Andy Pilley, owner of English third-tier side Fleetwood Town, looks set to take full control of Waterford FC.
The 52-year-old was pictured at Friday night’s win over Galway United at the RSC, and was also present yesterday evening as the Blues made the trip to Turners Cross.
Fleetwood Town owner Andy Pilley is set to take sole ownership of Waterford FC with the takeover of the club expected shortly. Mitch Cowling to remain on board as club chairman. A bright future for the club is in the offering.https://t.co/d6nqRA9Uni
— Adrian Flanagan (@flanagan_adrian) August 15, 2022
Waterford FC have confirmed that a press conference is to be held today, Tuesday Aug 16th, in WIT Arena.
Mr. Pilley purchased Fleetwood for £500 in 2004; with a notable accomplishment being the sale of then non-league Jamie Vardy to Leicester City for a fee of £1m.
The Englishman also owns a number of clubs in South Africa and the United Arab Emirates with the word 'Fleetwood' featuring in both of their club names.
Speaking to Fleetwood Town's website in December 2021, Piley said: "We are experts at building football clubs and developing players and that’s something we are really excited to do in UAE and South Africa.
"We’re a forward-thinking club, it’s one thing Manchester City having a network of clubs, but who would have thought little old Fleetwood would go down the same route?
"It’s a real honour for us to be accepted into the new UAE Third Division and I’d like to thank them for their help as we established the new club and look forward to helping football, in general, develop and grow in the country.
"The process to get into the league has been going on for some time now, with more than 200 clubs applying for just 12 places.
"So, we are delighted our 18 years of experience in football held us in a good position."
Further to his footballing exploits, Mr. Piley and three others are due to stand trial on October 10, following his denial of two counts of running a business with the intention of defrauding creditors, one count of false representation, and one count of being concerned with the retention of criminal property at Preston Crown Court.
Should a deal be completed, he will become the third owner of Waterford FC in less than three years.
