Leeds chairman Andrea Radrizzani has agreed a deal to sell his controlling stake in the club to co-owners 49ers Enterprises. As a result the American investment group, owner of NFL franchise the San Francisco 49ers and a minority shareholder in Leeds since 2018, will take full ownership. “Leeds United can confirm an agreement has been reached between Aser Ventures and 49ers Enterprises for the purchase of the club,” said a statement. “Both parties continue to work through the details, and further updates will be provided soon. “All of our focus remains on a quick return to the Premier League.” 49ers Enterprises increased its stake in Leeds to 44 per cent in 2021 with the option of buying Radrizzani’s remaining 56 per cent before January 2024. The Americans had been keen to push through a full takeover this summer, but that agreement, which had valued Leeds at around £400million, was contingent on the club remaining in the Premier League. Leeds’ relegation last month forced both parties back into intense negotiations and a valuation of close to £170m has been agreed. The deal marks the end of Radrizzani’s six-year ownership of Leeds. He completed a full takeover from fellow Italian Massimo Cellino in 2017 and initially proved hugely popular. Radrizzani bought back Elland Road stadium, which had been in private ownership since 2004, and brought in fresh investment when 49ers Enterprises purchased its first 10 per cent stake in 2018. The appointment of Marcelo Bielsa soon after proved a masterstroke as Leeds won promotion back to the Premier League for the first time in 16 years. 49ers Enterprises has steadily increased its stake, while Radrizzani’s relationship with the Leeds fanbase began to sour when Bielsa was sacked in February 2022. Leeds escaped relegation on the final day of the 2021-22 season under Bielsa’s successor Jesse Marsch and Radrizzani promised that the club would not be involved in another survival fight. But results this past season failed to improve and after Marsch was sacked in February, his replacement Javi Gracia and then Sam Allardyce, appointed with four games remaining, failed to halt the slide. When relegation was confirmed with a final-day defeat to Tottenham, Radrizzani was absent from Elland Road, opting instead to remain in Italy to finalise his takeover of Sampdoria. He later admitted Leeds’ board had made mistakes and apologised for the club’s relegation in a personal statement posted on social media. But after it emerged he had offered to use Elland Road as collateral when securing a £26m bank loan to buy Sampdoria – one of his companies and not Leeds owned the stadium – his legacy was further tainted. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Keely Hodgkinson sets new British record at Paris Diamond League Andy Murray targets the next step after reaching Surbiton semi-finals again French Open day 13: Djokovic reaches final as Alcaraz struggles with cramp

ROME Italy's manufacturing sector contracted in September for a sixth consecutive month, a survey showed on Monday, amid

SINGAPORE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 13, 2023--

High in remote mountains in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, a new plant will soon take atmospheric CO2 and pump it into rock -- part of controversial attempts to target...

HONG KONG HSBC Holdings reported a 235% increase in first-half profit on Tuesday, as it benefited from rising

By Tim Hepher PARIS Airlines could face shortages of planes, engines and parts for several years as they

By Saeed Azhar NEW YORK Goldman Sachs' asset management arm said two funds have closed, raising more than

Ryanair Holdings Plc reported fiscal first-quarter profit that beat analysts’ estimates while cautioning that delays from new Boeing

Metro Bank Holdings Plc is weighing offloading a portion of its mortgage portfolio to rivals as it hastens

A coalition of professional sports teams in Missouri is backing a new proposal to put the legalization of sports betting on the 2024 ballot

Thanks to legal tax avoidance strategies, illegal tax evasion schemes and creative accounting that rarely gets challenged by resource-starved authorities, countries around the world collectively stand to lose an estimated $4.7 trillion in revenue over the next decade unless substantial reforms are made to global tax rules.

Former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers warned against any sense of achievement by policymakers in bringing inflation down notably