Charlton owner ‘exits deal’ to acquire The Valley

Thomas Sandgaard, owner of Charlton Athletic, has backed out of a £17m (€19.1m/$20.3m) deal to acquire the English League One football club’s stadium, according to Football Insider.

The website, citing sources, said the Danish businessman reneged on a three-year deal to buy The Valley from Charlton’s former owner, Roland Duchâtelet, in mid to late January, shortly before it was widely reported that a proposed club takeover was in the works.

Sandgaard acquired Charlton in September 2020, but Belgian businessman Duchâtelet has retained control of The Valley since his ownership of the Southeast London club commenced in January 2014. Sandgaard is said to see potential in redevelopment of the 27,000-seat stadium, but his long-term commitment to Charlton is in doubt.

The latest development comes after Charlton announced the appointment earlier this week of experienced football executive Peter Storrie as its CEO, while confirming the end of takeover talks with a group led by Charlie Methven.

Storrie has held senior positions at a variety of clubs including in the Premier League – with West Ham United and Portsmouth – and abroad – in Italy, Colombia and Australia. Sandgaard said: “Peter has been working in football for many years and has a lot of valuable experience.

“He’ll provide senior leadership at The Valley and will manage the running of the business. It is important for me to have someone as experienced and knowledgeable as Peter fill this role to plan for the medium to long term and as we position for potential new investments.”

Regarding the collapsed takeover, he added: “We had an agreement in place and very specific terms that were clear in that agreement that were relevant to the end of January and coming into February which they didn’t comply with. There were key items in the deal, which they didn’t meet, so I had no option but to call the deal off.”