Valencia set for new ownership after years of turmoil

Valencia are set to finally be released from the troublesome ownership of Singaporean billionaire Peter Lim, with the Crown Prince of Johor, Tunku Ismail ibni Sultan Ibrahim, reportedly reaching an agreement to become the club’s major shareholder.

Spanish outlet À Punt reports the Southern Malaysian Prince will become a non-majority capitalist partner of Valencia, but have total control of the club, relinquishing control from Peter Lim who has drawn repeated protests by supporters during his tenure in charge of the club.

Ibrahim is the eldest son and the heir of the Sultanate of Johor who is worth an estimated €700 million, while Ibrahim himself already has success in football, establishing Johor FC in the Malaysian Super League, and having some success in the Asian Champions League.

The Crown Prince, who has a huge social media presence, has been posting about Valencia over the past day, and in quotes carried by Marca, he stated: “I am not someone to change the crest or the tradition of your club, as I said before. I am not a businessman. I am here for the glory.

“I am a prince, not a businessman. Money does not motivate me, glory motivates me and making history. It is not a secret that I love football, I am passionate about it.”

Valencia managed their first silverware in a decade under Lim’s ownership in 2019 when they beat Barcelona to the Copa del Rey, but after surprisingly firing star coach Marcelino soon after, Lim’s relationship with supporters continued to deteriorate. 

Players began speaking out against the owner, and strange transfer deals such as the sale of captain Dani Parejo to rivals Villarreal caused uproar among supporters, while new coach, Javi Gracia, nearly quit his role just weeks into the job after disagreements with management.

Ibrahim is reportedly a friend of Lim’s and first travelled to Mestalla to see a match in 2016, and five years later he’s now set to own the club.