Property magnate Ross Pelligra pulls out of Adelaide United takeover bid
After more than a year of negotiations, property magnate Ross Pelligra has decided against buying A-League club Adelaide United.
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Property billionaire Ross Pelligra has abandoned his bid to take over A-League club Adelaide United because “commercially it does not make sense’’.
Mr Pelligra had been in discussions with Adelaide United chairman and part-owner Piet van der Pol for more than a year but said there were complications and said the club had “liabilities’’ and needed “rebuilding’’.
Mr Pelligra declined to give more details of why the proposed deal had collapsed, citing “commercial-in-confidence’’ but left the door open for a new bid in the future.
“They (the owners) will look at the club and work on a few things and maybe we will have another look,’’ he said, without giving a time frame.
“We love South Australia and we have invested heavily in sporting clubs and we will continue to do so. I am very confident about the potential around football in South Australia, so watch this space’’.
Mr Pelligra did not rule out buying another soccer club in SA. Three SA consortiums this month expressed an interest in joining a new national second division, which will play a level below the A-League. including Adelaide City and Playford City.
The Melbourne-based property developer has bought basketball club Adelaide Lightning and baseball franchise Adelaide Giants. The Pelligra Group has also bought the Findon stadium where the Adelaide 36ers train and have a home base. He has also bought Italian soccer club Calcio Catania.
Mr Pelligra first came to prominence in SA in 2017 when he bought the former Holden site in Elizabeth. Since then his group also bought the old Wakefield Hospital, 89 Pirie St and is developing a golf course on Kangaroo Island, as well as various residential and industrial developments.
Adelaide United’s current ownership took charge of the club in 2018, taking over from businessmen Rob Gerrard and Bruno Marveggio as well as lawyer Greg Griffin in a deal rumoured to be worth $12 million. However, the names of the ultimate owners of the club have always been a closely guarded secret.
Chairman Piet van der Pol is a shareholder but has always refused to divulge the identities of his co-owners. The Advertiser has previously reported that Dutch businessmen Cor and Jac Adriaanse are the ultimate owners, but Mr van der Pol has refused to confirm or deny this.
The latest ownership turmoil comes as Adelaide United continues to perform well on-field. Coach Carl Veart’s team is sitting second in the A-League Men, undefeated in its last 10 games.
Adelaide United has been contacted for comment.
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