.

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Originally Posted by Forgotmyoldaccount

Player owner?? please

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Please no!

I don't know why everyone is getting so excited. Does Bale know how to run a football club?
Who's behind the bid? Do they know anything about running a football club?

While a new owner might be good it could also be bad. Until we know more about the people behind this I don't think we should be getting excited.

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Originally Posted by RichardM

I don't know why everyone is getting so excited. Does Bale know how to run a football club?
Who's behind the bid? Do they know anything about running a football club?

While a new owner might be good it could also be bad. Until we know more about the people behind this I don't think we should be getting excited.

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Tan certainly doesn't. Can you really not understand why people might fancy this takeover?!

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Originally Posted by Pedro de la Rosa

Tan certainly doesn't. Can you really not understand why people might fancy this takeover?!

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I can understand why people want Tan to sell but I haven't seen anything to suggest that whoever it is behind Bale will be any better.

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Originally Posted by RichardM

I can understand why people want Tan to sell but I haven't seen anything to suggest that whoever it is behind Bale will be any better.

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What we need is an owner who recruits someone who knows what they're doing to run the club for him and leaves them to it. Bale might do that because a) he's played at clubs where they probably do that and b) he won't want to eat into his golf time.

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Originally Posted by RichardM

I don't know why everyone is getting so excited. Does Bale know how to run a football club?
Who's behind the bid? Do they know anything about running a football club?

While a new owner might be good it could also be bad. Until we know more about the people behind this I don't think we should be getting excited.

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Groan. He’s the football face of it. It’s not rocket science. He’s leading a consortium of other people’s money because his name attracts media interest.

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Originally Posted by Undercoverinwurzelland

What we need is an owner who recruits someone who knows what they're doing to run the club for him and leaves them to it. Bale might do that because a) he's played at clubs where they probably do that and b) he won't want to eat into his golf time.

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Yes but if he is just the public face of a consortium and not the man with all the money how much of a say will he have in how the club is run?

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Originally Posted by RichardM

I can understand why people want Tan to sell but I haven't seen anything to suggest that whoever it is behind Bale will be any better.

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Jesus you're not so much glass half empty as tip out the contents and take shit in it

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Originally Posted by RichardM

I don't know why everyone is getting so excited. Does Bale know how to run a football club?
Who's behind the bid? Do they know anything about running a football club?

While a new owner might be good it could also be bad. Until we know more about the people behind this I don't think we should be getting excited.

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He’d bring in people who do though, like Tan should have done ages ago

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Originally Posted by J R Hartley

Groan. He’s the football face of it. It’s not rocket science. He’s leading a consortium of other people’s money because his name attracts media interest.

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That's my point. It's the people with the money who will make the decisions and we don't know who they are.

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Originally Posted by RichardM

I can understand why people want Tan to sell but I haven't seen anything to suggest that whoever it is behind Bale will be any better.

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Florentino Pérez?

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Originally Posted by RichardM

That's my point. It's the people with the money who will make the decisions and we don't know who they are.

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Who cares. The current custodian is hardly renowned for his clever decisions. Quite the opposite.

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Originally Posted by RichardM

I can understand why people want Tan to sell but I haven't seen anything to suggest that whoever it is behind Bale will be any better.

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Tan has got a lot wrong over the years, there are some signs that he has at least learned a few lessons over his time here - we started in a place where the manager was all powerful but he got his fingers burned a few times with that, so now there seems to be less power concentrated with the manager - which i think is a better way to run things.
He;s invested in the academy, and we are starting to see the results of that. If we get one or two players a year breaking into the team then this will have a huge difference to the club over time.
We seem to be trying to be a bit more sensible with transfer fees - targeting younger players who at least on paper there's a chance they'll increase in value - the trouble is everyone else is already playing this game, and a lot of them are better at it than us.
It's still the correct approach in my opinion.

Any new owner coming in I'd want them to be doing these things also - but none of that is rocket science, so for me its not a reason to want to keep Tan.

I'm not desperate to get rid of Tan like some are - but he's not getting any younger and the suggestions are that his family might be less inclined to throw 13 million a season at a hobby once he hands the club over.

If a new owner came in with the ability to invest as much money into the club as Tan has done then it's probably worth the risk, will be interesting to see what happens.

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Originally Posted by J R Hartley

Who cares. The current custodian is hardly renowned for his clever decisions. Quite the opposite.

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Clever maybe not, but well intentioned which is rare

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Originally Posted by RichardM

That's my point. It's the people with the money who will make the decisions and we don't know who they are.

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Don't worry! Whoever it is will be better than Tan. Let's hope it's happening

To at least have someone involved in a takeover bid who has a serious footballing pedigree behind them must generate some excitement for us long suffering fans,Tan gives the impression that no matter what anyone else says or thinks,it’s my club and I will do what I like with it, there has never been any impression of a long term plan and strategy,just lurching from one crisis to another. I welcome this interest from what seems to be a serious bidder for the club.

Interesting news, but very early days. Having Bale involved has to be a plus.
This group will have to come up with very serious money to interest Tan.

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Originally Posted by Former Labour leader

Interesting news, but very early days. Having Bale involved has to be a plus.
This group will have to come up with very serious money to interest Tan.

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Or Tan will have to become more serious about the club's true worth

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Originally Posted by WJ99mobile

Clever maybe not, but well intentioned which is rare

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LOL

Can self harming ever be described as having. good intentions?