Why Tottenham owner, Joe Lewis, may have to sell the club according to Premier League rules | OneFootball

Tottenham Hotspur owner Joe Lewis faces criminal charges as he has been said, by US attorney Damian Williams, to have been “orchestrating a brazen insider trader scheme”.

Play Video

All allegations against Lewis were announced via Mr Williams’ video announcement in which he claimed the British billionaire and Spurs owner of ‘showering gifts on his friends and lovers’.

The 86-year-old owner, according to Forbes, is worth $6.1 billion and is the latest business to come under threat from federal prosecutors.

These prosecutors (via The Mirror

These companies included Solid Biosciences, Australian Agricultural Co. and Mirati Therapeutics.

However, in response to the series of charges, Lewis’ lawyer has claimed they are an “egregious error in judgement”.

It seems, though, that Lewis’ downfall does not stop there as respectable New York Times journalist Tariq Panja has claimed that Lewis may be at risk of being forced to sell Spurs.

What did US attorney Damian Williams say in his video?

“We allege that, for years, Joe Lewis abused his access to corporate boardrooms and repeatedly provided inside information to his romantic partners, his personal assistants, his private pilot, and his friends,” Mr Williams claimed in the video.

“Those folks then traded on that information and made millions of dollars in the stock market because, thanks to Lewis, those bets were a sure thing. Now, none of this was necessary. Joe Lewis is a wealthy man but as we allege, he used inside information as a way to compensate his employees to shower gifts on his friends and lovers.

“That’s classic corporate corruption, it’s cheating, and it’s against the law. Laws apply to everyone no matter who you are. That’s why Joe Lewis has been indicted and will face justice here in the Southern District of New York. Thank you.”

Why Joe Lewis now risks having to sell Tottenham

A spokesperson for the north London-based club told Football London on Wednesday: “This is a legal matter unconnected with the club and as such we have no comment.”

However, this does not rule them out of being involved in some way, shape, or form.

Panja took to Twitter to explain the situation and what effect his charges could have on his ownership of Premier League club Tottenham.

Likened to Roman Abramovich’s situation, where the former Chelsea owner was made to sell the club due to his links to Russian president Vladimir Putin, there are fears Lewis is in a similar position.

“When Roman Abramovich was sanctioned, the PL said he had to sell club because of its rules. Joe Lewis, should he be convicted of the insider trading charges he’s been accused of today, would face similar situation with Spurs. PL rules say convictions are a disqualification.” his tweet read.

Just recently, Lewis delivered a ‘Harry Kane ultimatum’ to chairman Daniel Levy to ensure they do not lose the talismanic Englishman on a free transfer.

As a means of boosting Bayern Munich’s chances of landing the goal-getter, Lewis said the club must sell Harry Kane this summer if he wishes not to sign new £400k-a-week deal, per MailOnline.