The English Premier League club Portsmouth has a new owner, the fourth of this season. BBC reports that Balram Chainrai, a Hong Kong-based businessman, Balram Chainrai is said to have taken control of the club with 90 percent of the shares. Gordon Farquhar of BBC Sports says, “He is understood not to be interested in a long-term ownership, just averting the current crisis.

Source: EuFootballBiz

The game of musical chairs at Pompey continues with the most recent owner, Balram Chainrai, taking control after the club defaulted on debt service payments owed to him. Four owners in a year is already a record and the club is likely to break it again this season as Chainrai has stated that he has zero interest in running the club and will look to sell on as quickly as possible.

That Pompey have been subjected to horrendous financial mismanagement is a cautionary tale for all supporters regarding takeovers and it should force them to ask difficult questions of any prospective new club owners.

1. What are the new owner’s intentions in buying the club?

2. Is the prospective owner planning on providing equity investment or sources of financing?

3. What kind of experience/background does the owner bring to the club?

Recent events at Man Utd, Liverpool, Crystal Palace, West Ham and many more suggest that perhaps these questions should have been asked much sooner.