Latest news with #AlisherUsmanov
Telegraph
16-05-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
‘Worst stadium name in the world': Everton mocked over £10m-a-year deal
Everton have announced their new £750 million arena on Liverpool's docks will be christened the Hill Dickinson Stadium. The sponsorship deal with the international commercial law firm, understood to be worth around £10m-a-year, is claimed to be one of the largest stadium naming rights agreements in Europe. Although the club have not confirmed the duration of the contract, it is believed to be comparable to the recent £100m, ten-year deal which the RFU and Twickenham signed with Allianz. However, the new name has not gone down well with fans on social media. One fan wrote: 'I absolutely hate this. Will we always call it Bramley Moore? Probably. Is it a great commercial deal? Apparently. But for me, this is one of those things that matter more than an extra couple of million in the bank.' Another said: 'Genuinely this might be the worst name for a football stadium, ever.' And a weary supporter added: 'There simply is no end to the nightmare experience that is being an Everton fan.' As the Everton men's team prepares to leave Goodison Park this weekend, a naming rights deal for the new stadium has been on the agenda for years. Current owners, the Friedkin Group, made it a priority since completing their purchase of Everton earlier this season. When construction at Bramley-Moore dock began, it was initially expected it would be called the USM Stadium because of the business partnership between former majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri and Alisher Usmanov. Usmanov controversially paid £30 million for the 'first option' to sponsor the new arena. However, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and subsequent sanctions against Russian businesses working in the UK meant Everton had to rethink. Evertonians leaving Goodison after the last league game this weekend may find it a readjustment to refer to the Hill Dickinson Stadium after a week of romancing about their current home. Founded in 1810, Hill Dickinson is a commercial law firm spanning 11 offices across the UK, Europe and Asia. Well established in the city of Liverpool, the company has expressed its determination to expand its global reach.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Everton announce new home will be called Hill Dickinson Stadium
Everton's new home at Bramley-Moore dock will be known as Hill Dickinson Stadium, the club has announced, after a naming rights deal with the commercial law firm. Everton have been seeking a naming rights partner for their £800m stadium for some time and had hoped to attract a blue-chip company to their impressive development on the banks of the river Mersey. They have signed a long-term deal with Hill Dickinson, which was founded in Liverpool in 1810 and has expanded into Europe and Asia in recent years. Neither party has announced the length or financial terms of the deal but Everton claim it is 'one of the largest stadium naming rights deals in Europe'. That would value the deal at around £10m per year. Download the Guardian app from the iOS App Store on iPhone or the Google Play store on Android by searching for 'The Guardian'. If you already have the Guardian app, make sure you're on the most recent version. In the Guardian app, tap the Menu button at the bottom right, then go to Settings (the gear icon), then Notifications. Turn on sport notifications. USM, the holding company of Alisher Usmanov, paid £30m for an exclusive option on naming rights for the new stadium in 2020 only for Everton to cut ties with the oligarch's companies after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Everton's men's team play their final game at Goodison Park on Sunday before the move to Bramley-Moore dock.
Business Wire
12-05-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Alisher Usmanov Wins Legal Case Against Luxembourg's Largest Media Group, Says Law Firm Rechtsanwälte Steinhöfel
PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- A German court has banned Mediahuis Luxembourg S.A., the most important media holding in Luxembourg, from referring to Alisher Usmanov as the owner of the yacht Dilbar. Mediahuis Luxembourg is the leading publishing company in Luxembourg, with such assets as newspapers and online platforms, including Luxemburger Wort, Luxembourg Times and others. On May 5, 2025, the Regional Court of Hamburg ruled that the following statement published by Luxembourg Times was false and prohibited its further publication: 'The luxury yacht Dilbar was seized in Hamburg's harbour in 2022 following Russia's invasion under EU sanctions. The yacht is owned through a company and trust by Uzbek-Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov.' The court found the statement to be in violation of Mr. Usmanov's rights and prohibited its distribution. In the event of non-compliance with the prohibition, Mediahuis may be fined up to €250,000 for each individual offense. Moreover, if such a fine is not enforceable, it may be replaced with an administrative detention of up to six months per offense, with a maximum of two years in total. The disputed paragraph from the article has been removed from the Luxembourg Times website. Since 2023, Mr. Usmanov's legal counsels have obtained 10 court rulings and injunctions against media outlets that were attributing property in the Federal Republic of Germany and other various assets in the country to Mr. Usmanov. In reality, these properties and assets are held in irrevocable trusts and belong to their managers – independent trustees. In addition, some 40 cease-and-desist letters have been served, resulting in hundreds of media outlets withdrawing or correcting their articles. Joachim Steinhöfel, a lawyer specializing in press law and