Soccer-Brighton owner Bloom acquires stake in Scottish club Hearts
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Premier League - Brighton & Hove Albion v Newcastle United - The American Express Community Stadium, Brighton, Britain - April 27, 2019 Brighton chairman Tony Bloom in the stands before the match REUTERS/Toby Melville
(Reuters) -Brighton & Hove Albion owner Tony Bloom has invested 9.86 million pounds ($13.41 million) to acquire a 29% stake in Heart of Midlothian, the Scottish Premiership club said on Wednesday.
Bloom's stake will be in non-voting shares and he has nominated James Franks, a long-time business consultant with experience of football governance, to join the club's board as a non-executive director.
"I firmly believe in the club's ability to disrupt the pattern of domination of Scottish football which has been in place for far too long," Bloom said in a statement.
"The appointment of James as my representative on the board underlines the importance I attach to my investment in the club.
"James has been a trusted associate of mine for many years and I believe that his wealth of experience in the football industry and strong business acumen will be a tremendous asset to the board and to the club."
Hearts finished seventh in the Premiership last season, reached the Scottish Cup semi-finals and played in the league phase of the Conference League.
Bloom is also an investor in Belgian Pro League team Royale Union Saint-Gilloise, who ended their 90-year wait for the league title in the 2024-25 season.
In March, he also reached an agreement to acquire an initial 19.1% stake in Australian A-League side Melbourne Victory.
($1 = 0.7351 pounds)
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
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