On January 8, Elland Road Stadium ushered in the first game of the year.

West Yorkshire Leeds United FC hosts Chelsea Football Club, a Blues from the City of London.

More than 20,000 seats in the stadium were packed, and before the kick-off, fans from both sides shouted at the opposite stands to greet each other's families. A handful of football hooligans even tried to cross the football field, and the security personnel struggled to maintain order.

"Do they have a lot of hatred?" Hall sat in the front row of the stands to watch the play.

After his birthday, he was busy buying a football team, watching several football games, and had a general understanding of the fan culture among various clubs.

The passionate scene in front of you is not something that can be seen in every game.

Veteran fan Monte shrugged: "Leeds United fans stink so much, their 'Service Gang' and Manchester United's 'Reds' are the number one football hooligan in all of Europe.

Even if there is no hatred, they can bite like a mad dog, not to mention the fact that they played an extremely bloody game in an FA Cup final more than a decade ago.

Speaking of which, Manchester United and Leeds United are also mortal enemies, and the red and white rose derby can be called the "War of the Roses". Decades of hostility against each other, fans fighting, clubs playing tricks, and players fouling on the field...... It's a pity that since Leeds United fell into the second division, this kind of hot matchup has rarely been seen. ”

"The War of the Roses, this is history, regional culture." Hall nodded.

Leeds United Ancestor, which has been in decline for more than a decade now. This did not actually meet his criteria for buying a top football club, but was added to the acquisition option due to the prestige of the local team in his hometown.

And according to the information gathered by Brandon, Leeds United also has advantages:

For example, the fans are loyal enough, just look at the guys who were forked out by the security guards in front of you. In addition, the home stadium is located in Leeds, the financial center second only to London, and the spending power is online; The team has a long history, poor results, and low commercial value......

To put it bluntly, Leeds United has a good commercial market foundation, and it is not easy to lose money by buying at a low price now.

Hall thought for a moment and asked, "How much will it cost to acquire it?" ”

"Leeds United's shareholding structure is chaotic and ownership is split into two parts, one part is equity and one part is held by creditors. So we had to diversify the acquisitions, and we didn't have an exact number of acquisition costs. ”

Brandon spread out his workbook and replied, "Due to the fragmentation of the shareholding structure, we can actually have absolute control with a 35% stake, and the estimated cost is about 4 million pounds. I want a 100% wholly-owned acquisition, and the estimated cost is more than 15 million. ”

"It's pretty cheap." Hall commented. Error-free updates @

He started out with several top-flight teams such as Arsenal and Chelsea. The former, like Leeds United, is extremely diversified, but they are in a prime period and will have to go up to at least £25 million to acquire actual control.

The latter could be negotiated, but he opened his mouth and offered 50 million pounds, which scared him so much that he didn't dare to bargain. He is only the eighth generation of British nobles, not a big injustice with a white cloth on his head.

The others are similar, some don't want to sell, some want to slaughter, and all of them are over budget.

In the end, Leeds United seemed to be the most suitable choice.

Hall looked at the pitch, where the Leeds United No.25 striker shoveled the opposing player away with a sliding tackle, and then quickly stood up and drove the defense forward like a chariot: "Do they all play like this? ”

"What do you mean?" Brandon and Monte looked at each other, not knowing who should answer the question.

Hall took a sip of Coke: "Are they all playing so roughly?" ”

"Well, after all, it's a sworn enemy, and this level is not rude." Monte has a lot to say as an Arnason fan.

They just won the FA Cup by "roughness", and football is rough! On the field, these two teams played like a girl, and instead they played their sworn rivals Tottenham, they were already seeing blood at this point.

Fan hooligans will only be notorious and annoying, and player hooligans can win the championship!

Hall retracted his gaze and made up his mind: "No need to touch other clubs, we will buy Leeds United wholly owned." Let's prepare a pledge loan first, how much can I borrow according to the previous plan? ”

"Currently long on two [Dow Jones stock indexes] between you and AEC Capital.

As collateral, Bucklai Bank gave the highest amount and was willing to provide a short-term loan of 13 million pounds. Brandon replied.

So far, the Dow Jones index has risen by more than 10%, Hall's personal investment account has a floating profit of 3 million pounds, and the AEC capital account has a floating profit of 800,000 pounds. plus the principal amounted to £24 million.

His leveraged securities investment is an ultra-high-risk collateral, and if it weren't for the Hall family's signboard, he would never have lent 13 million pounds in cash.

This money is enough to cope with the initial acquisition, and when the floating profit of the subsequent investment is high, the loan can be operated again.

"The price of the full purchase is a bit high, I don't plan to buy the team and let it continue to rot like this, we have to sign star players and set up the academy system...... It costs money in many ways. The total budget of 20 million is relatively tight, and we are trying to suppress the acquisition cost. Hall said.

Brandon made a note in his workbook: "Okay, the acquisition team will be formally formed in the future, and I will let them come up with a corresponding plan." ”

The two were talking, and the first half of the game was over.

"Let's go, go say hello to the players."

Hall couldn't wait to experience what it was like to be a team owner, so he threw the image-affecting Coke and popcorn in his hand into the trash, stood up and walked to the players' tunnel with his chin slightly raised: "Pepsi is really hard to drink, and I will only sell Coca-Cola in the stadium in the future." ”

'Elland Road Stadium doesn't belong to Leeds United, it was sold a long time ago.' The club's receptionist reminded.

“…… Elland Road was sold to Leeds City Council by Leeds United for £2.5 million five years ago, with the two sides signing a 125-year lease. Of course, I think if it was your suggestion, the City of Leeds would have accepted it. Brandon hurriedly added.

Hall was stunned and glanced at him, "So can I suggest they sell me this stadium?" ”

Leeds City Council just last year proposed a plan to refurbish the stadium, planning to spend £150 million to repair the grandstands, build a shopping centre, cinema and other ancillary services. Many stakeholders are involved, including a chain of restaurants in which Baron Helena owns a stake, which will also be located here. Brandon replied tactfully.

"150 million is really a lot of money, and it seems that the parliamentarians are going to work hard for the transformation of the city." Hall's expression was gloomy, and most of the smugness of spending 20 million to buy a football team to play disappeared.

Then the laughter in the dressing room got him in the mood again, and he was about to have a big toy anyway.

"Hello Mr. Hall, and welcome."

The locker room door opened, and the room was suddenly silent, said a middle-aged man in a suit with heavy hairspray on top of his hair. This person is a representative of Leeds United and owns 3.5%.

Hall smiled and shook his hand, "Thanks, Renard, we've met before, in... A party at Mr. Fromson's house. ”

"Yes, we had a nice chat about tennis." Renard laughed and said, "In order to have a chance to play a game with you, I specially grabbed the job of receiving you from the club's management. ”

Hall shook his head and smiled, "I definitely didn't tell you last time, my skills are terrible. ”

"That's great! It looks like I've finally met a close opponent. Renard replied humorously.