Oxford United today announced the completion of a series of share sales and purchase transactions that result in the Indonesian shareholding group of Erick Thohir and Anindya N. Bakrie holding a 51% stake in the club, effective from 19th September 2022.
Horst Geicke, Sumrith Thanakarnjanasuth (“Tiger”) and Pairoj Piempongsant remain fully invested in, and supportive of the club.
Grant Ferguson, who was appointed a Director of the club earlier this year, will assume the role of Chairman of the Board of Directors.
Grant commented; “Oxford United is a club with a proud history and incredible supporters so I am honoured to have been asked to take on the role of Chairman. The first thing I want to do in that capacity is acknowledge the immense contribution that Tiger has made to the club as Chairman and shareholder, and I look forward to his continued support as we together take the club into its next chapter.”
The club also hope to announce the appointment, in due course, of Tim Williams as Chief Executive subject to EFL regulations.
Tim has over 25 years of senior management experience, the last 13 in football, including having served as Chief Financial Officer at FC Internazionale Milano (Inter Milan), Group Financial Controller at Manchester United, and most recently as Managing Director at Tifosy Capital & Advisory where he supported the development of some of the game’s leading clubs. Tim is a Chartered Accountant, a visiting professor at Manchester Metropolitan University Business School and sits on the Advisory Board of the MMU Institute of Sport.
Niall McWilliams will leverage his broad experience in organisation change management, business planning, and football as a business in assuming the role of Chief Strategy Officer, where he will work with Grant and Tim to shape the future of the cub. Niall will concurrently serve as the Project Director for the critical stadium move project.
Ferguson continued; “The football business is rapidly changing, and standing still is not an option. We must adopt best practice in stakeholder engagement, people development, data science and analysis, financial management and business planning to ensure we have a commercial infrastructure that supports and leverages our on-field ambitions.
“I am excited at the prospect of bringing together the talents and experience of the shareholders and management to build a sustainable future for the club. We would all like to express our heartfelt gratitude to our ever-patient and loyal fans for their unwavering support for the club. Together we will carry on the U's wonderful history and strong tradition.”