777 remain confident their takeover of crisis club Everton will proceed, and Josimar can reveal the source of funding for the purchase. But the man behind that money is accused of fraud in an ongoing US lawsuit.
By Paul Brown and Philippe Auclair
WHEN they are not speaking for public consumption, senior figures at 777 have been known to describe the Premier League fit and proper person test as “a PR exercise.”
And they remain confident of receiving approval for their attempted purchase of Everton by Christmas, with lawyers already beginning to exchange documents related to the transaction.
But they got a taste this weekend of the full powers available to the regulators of English football when the Merseyside club were hit with a ten-point deduction by an Independent Commission for breaching profit and sustainability rules.
Everton are also now facing expensive compensation claims from rival clubs related to the verdict of that Commission that they gained a sporting advantage from their overspend, adding another potential hurdle for 777 to overcome.
Yet the Miami firm continues to press ahead with its takeover, and the common line from the company is that confidence remains high it can get the deal over the line.
How can this be, when 777 Partners has been unable to provide the audited accounts requested by the Financial Conduct Authority, has missed payroll to its own staff, been forced to renegotiate rather than repay debts at two of its clubs – Genoa and Hertha Berlin, and has just been hit with a credit rating downgrade at it’s Bermuda-based reinsurance arm, which is now
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