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Taken from the Khaleej Times Online...
BUDAPEST - Sheffield United Chairman Kevin McCabe’s Hungarian company has succeeded with its latest bid to buy Hungary’s most famous club Ferencvaros, Hungary’s National Asset Management Company (MNV) said on Wednesday.
Esplanade Real Estate, which represents Sheffield United FC and the Scarborough Property Group, had previously vowed not to bid again for the club after previous efforts failed. However, it has now finally succeeded in winning the right to purchase the club.
The deal is expected to be worth around 8 billion forints (31.34 million dollars) in total. Esplanade must pay 800 million forints for shares in the football club and spend 2 billion forints on renewing the stadium within the next two years.
Ferencvaros, affectionately knows as Fradi, is Hungary’s most successful club with 28 league titles to its name and some success in Europe, but it has fallen on hard times recently.
It owes around 2 billion forints, and these financial difficulties led to the club being relegated to the second division for the first time in its history prior the 2006-2007 season.
McCabe is planning to completely rebuild Ferencvaros’s crumbling stadium. He also wanted to help bring the football side back to its former glories by exchanging players.
Sheffield United has been expanding its worldwide network, and Ferencvaros will join Chinese side Chengdu Blades and Belgium’s Royal White Star Woluwe in its portfolio.