Owen Oyston Blackpool FC takeover bid, Digi Mart USA News (Blackpool, England): Former Blackpool FC owner Owen Oyston is planning a controversial move to buy back Blackpool FC and gift it to the long-suffering fans. Claiming his love for the club remains deep, Oyston says the move would benefit Blackpool FC and the resort’s local economy.
Oyston’s 32-year ownership of Blackpool FC, which ran from 1988 to 2019, was marred by protests, boycotts, investigations and litigation. It ended when he sold the club to current owner Simon Sadler.
Under his new masterplan, Oyston said his vision is to return Blackpool FC to the fans by adopting a Bundesliga-style ownership model known as 50+1. The model gives fans 50 per cent of all shares plus one vote, providing them with majority voting power in decision-making.
One of the founding members of the BFC Supporters Trust, who boycotted the club for five years, described the plans as laughable. Blackpool FC was put up for sale by Sadler in January 2025.
Despite preliminary talks with Singapore-based investor Henry Teh, it is thought no formal bids have been received.
In June 2025, Oyston sent two emails to Sadler, which have been verified by The Gazette. In them, the 92-year-old wrote: “Now is the time to gift BFC shares to the long-suffering BFC fans.” Oyston said he would “never own shares in Blackpool Football Club again unless it is to pass them over as a gift to the fans.” He added that public ownership of the club could have “a huge impact on the local and regional economy.”
In the email, Oyston also questioned the legitimacy of Sadler’s ownership, claiming it is void ab initio, or void from the start, because Sadler bought shares from Latvian businessman Valeri Belokon. Belokon co-owned 20 per cent of the club between 2006 and 2019 and was handed a 20-year prison sentence in Kyrgyzstan for money laundering, tax evasion and dishonesty.
Oyston has filed a lawsuit against Sadler’s ownership, but his emails indicated he would be willing to drop it if Sadler agreed to a fan-led ownership model.
Blackpool FC was approached about the takeover bid by The Gazette but declined to comment. Sadler is separately facing legal issues in Hong Kong over allegations of insider dealing linked to his former hedge fund, Segantii Capital Management.
Sadler has denied the charges. He is set to learn the verdict on February 11, 2027, and could face up to seven years in prison if found guilty.
Oyston, who now lives in Lancaster with his daughter, has revealed he is estranged from his son Karl, who was club chairman between 1999 and 2018. The pair have been involved in a series of lengthy and public disputes, culminating in Karl suing Owen in 2019 over an alleged unpaid wages dispute.
According to The Fence, Karl does not support his father’s takeover bid, stating: “It’s not his to give away; it has absolutely nothing to do with him or me or anyone but Mr Sadler.”
Former Blackpool FC Supporters Trust Chairwoman Christine Seddon dismissed Oyston’s plans as “the fantasy of a deluded old man.” Lee Good, a founding member of the Supporters Trust who also boycotted Bloomfield Road for five years in protest of Oyston’s ownership, said he would be willing to boycott again if the 92-year-old regained control. He said: “I think it’s laughable and that it’s a non-event.
It’s got no legs, there’s nothing behind it. I’d vote with my feet and walk again; I think he’s deluded.”
