A deal in principle has reportedly been reached between a US consortium and shareholders of Rangers for the purchase of a majority stake in the Scottish soccer giants.
The consortium is led by prominent sports executive Paraag Marathe, as well as US healthcare businessman Andrew Cavenagh, and is aiming to conclude the purchase ahead of the 2025-26 Scottish Premiership campaign.
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UK news outlet Sky Sports stated that talks regarding the takeover have been underway since October 2024 and that currently both sides are putting together the relevant paperwork and undertaking pre-emptive due diligence for the sale’s completion.
Rangers are historically the most successful side in the Scottish top-flight, winning the league a record 55 times, but since that most recent triumph in 2021, success has been few and far between, a factor which has led to fan unrest, particularly in regard to the current ownership.
The 51% stake will be drawn from a range of different prominent Rangers stakeholders that will reportedly include the New Oasis Asset Limited holding company owned by Dave King (12.96%), Douglas Park (11.54%), and US-based private equity investor Joh Halsted (9.53%), among others.
Halsted, who is also a current Rangers board member, is reportedly a driving force in the move to bring in the new ownership, which has strong links to the US National Football League franchise, the San Francisco 49ers, as well as English soccer side Leeds United.
Marathe, a 24-year veteran with the 49ers, also serves as the team’s executive vice president of football operations and is the team’s chief contract negotiator and the leader of its analytics department.
At Leeds, the side that the 49ers Enterprises investment arm purchased in June of 2023, he is the chair of the club’s board.
The 49ers declined to comment when approached by Sportcal over the rumors.
Cavenagh, meanwhile, is the executive chair of captive health insurance firm ParetoHealth, a multi-billion dollar asset manager, having previously worked as a commercial banker and insurance broker.
His position in the consortium may aid it in circumventing Scottish soccer’s ownership rules.
Rules put in place in Scotland regarding team ownership mean that if you own one soccer side anywhere, the largest stake you can take in a Scottish team is 24.9%, and vice versa.
While this may limit the investment at first, rumors persist that those rules are set to be scaled back, with other Scottish sides such as Hibernian, Hearts, and Dundee all attracting significant investment interest from the owners of English top-flight teams.
It is rumored that the 51% stake in Rangers could be the first in a wider investment in the club from the consortium.
The 49ers were recently rumored to be seeking a 10% stake sale.
