Brentford in advanced talks with investors over minority sale | OneFootball

Brentford are in advanced talks with English filmmaker Matthew Vaughn and South African businessman Gary Lubner over the sale of a minority stake in the club (h/t The Athletic).

Owner Matthew Benham has been seeking fresh investment to help fund the Premier League side for several years.

In February last year, the 57-year-old hired multinational private and merchant bank Rothschild to oversee the potential sale of a stake in the club.

They are now closing in on an agreement with Vaughn and Lubner, with Benham set to sell 10-20 percent of his shares at a total valuation of around £400 million.

The club plans to invest this money in helping them be more aggressive in the transfer market, fund further additions to the Best Intentions multi-club group, and boost their commercial department.

Benham initially provided interest-free loans to his boyhood football club before taking full control in 2012.

The British businessman has helped transform Brentford’s fortunes, pouring more than £100m of his own wealth into the club since 2005.

They were competing in League One when Benham first became the owner, but they won promotion to the Premier League in 2021.

He has overseen the Bees’ move to the Gtech Community Stadium and established them in the English top-flight under manager Thomas Frank, who recently left to join Tottenham Hotspur.

With external investment, Brentford want to consistently challenge for a place in the top ten and European qualification.