Takeover set to take off: American consortium closing in on Newcastle Jets purchase

Newcastle Jets’ three-year search for a new owner is nearing an end with an American consortium leading the race to purchase the cash-strapped A-League club.

Having been propped up by four rival clubs for the past year and having gone more than two years since an independent owner last contributed to any of their running costs, the Jets look set to have new owners at the helm before the end of the season.

Newcastle Jets could have new owners before the end of the season. Credit: Getty

It is understood two consortiums remain in the hunt to purchase the licence, including one from a group of American businessmen with ties to American, English, Danish, Irish and Welsh football clubs.

The American consortium, led by Brett Johnson and Jordan Gardner, is deep in talks with the Australian Professional Leagues, owners and operators of the A-League, to take control of Newcastle.

Representatives of the group travelled to Australia last month to inspect the club’s facilities, offices and meet with other club owners as part of their prospective purchase, sources familiar with negotiations told the Sydney Morning Herald & The Age.

A deal is yet to be finalised however it’s understood talks are at an advanced stage, with the group having long been interested in obtaining an Australian club to add to their portfolio of teams around the globe.

Johnson is a part-owner of English League One club Ipswich Town and is co-chair of USL club Phoenix Rising. Gardner is a shareholder of former Premier League side Swansea City and Danish club Helsingor, who appear bound for the country’s top division next season. Gardner declined to comment.

Johnson and Gardner first publicly stated their Australian ambitions in 2018 when they financially backed a bid for Gold Coast United to be granted a licence in the last A-League expansion process. More recently, the pair sought to purchase the licence of Central Coast with the intention of relocating the club to the Gold Coast, but a deal was never reached with Mariners owner Mike Charlesworth.

While the group appears intent on purchasing the Jets, they are not the only bidders for the licence. Sources close to discussions said another Australian consortium was also in the running.

While the identity of that group is unknown, it’s understood it has no ties to the Melbourne-based investment firm, Skyjade Capital, which was close to purchasing the Jets’ licence in 2018. The Chinese-linked firm had reached an agreement in principle but a deal stumbled at the final hurdle.

The club has been without an owner since January 2021, when Chinese-based businessman Martin Lee had his A-League licence revoked after failing to make payments. Due to financial constraints in his homeland and difficulty getting money to Australia, he had not financially contributed to the club’s operational costs for a year prior to losing his licence. Lee had purchased the club for $5.5 million in 2016 but had put it up for sale by 2019, having reportedly tipped in more than $15 million throughout his ownership.

The owners of Western Sydney Wanderers, Sydney FC and Western United have kept the Jets alive since Lee’s removal as chair, replacing him with former NRL boss Shane Mattiske as the Jets’ executive chairman.

Should the Jets be sold, it’s expected the licence fee will be split between the owners of the clubs that have propped them up and alleviate mounting financial pressure on the APL that has built as the Omicron variant forced mass postponements of matches this season in the men’s and women’s A-League.

Newcastle could be the second A-Leagues club to change ownership this year, with Adelaide United also on the cusp being sold to property developer Ross Pelligra, who was behind South Melbourne’s last bid for A-League expansion.