representing Mr. Usmanov, said: 'Media outlets have persistently and unlawfully alleged that Mr. Usmanov uses family members, shell companies, or trusts to conceal ownership of some assets — claims that are demonstrably false. Long before the ruling on Luxembourg Times, we obtained multiple court injunctions and cease-and-desist declarations prohibiting such defamatory assertions or promises to cease and desist, which were secured by contractual penalties. Despite their legal invalidity and subsequent removal or correction, such articles have nonetheless been cited in investigative files and EU sanctions documents targeting our client. The fact that prosecutorial authorities and EU sanctioning bodies rely on discredited and judicially banned media content raises serious concerns of procedural impropriety. It constitutes a clear abuse of discretion and a potential violation of due process rights. Decisions derived from such flawed sources lack both legal and moral legitimacy.' On the defamation cases brought by Alisher Usmanov and Gulbakhor Ismailova Between 2023 and 2025, a number of European, mainly German, media outlets and public figures acknowledged their inability to prove their allegations against Alisher Usmanov and his sister, Gulbakhor Ismailova, and subsequently undertook in writing to cease their illegal distribution. One of the most noteworthy is the ruling in January 2024 prohibiting several claims made by the U.S. magazine Forbes against Mr. Usmanov that were used to justify the imposition of the EU sanctions on him. Usmanov has also won legal battles against many other outlets, including the German newspaper Tagesspiegel, Austria's Kurier, and major German television and radio channels RTL and ARD/Westdeutscher Rundfunk. In April 2025, the German newspaper Münchner Merkur took down 15 articles on Alisher Usmanov and Gulbakhor Ismailova at once. Some of these articles had been used to trigger investigations into Mr. Usmanov in Germany, and their content was later included in the EU's sanctions dossiers against both Mr. Usmanov and Ms. Ismailova. In February 2025, Germany's leading news agency, dpa, informed its partners in the FRG and international media partners of the retraction of its April 13, 2022, article claiming that Ms. Ismailova was presumably the owner of the yacht Dilbar, citing the retraction by the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) of its April 2022 statement on the X platform (formerly Twitter). (The BKA deleted the original post after receiving a cease-and-desist letter from Mr. Usmanov's legal counsel and confirmed that it would no longer propagate it.) Dpa also advised them to withdraw the publication 'to avoid any legal dispute.' The article in question disappeared from the websites of numerous media, such Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Zeit, Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung and others. In March 2025, Tagesschau, Germany's longest-running and most-watched television news program, was also forced to remove similar content from its website.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Alisher Usmanov Wins Legal Case Against Luxembourg's Largest Media Group, Says Law Firm Rechtsanwälte Steinhöfel
PARIS, May 12, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A German court has banned Mediahuis Luxembourg S.A., the most important media holding in Luxembourg, from referring to Alisher Usmanov as the owner of the yacht Dilbar. Mediahuis Luxembourg is the leading publishing company in Luxembourg, with such assets as newspapers and online platforms, including Luxemburger Wort, Luxembourg Times and others. On May 5, 2025, the Regional Court of Hamburg ruled that the following statement published by Luxembourg Times was false and prohibited its further publication: "The luxury yacht Dilbar was seized in Hamburg's harbour in 2022 following Russia's invasion under EU sanctions. The yacht is owned through a company and trust by Uzbek-Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov." The court found the statement to be in violation of Mr. Usmanov's rights and prohibited its distribution. In the event of non-compliance with the prohibition, Mediahuis may be fined up to €250,000 for each individual offense. Moreover, if such a fine is not enforceable, it may be replaced with an administrative detention of up to six months per offense, with a maximum of two years in total. The disputed paragraph from the article has been removed from the Luxembourg Times website. Since 2023, Mr. Usmanov's legal counsels have obtained 10 court rulings and injunctions against media outlets that were attributing property in the Federal Republic of Germany and other various assets in the country to Mr. Usmanov. In reality, these properties and assets are held in irrevocable trusts and belong to their managers – independent trustees. In addition, some 40 cease-and-desist letters have been served, resulting in hundreds of media outlets withdrawing or correcting their articles. Joachim Steinhöfel, a lawyer specializing in press law and representing Mr. Usmanov, said: "Media outlets have persistently and unlawfully alleged that Mr. Usmanov uses family members, shell companies, or trusts to conceal ownership of some assets — claims that are demonstrably false. Long before the ruling on Luxembourg Times, we obtained multiple court injunctions and cease-and-desist declarations prohibiting such defamatory assertions or promises to cease and desist, which were secured by contractual penalties. Despite their legal invalidity and subsequent removal or correction, such articles have nonetheless been cited in investigative files and EU sanctions documents targeting our client. The fact that prosecutorial authorities and EU sanctioning bodies rely on discredited and judicially banned media content raises serious concerns of procedural