Sheffield United takeover news: Everything we know about the situation | OneFootball

The Blades look to be edging ever closer to officially being under new ownership

Sheffield United have been steeped in uncertainty regarding news of the club's takeover for a good while now, but things look to be edging ever closer to a conclusion soon amid the Blades' strong start to the new Championship season.

United's fortunes off the pitch have been mixed, to say the least, in recent years, with promotion to the Premier League last year then followed by a dismal top-flight campaign that saw them amass just 16 points as Chris Wilder returned to the Bramall Lane dugout.

Wilder's side are aiming for immediate promotion back to the promised land this season, and his team have made a positive start to the new campaign, but he will have lingering doubts over the financial uncertainty that could have an impact amid speculation surrounding a change in owner.

Blades owner Prince Abdullah has had plans for a sale of the club for over two years now, and here we take a look at everything we know about the current situation…

Everything we know about Sheffield United's takeover situation right now

Fresh updates on the Blades' takeover have consistently emerged over recent weeks, and the recent spike in news has led many to believe that a conclusion to the saga is nearing as the January transfer window approaches.

It was first reported in late 2022 that a £115m deal to take over the club had been agreed with Nigerian businessman Dozy Mmobuosi, but that never came to fruition and Prince Abdullah is still yet to finalise a deal with a party he sees fit to sell the club to.

The saga has reared its head in recent months, and English investors Tom Page and Dominic Hughes had previously been discussing a deal for United for around 18 months, through their Vertex Albion capital investment fund, and it was claimed in September that positive talks between Page and the club had been held.

The Star then revealed that some doubts were growing due to undisclosed delays, and recent developments now claim that neither Page nor Hughes are set to be involved in the takeover process.

Ohio-based businessman Steve Rosen is now reportedly fronting the negotiations for the same investor group, and an associate of his was understood to have been present at Bramall Lane for their win over Luton Town on October 5, in a presumed sign of the deal making progress.

Rosen is a co-founder of investment company Resilience Capital Partners, and his involvement in the negotiations was reportedly revealed by Bloomberg last month, after the consortium aiming to strike a deal with Abdullah had previously wanted to keep his identity a secret.

After initial revelations that Prince Abdullah's £110 million valuation of the club was putting off potential buyers, journalist Alan Nixon reported on November 4 that Rosen's takeover was set to happen in the next 48 hours, with just EFL approval left to go until he could formally take charge at Bramall Lane.

However, his deal looks to have hit a stumbling block as the two parties need to come to an agreement regarding a financial management plan before a takeover can go through.

Now, the latest update from The Star has revealed that movie director Joe Russo and health company CEO Helmy Eltoukhy have joined Rosen as part of the group who are aiming to conclude the takeover of the South Yorkshire side.

It is thought that the pair, along with Rosen, were hosted by Sheffield United CEO Stephen Bettis for the Steel City derby on Sunday afternoon, as Tyrese Campbell sealed a 1-0 win for the Blades in front of the potential future owners.

Rosen's deal still needs to be confirmed, but The Telegraph believe that he is still set to takeover at Bramall Lane in a deal worth a reported £105 million, and is also set to buy the hotel adjacent to the stadium as a part of the agreement.

The Blades are not letting off-pitch concerns affect their Championship hopes

While Sheffield United's players are most likely not overly bothered about the takeover situation, and are able to play to their strengths regardless of who is the owner of the club, it would be ideal for the deal to be done as soon as possible so everyone is on the same page at Bramall Lane, and the club can start to move forward.

Chris Wilder will likely be more privy to the details of the progress of the deal, and he will surely want it done as quickly as possible so he knows where he stands before a key January window, which could be the difference between promotion to the Premier League or staying in the Championship beyond this season.

His side have managed to stop their top-flight rot in the second-tier with aplomb so far this term, and sit second in the league level on points with table-toppers Sunderland after their key win over cross-city rivals Wednesday last time out, and would be top of the Championship if they had not been deducted two points for breaking EFL rules by defaulting on payments during their 2022/23 promotion season.

United were able to add numerous new players to their squad in the summer, but the uncertainty surrounding the club’s owners certainly proved a stumbling block to their ability to build the exact side that Wilder would have wanted, and so they need a deal done prior to January to be able to add players and maintain their challenge for an immediate promotion in the second-half of the campaign.