Bristol City takeover: How Turki Alalshikh's wealth compares to Steve Lansdown | OneFootball

We looked at how Turki Alalshikh's wealth compares to current Bristol City owner Steve Lansdown amid talk of a potential takeover.

As speculation continues to gather pace about a potential takeover by Saudi billionaire Turki Alalshikh, there could be big changes ahead for Bristol City after years of stability under current owner Steve Lansdown.

Bristol City reached the Championship play-offs for the first time since 2008 last season before losing to Sheffield United at the play-off semi-final stage, and while head coach Liam Manning departed to take over at Norwich City in the summer, they look set to continue their progress under new head coach Gerhard Struber.

Despite missing out on promotion, the Robins managed to keep hold of all their key players this summer, and Struber also brought in five new signings in Radek Vitek, Joe Lumley, Neto Borges, Adam Randell and Emil Riis, while Yu Hirakawa made his loan deal permanent.

Struber made an excellent start to his tenure as he picked up 11 points from his first five league games, and although they fell to a surprise 3-1 home defeat to Oxford United on Sunday, his side remain third in the table, just one point from the automatic promotion places.

However, while the strong form in the early weeks of the season has given Robins supporters plenty of reason for optimism, it has come against the backdrop of ongoing takeover talk as rumours continue to swirl about Alalshikh's interest in the club.

Steve Lansdown facing big decision as Turki Alalshikh prepares Bristol City takeover bid

Lansdown has been the owner of Bristol City since 2002, and his involvement with the club dates back even further to 1996, so it would certainly be a big moment if he did decide to sell to Alalshikh.

Former Crystal Palace owner and talkSPORT pundit Simon Jordan previously revealed that he had urged Alalshikh to make a move for troubled Sheffield Wednesday, but he was reluctant to buy the Owls due to their northern location, while it was claimed in May that he was in talks about investing in Millwall.

After nothing came from those discussions with the Lions, it seems Alalshikh has now turned his attention to Bristol City, with journalist Alan Nixon revealing earlier this month that he is close to making a formal bid for the Robins, as well as looking at properties in the area.

The reports of a possible takeover by Alalshikh's were dismissed as "purely speculation" by City director Gavin Marshall last week, but in his latest update on Sunday, Nixon claimed that the prospective bidders have made a visit to meet the current owners and explore the club's facilities, while there are thought to be no problems with the funds or asking price.

As Alalshikh continues to step up his interest in the Robins, we looked at how his wealth compares to Lansdown.

Alalshikh is the chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority and adviser at the Royal Court, and while he is best known for his work as a boxing promoter, he has also previously had involvement in football ownership.

The 44-year-old had a brief spell as owner of Egyptian outfit Pyramids between 2018 and 2019 before purchasing Spanish second division side Almeria, where he remained at the helm for six years until he sold the club back in May.

Alalshikh has built up significant wealth through his various business ventures, and he has a net worth of $2.8 billion (£2.06 billion), but Bristol City supporters may be surprised to learn he is not quite as rich as Lansdown, who has an eye-watering net worth of $3.1 billion (£2.3 billion).

Lansdown has built his fortune after co-founding financial services company Hargreaves Lansdown with Peter Hargreaves in 1981, while he is also the founder of the Bristol Sport group, through which he owns Bristol City, rugby club Bristol Bears and basketball club Bristol Flyers.

However, Lansdown revealed back in 2021 that he was open to selling some or all of his stake in the Robins, and, earlier this year, he sold the women's team to investment group Mercury 13, which could suggest that the 71-year-old is looking to reduce his involvement in the world of football.