Ok so many fans have underlined their dislike of the club current hierarchy and want change. Whether you agree with this or not is not the point of this article, we have covered the ground enough there, instead we will go through what various options there are should Doughty decide to sell up.
Rich Foreign Investor
There has been plenty of attention given to these. I saw people even tweeting “Doughty out, Arabs in.” But how likely would this be. The dispatches programme on Channel4 last month underlined there are people out there looking at buying Championship clubs to invest in and build up to the Premier League, in that sense it’s a go. The problem also is most of these people are investors, not people like the Mansour's at Manchester City. They would invest money, but only to get us up and then sell up. Make a quick buck out the club, and leave us 2-3 years down the line in limbo again. Ok I can hear some of you are thinking we are in the Premier League at this stage, it’s all good. Well no, because who’s to say the new buyer wouldn’t be some kind of asset stripper, or someone full of fake promises. Just look at Portsmouth or Birmingham for that. Clubs built-up and sold on, only for the new owner to sell the top players, not reinvest the money and the club shrink back to where it was before but in more parlous state of finances than the whole process began same with West Ham. Oh and do I need mention the farce that was Notts County?
Local Boy Made Good
Ok, the rich foreign investor isn't all it’s cracked up to be, potentially landing us with someone who can’t even point to Nottingham on a map. How about a Forest fan that had made money, like Doughty and wants to push his beloved club forward. Well who are the rich Forest fans?
Lee Westwood
I saw Lee Westwood mentioned some where, career earnings of £7.7mill suggest that’s just a stupid mention from someone clutching at straws. We lose more than that a year.
James Dean Bradfield
Whoever mentioned this really is insane, yeah he’s a Forest fan, but I always get the sense that a not hardcore and b) I really don’t think a staunch socialist in charge of a club is a great idea. Really couldn’t see him investing
Paul Smith
I have vague recollections of him being mentioned in the previous major take over back in the 90’s, and he really is local boy made good. A highly successful fashion designer he has somewhat branched out in to other markets. However there has been little or no mention if he would be interested.
Nathu Puri
Bit of a long shot, but he is said to be Nottingham’s richest man with a wide arcing empire. His wealth is rumoured to be around £130mill (similar to Doughty) which would certainly put him in the right bracket. However, a) it remains to be seen if he is even bothered about football never mind Forest. B0 he admits he doesn’t like spending money too much and what he does he gives to charity. As much as some of us plead we aren’t a charity case, even if Doughty see’s us as a philathropic process.
Fans Trust
Make no mistake this is a final get out of jail card most clubs use when faced extinction. Invariably hard up lower league clubs, there are a number of higher clubs with this set up that runs concurrently to the bard in the back ground. Mainly as a way of making sure fans views are represented at board level it is no more than a token gesture in the vast number of cases. Those clubs which are taken over in this manner are constantly battling to raise funds just to stay afloat, so if people bemoan the current ambition of the club, then they may be in for a nasty shock if this ever came into being. Plus there is the old adage of too many cooks spoilt the broth.
A Consortium
Ok, so let’s finally discuss the potential of a consortium of businessmen, maybe even the likes of Westwood or Puri would jump into. However, remeber the last lot we had? There was a rumoured Irish consortium last season looking at Forest that never came to fruition. Seemingly based on bringing Roy Keane back to the City Ground, I can’t help thinking it was pie in the sky. The types of groups that own Liverpool or Manchester United, which are venture that buy into many sporting franchises could also be a potential buyer. However, most want a big club, a club that’s already operating at a required level and doesn't need vast amounts of investment. A club that has marketing appeal that can be used as operating revenue. Something Forest don’t have, seeing as our income is £2.5mill approximately for a club with outgoings nearly 4 times higher, we really aren’t appealing to groups like this. And how often do you often hear of these consortiums buying clubs turning out to be a success? Only when buying into already succesful clubs yes, but usually it just ends up in tears like Liverpool.
In conclusion, there are no viable options at present. People have tweeted me or mentioned on Facebook that how can we know nobodies interested? Well because usually these people make their interest known, especially in a climate of dissent that is rife with Forest. If you wanted to buy the club, right now you'd let it be known you want to invest, because simply you could get a wave of support behind you in forcing the incumbent to sell up. No instead what we have is no-one wanting to buy the club because financially we are not a good investment. People cite the history and size of the club, yes they are wonderful attributes, but these people are barely scratching the surface. No-one with any business sense would take us on right now. It'd be akin to burning your money.
If there was a viable option, someone willing to pour in money who wasn't simply just going to milk us dry when in the Premier League like what Leicester’s owners willing time do, or Cardiff’s, then I would welcome them. For now we have a chairman who is attempting to be frugal in the face of new criteria coming in which will require better managing of finances. It is coming so we might as well get ready now instead of major cutbacks next year. We will be ready, other clubs like Cardiff won't be. And we will be better for it.
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