[Morrison]

Southampton added to US shopping list-Sport-Football-Championship-TimesOnline

The nineteenth-richest man in the world has made a preliminary approach to Southampton with a view to a possible takeover. The Coca-Cola Championship club confirmed yesterday that Paul Allen, who is worth an estimated £18 billion and owns the Seattle Seahawks American football franchise and the Portland Trail Blazers, the basketball team, is the latest American tycoon to show an interest in moving into English football.

Allen, 54, who co-founded Microsoft with Bill Gates and retains a stake in the company, is also an investor in the DreamWorks animation studio, a backer of the Space-ShipOne project racing Sir Richard Branson to launch commercial space flights, and owns two huge private yachts.

News of the possible takeover boosted the price of shares in Southampton Leisure Holdings plc from 47p overnight on Thursday to 65p yesterday afternoon, taking the company’s market value to £17.7 million. Any bid by Allen is expected to be about £50 million.

A statement issued to the Stock Exchange yesterday said: “The board notes the recent rise in the company’s share price and confirms that it has received and is considering a preliminary approach which may or may not lead to an offer being made for the company.”

Michael Wilde, who replaced Rupert Lowe as chairman last summer, resigned in February after failing to attract new investment. Jim Hone, the chief executive, and Ken Dulieu, the plc chairman, appear to have done better.

Initially, Allen is setting his sights lower than other American owners of English clubs – such as Malcolm Glazer, of Manchester United, George Gillett Jr and Tom Hicks, of Liverpool and Randy Lerner, of Aston Villa.

However, while Southampton are outsiders to win promotion from the Coca-Cola Championship, they have a modern stadium and respected academy, which produced Theo Walcott, of Arsenal and England, and Gareth Bale, the Wales left back, for whom bidding this summer was expected to open at £7 million. That may change.

Allen has been quoted as saying that he believes there is long-term investment value in UK soccer, adding: “Southampton is a sleeping giant, and we see the value in taking the brand global.”

Southampton have a loyal fan base but the idea of the brand becoming global is improbable. The club have little or no penetration beyond Hampshire and would probably require sustained success to become a strong regional brand, let alone a national one.

Allen also does not have an impressive record in improving a team’s profile. Although the Seahawks reached the Super Bowl in 2006, they do not have the identity of less successful teams, such as the New York Jets or Miami Dolphins.