Derby to carry on against Charlton after shock news

Derby County have been left stunned after Saudi Arabian boxing powerbroker Turki Al-Sheikh backed out of a proposed deal to buy a majority stake in the Championship club at the 11th hour.

The Times reported in May that Al-Sheikh, an adviser in Saudi Arabia’s royal court who serves as the head of the General Entertainment Authority, was in advanced talks to purchase Derby from David Clowes, who saved the club from liquidation in 2022.

Al-Sheikh satisfied the Independent Football Regulator (IFR) and the English Football League (EFL) that his wealth was separate to that of the Saudi Public Investment Fund and was cleared to complete the deal last week. However, in an about-face that shocked Derby chiefs, Al-Sheikh abruptly called off the takeover on Monday, five days before the beginning of the season.

A statement from Derby read: “The club can confirm discussions with Lion Sport [the group headed by Al-Sheikh] to buy a controlling interest in Derby County will no longer proceed.  “The purchase process had been sanctioned by both the Independent Football Regulator and the EFL, notification of which the club received last week.

“However, today the club received notice that Lion Sport no longer wanted to continue with the purchase. For the benefit of any doubt, the club is now off the market and will continue to operate under the loyal, committed and unwavering support of Clowes Developments. Our preparations continue for the new EFL season, beginning against Charlton Athletic on Saturday.”

Al-Sheikh took to social media shortly afterwards and implied that the time taken by the IFR to approve the takeover was key to him pulling out of the deal. 

The approval process took 55 days — 90 days are permitted — and, given the complexities of the case because of Al-Sheikh’s longstanding relationship with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and his role as a government minister, there is understood to be scepticism about whether other factors could be at hand.

“I would like to thank everyone at Derby County Football Club, and everyone involved in this process for all their hard work over the past few months,” Al-Sheikh said in a statement.

“We understood that the IFR process takes time and fully respect the importance of that, but unfortunately with the season already started, it would leave us with no time to prepare the team or the club for the season ahead.

Al-Sheikh previously owned both the Spanish club UD Almería and Pyramids FC in Egypt, but his primary involvement in sport has focused on boxing, and he is bringing the Anthony Joshua v Tyson Fury mega-fight to Saudi Arabia under the “Riyadh Season” banner. He was linked with an approach to buy Bristol City last year but that also did not come to fruition.