Middlesbrough v Stoke City: Comparing how rich each club's owners are ahead of Riverside clash | OneFootball

FLW takes a look at the net worth of both club's owners ahead of Middlesbrough v Stoke City this weekend.

Ahead of the Championship clash between Middlesbrough and Stoke City on Saturday afternoon, we have taken a look at which club has the wealthier owners.

Both Middlesbrough and Stoke City will be underwhelmed with their respective starts to the 2024/25 Championship campaign, with Boro sitting in mid-table while the Potters are languishing in 17th.

Michael Carrick's side have taken just one point from their last two outings against Preston North End and Sunderland, while new Stoke boss Narcis Pelach started life at the bet365 Stadium with a defeat against Hull City in his first game after being appointed as Steven Schumacher's replacement.

While both clubs will be slightly disappointed with how they have started the season on the pitch, let's see how Middlesbrough and Stoke are doing off it, by taking a look at how rich each club's owners are.

How rich is Middlesbrough owner Steve Gibson?

Middlesbrough owner Steve Gibson is a lifelong fan of the club, and helped save the club from liquidation when he formed a consortium to complete a takeover in 1986.

He facilitated Boro's move to the Riverside Stadium in 1995, led the club to its first trophy in 128 years when they lifted the League Cup in 2004, and was given the Freedom of Middlesbrough that same year.

The 66-year-old allowed Carrick to spend in the region of £14.5 million on new players during the summer transfer window, with players including Tommy Conway, Micah Hamilton, and Aidan Morris arriving on Teeside to help the club make a push for promotion to the Premier League this term.

He has invested in strengthening the squad throughout the last few years, with several multi-million pound signings, such as Emmanuel Latte Lath, Marcus Forss, and Martin Payero.

According to The Sunday Times North East Rich List, via Teeside Live, Gibson has a £640 million fortune.

How rich is Stoke City owner John Coates?

John Coates, who is the joint-CEO of online gambling company bet365, took outright ownership of the controlling stake in Stoke City Football Club earlier this year.

The changes to their ownership model saw all the Potters' debts being cleared, as well as their Clayton Wood training ground and bet365 Stadium becoming directly owned by the club.

Coates explained that "everything we do is geared towards bringing long-term success to Stoke City and representing our fanbase and local community in a way that makes people feel proud."

According to Forbes, the 54-year-old is worth an impressive £3.23 billion, ranking him among some of the richest owners in the country, and giving Stoke supporters reason to believe that they will see their club make a return to the top flight of English football despite their disappointing performances in recent years.

The Potters spent less money on new signings during the latest summer transfer window than they did the previous year, when they invested a significant amount of money on players such as Wouter Burger, Ryan Mmaee, and Million Manhoef.

However, they still spent in the region of £5 million, bringing in the likes of Bosun Lawal and Sam Gallagher, who Pelach will hope can help him lead Stoke into promotion contention this season.

Overall, there is no doubt that Stoke have wealthier owners than Middlesbrough, although both teams have invested in their playing squads in recent years and will be hoping to secure a vital three points on Saturday in their respective bids to climb the table and compete for promotion back to the Premier League.