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Wales Online
Wales Online
Sport
Ian Mitchelmore

Swansea City Supporters' Trust withdraw legal action as agreement reached over 2016 sale of club

Swansea City's former owners and the club's Supporters' Trust have reached a settlement that ensures no legal action will be taken over the sale of the club in 2016.

American duo Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan purchased a 68% controlling stake in the Swans for around £100m shortly after the fifth season of the club's seven-year stay in the Premier League.

However, the Trust - who own 21.1% of the club - stated they were excluded from negotiations that saw the majority ownership change hands.

As a result, in 2019 more than 81% of members voted in favour of taking legal action against those who sanctioned the sale of the club.

However, it has been confirmed that an agreement has been reached between the relevant parties to ensure the matter will not go to court.

A club statement read: "Swansea City is pleased to announce that the club, the Swansea City Supporters’ Trust and the former majority owners of the club have reached an agreement on a unified path to support the football club moving forward.

"Following on from this agreement, the current board of directors - including its majority shareholders and the Supporters’ Trust - plan to work together and build on the strong foundations that are in place as a result of this agreement.

"The Supporters’ Trust has always been a much-valued and fundamental part of the football club since 2001. As part of this agreement, the Trust’s shareholding in the club will include a permanently protected 5% ownership position, and the Trust will have ongoing, indefinite representation on the club board."

Majority shareholder Levien stated: “We have been determined to establish the proper framework by which we can work together with the Supporters’ Trust to support the club in continuing to thrive and move forward.

“Jake [Silverstein] has played a key role in helping to drive this and, on behalf of the club, both myself and Steve are grateful for his and Dave Dalton's efforts to bolster our future collaborations with the Supporters’ Trust.”

Dave Dalton, Chair of the Supporters’ Trust, said: “The Trust is pleased to have reached a resolution that is in the best interests of the Trust and football club and looks forward to a new chapter built on mutual support and co-operation.

“The Trust will shortly provide further clarifications about the agreement reached in a separate statement to its members.”

The Supporters' Trust are scheduled to hold an Annual General Meeting on Tuesday (February 15) night before issuing a full statement on the latest developments.

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