Sunderland in talks with Sixth Street’s Bay Collective over women’s team majority sale | OneFootball

Sunderland remain in talks to sell a significant majority stake in their women’s team, with exclusivity granted to Bay Collective ending today, Friday, but negotiations continuing. According to The Athletic, the club has explored outside investment for months.

Over the past 12 months Sunderland have received three offers for either a majority acquisition or fresh investment.

Bay Collective, a women’s sport multi-club group launched by investment firm Sixth Street, was given exclusivity to pursue a controlling stake. That window is set to close without agreement, however talks continue, the price is undisclosed and Sixth Street has declined to comment.

Any deal would see Sunderland Women, who play in Women’s Super League 2, taken over by an entity led by CEO Kay Cossington, formerly the Football Association’s women’s technical director. Her FA tenure coincided with England winning the European Championship in 2022 and reaching the World Cup final in 2023. She joined Bay Collective in May 2025, two months before England retained their European title by beating Spain on penalties.

Sixth Street is already invested in the women’s game through Bay FC in the National Women’s Soccer League, founded in 2023. It paid a then-record $53 million franchise fee and has added further funding since.

If Bay Collective’s bid completes, Sunderland would retain a minority share in Sunderland Association Football Club Women Limited, which sits beneath the men’s team’s legal entity, and no new company would be created. The end of exclusivity reopens the door to other interested parties.

Source: NY Times