According to Josimar Football, American-owned 777 Partners, whose ownership portfolio includes seven football clubs worldwide, was declared bankrupt on Monday.
It has been confirmed that creditors A-Cap are now in control of the shares at each of the clubs but have been urged to sell those stakes ‘as soon as possible.’
One of those seven football clubs are Melbourne Victory, who accepted 777’s bid for a minority share in the club in October 2022.
The Miami-based 777 Partners bought just 19.9 per cent of the club at a price of $8.7m, with the option of the company eventually taking a controlling stake of 70 per cent in the club.
The other clubs 777 took over were Genoa (Italy), Standard Liege (Belgium), Hertha Berlin (Germany), Red Star (France) and Vasco da Gama (Brazil), while having minority stake in Melbourne Victory and Sevilla (Spain).
777’s shady history and poor business dealings
This financial collapse of the private equity investment firm had been forthcoming, after news in May earlier this year that co-founders Josh Wander and Steven Pasko were removed from the board and had stepped back from their roles as managing partners amid financial struggles.
On the football side of their operations, Hertha Berlin and Standard Liege active fans made banners attacking co-founder Josh Wander for his ‘corrupt’ way of running the clubs transfer and sponsorships dealings. Hertha Berlin in particular had fans aggressively protest outside the Olympiastadion after their relegation in the 2022/23 season.
Co-founder Josh Wander also has a serious criminal history, involving being arrested for possession of stimulants, that is rumoured to have affected his ability to take over Premier League side Everton after he needed to pass the Fit-and-proper owners test regulated by the FA.
From the way they dealt with Bonza to their shocking football club record, everything about this investment group is dubious.
Not a serious situation for Victory
Fortunately for Victory, the stake is minor and unlikely to have too much of an impact on the club’s business dealings or financial situation. With 777 being forced to sell that share in the club, Victory will have to look to acquire a new stakeholder, this time a partner with a bit of stability.
A club spokesman talked about the situation at hand.
“777 is still a 19.9 per cent shareholder of Melbourne Victory,” a club spokesman said.
“As a minority shareholder, the latest on 777 has had no effect on Melbourne Victory and its operations.”
This situation has already left an awkward mark on the club last season with 777’s own Bonza Airlines falling into administration in May.
Bonza subsequently became the Victory’s principal, front-of-shirt sponsor and collapsed just days before the 2024 A-League Grand Final in Gosford, forcing a quick shirt change to insurance company AIA.
Turkish Airlines replaced Bonza as the flying partner of the club and joined the club in March, potentially as a backup plan for the inevitable Bonza implosion.
Conclusion
This news is positive for Melbourne Victory despite the negative implications on the surface level. It allows the club to get away from the disreputable, unreliable 777 Partners and focus on handing the 19.9% stake to partners that are more responsible.
Victory’s business dealings have been superb in recent seasons, growing their already large corporate portfolio and continuing to be one of the richest clubs in the A-League.
Under new manager Patrick Kisnorbo, Victory will look to get back to A-League glory for the first time since 2017/18, whilst also consistently providing some of the largest attendance numbers in the country.