impropriety. It constitutes a clear abuse of discretion and a potential violation of due process rights. Decisions derived from such flawed sources lack both legal and moral legitimacy." On the defamation cases brought by Alisher Usmanov and Gulbakhor Ismailova Between 2023 and 2025, a number of European, mainly German, media outlets and public figures acknowledged their inability to prove their allegations against Alisher Usmanov and his sister, Gulbakhor Ismailova, and subsequently undertook in writing to cease their illegal distribution. One of the most noteworthy is the ruling in January 2024 prohibiting several claims made by the U.S. magazine Forbes against Mr. Usmanov that were used to justify the imposition of the EU sanctions on him. Usmanov has also won legal battles against many other outlets, including the German newspaper Tagesspiegel, Austria's Kurier, and major German television and radio channels RTL and ARD/Westdeutscher Rundfunk. In April 2025, the German newspaper Münchner Merkur took down 15 articles on Alisher Usmanov and Gulbakhor Ismailova at once. Some of these articles had been used to trigger investigations into Mr. Usmanov in Germany, and their content was later included in the EU's sanctions dossiers against both Mr. Usmanov and Ms. Ismailova. In February 2025, Germany's leading news agency, dpa, informed its partners in the FRG and international media partners of the retraction of its April 13, 2022, article claiming that Ms. Ismailova was presumably the owner of the yacht Dilbar, citing the retraction by the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) of its April 2022 statement on the X platform (formerly Twitter). (The BKA deleted the original post after receiving a cease-and-desist letter from Mr. Usmanov's legal counsel and confirmed that it would no longer propagate it.) Dpa also advised them to withdraw the publication "to avoid any legal dispute." The article in question disappeared from the websites of numerous media, such Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Zeit, Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung and others. In March 2025, Tagesschau, Germany's longest-running and most-watched television news program, was also forced to remove similar content from its website. View source version on Contacts Alisher Usmanov's Press Service pressoffice@ Joachim Nikolaus Steinhöfel, attorney ABC-Str. 38, 20354 Hamburg mail@ – Tel.: +49 40 444599 Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Russia Today
09-02-2025
- Business
- Russia Today
Russian tycoon scores victory in legal battle against Western media
Russian metals and telecoms tycoon Alisher Usmanov has won another lawsuit in his sizable legal wrangle with Western media outlets. A regional court in Germany has banned a local news daily from disseminating 'false' statements about the billionaire, RBK reported on Sunday, citing Usmanov's press office. The Berlin-based publication Tagesspiegel, controlled by the German publisher DvH Medien, has been barred from spreading a series of false and defamatory claims about the Uzbek-born businessman. The ruling, a copy of which was obtained by the outlet, was made by the Hamburg Regional Court on February 3. Failing to comply will reportedly result in a fine of up to €250,000 ($258,000) per violation or imprisonment for up to two years for repeated breaches, the media outlet noted. The litigation was reportedly focused on a piece by Andrey Popov titled 'A Fan of Germany and a Friend of Putin: Who is the Russian Oligarch Alisher Usmanov?' published by Tagesspiegel in November 2024. The article contained a number of allegations, including claims about assets in Germany purportedly owned by the mogul along with accusations that he used his unproved connections with Russian authorities to boost his fortune. The piece was deleted shortly after a request from Usmanov's lawyer, EU Today noted, but the newspaper continued to spread the claims, forcing the businessman to seek legal redress. The latest ruling specifically bans the statements alleging that the businessman 'was able to buy up major Soviet-era assets at bargain prices in exchange for services and cooperation with the authorities,' as well as claims that 'the foundation of his prosperity was securing large and highly lucrative government contracts without real competition—such as in the construction sector.' READ MORE: German judge backs Russian tycoon over US media giant Moreover, the court prohibited the newspaper from further claims about property on Lake Tegernsee in Bavaria or the yacht Dilbar, allegedly owned by Usmanov, after Tagesspiegel failed to provide any evidence proving the ownership of the property. The court ruling, described by Usmanov's attorneys as 'a landmark decision,' is not the first victory clinched by the billionaire in his legal battle against Western media giants spreading misinformation about him. A year ago, the District Court of Hamburg in Germany banned Forbes magazine from disseminating statements about his alleged connection to Russian President Vladimir Putin. In October 2024, Usmanov filed a criminal complaint with the prosecutor's office in the German city of Cologne seeking to hold Hans-Joachim Seppelt, a journalist with the German TV channel ARD, criminally liable for claims that the tycoon was behind a scheme to manipulate referees during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Media holding Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) that runs the broadcaster had previously admitted that the reports were libelous. The businessman, whose fortune is estimated by Forbes at $14.9 billion, was placed under EU sanctions over the alleged ties to Putin shortly after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022. Usmanov attempted to challenge Brussels' decision to blacklist him, but his appeal has been dismissed.
