Swansea City’s new owners have issued an open letter to all supporters after their £100million take-over was finally confirmed.
The deal was formally agreed Thursday night after a planned press conference earlier was scrapped.
A legal dispute between two of the minority shareholders delayed the take-over.
But American businessmen Stephen Kaplan and Jason Levien , who will head the new consortium, then released the statement to fans.
The statement read:
”We would like to thank everybody we’ve met in Swansea for such a warm and friendly welcome.
We appreciate how important the football club is to the city of Swansea and we wanted to communicate with you, the fans, our thoughts as new partners in the club.
A number of people have asked us why the Premier League and why Swansea City? Quite simply we believe the Premier League is the greatest football league in the world.
It has the greatest collection of players and, most importantly, it is the most competitive league, where on any given day any team in the league can beat another.
We love the passion and the physical style of play.
Premier League matches are always high drama, where it feels as if anything can happen – and often does! We are blessed to have an opportunity to be owners in such an amazing league.
Once we decided on the Premier League, we looked for a club that possessed a particular style of football on the pitch that we believe will give rise to sustainable long-term success.
We also wanted to be a part of a club that was at the very heart and soul of the community in which it plays.
Over the course of a year we looked at a few clubs, but as we dug down deeper, our focus always returned to the Swans.
We were attracted to the team’s distinctive style of play and we loved the intensity of the relationship between the fans and the football team. Backed by the Supporters’ Trust, no other team’s support base is as strong as Swansea’s.
This historic and powerful relationship between the fans and the club is the single most important answer to the question, ‘Why Swansea City?’
It’s a unique story of a club rescued by a combination of mainly local businessmen and a group of fans who decided they couldn’t stand by and let something they love die.
To us, it was an incredible achievement and one that truly resonated. We were hooked, we knew we wanted to be involved.
We recognise this club means so much to so many people and we take the responsibility as owners very seriously.
While we plan on being long-term owners we know the team belongs to the community. In essence, we see ourselves as guardians of the club but it belongs to the fans of Swansea City.
One thing we want to be clear about is our priorities as owners.
Priority number one, two and three is the performance of the team on the pitch. We will field a competitive team that will battle every week against the greatest teams and players in the world.
It is our intent and goal to be a long-term fixture in the Premier League that competes on a consistent basis with some of the finest teams in the world.
We think it’s important to acknowledge and show our respect to all those original shareholders who helped rescue the club and invested in their community, not to make a quick return, but to save something they loved, something that was so important to Swansea.
We are absolutely delighted some of these original shareholders have decided to continue as owners and will be our partners. Of course, Huw Jenkins and Leigh Dineen will be key members of our management team going forward.
We also want to acknowledge the Supporters’ Trust which will remain a significant shareholder in the club.
We have reached out to the Supporters’ Trust and met with them on many occasions and we look forward to working with them as our partners in helping to move the club forward.
In that regard, we plan to work with the Trust as our partners in determining the best path to expand and improve the fan experience at the Liberty Stadium.
Together, we will explore every avenue to improve the matchday experience, bring new fans to the club and cement the future for the supporters.
We want to make sure the next generation of Swansea fans and the generations after can all become part of a unique history and heritage.
We also know matchday has to be affordable and value for money, that’s why ticket prices will remain the same for the foreseeable future.
That brings us to another huge reason why we were so keen to become part of Swansea’s history – Huw Jenkins. Huw will play a major role in our plans for the club.
He was part of the leadership that brought the club from the depths of the Football League to the Premier League and our mission is to support him in maintaining the drive and vision we all have for the Swans.
Finally, we would like to thank the people of Swansea for welcoming us.
We know there is always a sense of fear and trepidation when new owners arrive on the scene but we will do everything in our power to win your trust and ensure there is a long and bright future for Swansea City.
We look forward to meeting as many of you as possible in person over the coming weeks and months and to another successful season for the Swans.
Cheers,
Stephen Kaplan and Jason Levien.”
