Who are Ipswich Town Owners? Unveiling Premier League Newcomers Ownership Structure

Earlier this summer, Ipswich Town confirmed their arrival to the English top tier securing automatic promotion to compete in the Premier League 2024/25 season. Following their stunning second-place finish in the EFL Championship 2023/24 campaign to achieve a direct promotion. Their last appearance in the Premier League came during the 2001/02 campaign, at the end of the season, they suffered relegation.

The tractor boys under Kieran McKenna marked their return to the Premier League after a long 22-year absence in the first division on the back of precedential back-to-back promotion from the third division to the pinnacle of English football. By achieving this feat, they became the only fifth club ever to clinch back-to-back promotions in history.

Ipswich have endured a tough to their Premier League venture, with four defeats and four draws accumulating as many points till Matchweek 8. Kieran McKenna’s managed side is in search of their maiden league win in this 2024/25 campaign. In this article, we are going to explore a bit of background, ownership history and the current owner’s regime of Ipswich Town.

Background

As the Premier League action is back at Portman Road Stadium after two decades of wait, let’s revisit the historic past of Ipswich Town Football Club. A century ago, the club was established in 1878 as ‘Ipswich Town Association FC’ as an amateur club, however, it was only in 1936 that the club adopted professionalism. In 1930, they were elected to the Football League after winning the Southern League in the very first attempt.

The Blues won the third-division league title on couple of times to progress to the second division, from where they finally managed to get the breakthrough to enter into the first division lifting the second-tier title in the 1960/61 season under the management of legendary club manager Sir Alf Ramsey. In the very next season, Ipswich attained remarkable success clinching the English First Division title for the first ever in their history.

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Alf Ramsey’s reign lasted from 1955 to 1963, and he later guided England to the 1966 World Cup Glory in Chile scribbling his name in golden words in the English football’s history. The club stepped their feet into European football for the first time after crowning the English champions to secure a place in the Europa League (formally called as European Cup).

In 1969, Ipswich appointed Sir Bobby Robson another legendary figure for the club, who led the Ipswich club to their most successful domestic and continental triumphs. He guided them to FA Cup glory in 1978 and UEFA Cup in 1981 beating Dutch club AZ Alkmaar in a two-legged finale to secure the historic glory. Ipswich last competed on the European stage in the 2002/03 season, following indirect qualification through the UEFA Fair Play Award.

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Here’s the list of titles Ipswich Town have won in their history:

Ipswich Town Ownership History

Ipswich’s Town owner has changed several times in its entire history, the club was primarily owned by the influential Cobbold family, who were famous for their brewing business, were involved in other industry sectors and acquired immense wealth and lands across the country. It was under their ownership the club glimpsed its most successful era prevailing significant titles, boasting some of the greatest managers at the club.

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During their control of Ipswich Town Football Club from 1957 to 2007, They provided numerous top management officials of the club from their family such as John Cobbold as chairman and Lady Blanche Cobbold as club president. The club has also dedicated a stand at Portman Stadium Road naming it ‘Cobbold stand’ in tribute to the revolutionary family.

In 2007, the Cobbold family’s tenure concluded when British businessman Marcus Evans purchased the team to become the new owner by acquiring the majority of shares and helping the club manage their financial woes and sustainably operate the club. However, the Blues failed to secure promotions during his time as Ipswich Town owner till 2021.

In 2021, the Gamechanger 20 Ltd backed by an American consortium bought the club from Marcus Evans on a £40 million takeover to mark the beginning of a new era for the tractor boys. Since, the arrival of American owners, they have enjoyed momentous success earning successive promotions to reach the peak of the football pyramid in England. New owners have also signed Kieran McKenna whose management has taken the club to new heights.

What’s the current Structure of Ipswich Ownership

The majority of the club’s stake is owned by Gamechanger 20 Ltd an American consortium backed by investors from the United States. The American investment fund ORG capital holds 50% shares of the Blues, while Bright Path Sports Partners a US-based private equity firm recently acquired 40% of the remaining share making £105 million worth of investment in March 2024.

As a result, ORG capital’s share was reduced from 90 to 50%, and the remaining minority share of 10% by minority investors such as the Three Lions funds by the trio of Brett Johnson, Berke Bakay and Mark Detmer. Additionally, the globally popular musician and lifelong Ipswich supporter Ed Sheeran had recently acquired a minority stake of 1.4% courtesy of Gamechanger 20 Ltd.

Moreover, Sheeran has been the primary shirt sponsor of the club since 2021, “I am really excited to have bought a small percentage of my hometown football club,” Ed stated, “It’s any football fan’s dream to be an owner of the club they support, and I feel so grateful for this opportunity. ” while expressing his elation. He is now more closely associated with his hometown team.

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