Latest news with #HeartofMidlothian
BBC News
a day ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Findlay rejoins McInnes on loan to Hearts from Oxford
Stuart Findlay has joined Heart of Midlothian on a season-long loan from Oxford United, with head coach Derek McInnes expressing his delight at being able to work with the "domineering defender" once 29-year-old centre-half was on loan to Kilmarnock for the last two seasons and now follows his manager at Rugby Park to say Findlay will leave the Championship club next summer when his contract told Hearts' website: "Stuart is obviously someone I know very well from the years we've previously spent working together. "I know his attributes and every aspect of his game. He's a domineering defender, strong and athletic, and he is a real leader on and off the pitch."Findlay, who has one cap for Scotland, started his career as a youth Celtic before spells on loan to Greenock Morton, Dumbarton and Kilmarnock before a switch to Newcastle United in failed to break into the first-team, he return to Scotland on loan to Kilmarnock before a permanent switch in 2018.A move to Philadelphia Union followed in 2021 before joining Oxford in being a near ever-present in his first season with the then League One outfit, he returned north for another spell in Ayrshire.
BBC News
2 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Bloom investment gets approval from Hearts shareholders
Tony Bloom's proposed investment of close to £10m in Heart of Midlothian moved a step closer after it was approved at an extraordinary general meeting of the club's Brighton & Hove Albion owner is to invest £9.86m in return for a 29% stake via non-voting transaction was overwhelmingly backed by members of Foundation of Hearts – the supporters' group who hold a majority led to Wednesday's EGM and an update from Tynecastle said that "all of the resolutions have been passed".
New York Times
6 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
Tony Bloom's other clubs: How Brighton owner has been embraced at Hearts, Melbourne Victory and USG
Tony Bloom did not occupy the seat set aside for the visiting chairman when Brighton & Hove Albion won 4-1 away to Tottenham Hotspur on the final day of the 2024-25 Premier League season. Brighton's long-serving owner-chairman was in Belgium for the weekend instead to witness a long-awaited triumph for Union Saint-Gilloise, the club he holds closest in his affections after his boyhood club, in an expanding football empire that also includes Heart of Midlothian in Scotland and Melbourne Victory in Australia. Advertisement About 90 minutes after Fabian Hurzeler's first campaign as Brighton's head coach ended in north London with an eighth-placed finish in the club's eighth season in succession playing at that level, celebrations were under way in Brussels at the Joseph Marien Stadium as USG clinched their first domestic top-flight title for 90 years with a 3-1 home win against Gent. USG's transformation has been remarkable since Bloom took over the club in 2018 alongside longtime friend and business associate Alex Muzio — they attended the same school in Hove and Muzio rose through Bloom's gambling consultancy company StarLizard. Back then, USG had narrowly avoided relegation to the third tier and they had not played in the top-flight Belgian Pro League since 1973. They were a shadow of the club that dominated Belgian football before the Second World War, finishing champions or runners-up 19 times before 1904 and 1935, before falling into decay and dropping down to the fourth division. Seven years on, they have been regular title contenders since promotion in 2020-21, reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League and the last 16 of the Conference League in successive seasons and, in 2024, won the Belgian Cup and Belgian Super Cup. Muzio, reflecting on USG's turnaround under the partnership with Bloom, tells The Athletic: 'We looked at teams in a league we could realistically win without buying a large team. That made France and Holland difficult. 'Belgium has a deeper power base of teams than those countries, so, yes, it was always the plan. I wouldn't say Europe was a strong consideration, more something that would come with how good we hoped and planned to be in the long term. The work continues here. I'm definitely not resting on my laurels.' For the first five years of the partnership, Bloom was the majority owner. Muzio held a 10 per cent stake and controlled the board voting rights. In July 2023, after Brighton reached Europe for the first time under former head coach Roberto De Zerbi to qualify for the Europa League, Bloom reduced his holding to a minority stake. Muzio remortgaged his house to acquire 75 per cent of the club. The ownership adjustment was made to comply with UEFA Competition Regulations around multi-club ownership as USG were also in the Europa League. Advertisement Player movement from Brighton to USG used to be frequent — former players Percy Tau (in 2018-2019), Alex Cochrane (in 2020-21) and current star Kaoru Mitoma (in 2021-22) all had loans there. That has dissipated in line with the style of Bloom's multi-club model, with the clubs regarded as unconnected entities and personal ventures. There are, however, parallels in the smart recruitment of players and coaches to absorb churn. On the playing side, striker Deniz Undav joined USG from the German third division, was sold to Brighton for €7million (£5.8m; $7.6m) in January 2022 and is now a German international playing for Stuttgart, having been sold on by Brighton to the Bundesliga club in a deal worth £28m last August. Hurzeler is Brighton's fourth head coach/manager in seven seasons. USG have had the same number since 2022 — Felice Mazzu, Karel Geraerts, Alexander Blessin (Hurzeler's successor at St Pauli) and former Brighton defender Sebastien Pocognoli, who steered them to their 12th domestic title. Heart of Midlothian supporters are hopeful the success of USG, with Bloom's involvement, is a blueprint to restore former glories at the Scottish Premier League club, which is based in Edinburgh. An extraordinary general meeting of shareholders at their Tynecastle Park home on June 18 will formally approve a £9.86million investment by Bloom. It follows 98.5 per cent support for his proposal in a vote last month by the Foundation of Hearts (FoH), the fans group with 8,000 members that owns the club. In return, Bloom gets a 29 per cent stake but they are non-voting shares, and a place on the board will be taken by a nominee rather than Bloom himself. The money is a personal investment by Bloom, with the aim of shaking up the Scottish football establishment. Glasgow sides Celtic and Rangers have dominated for decades. The last of the four top-flight league titles won by Hearts was in 1959-60. So how can he help to bridge the gap? Advertisement In a separate agreement, Bloom's data platform, Jamestown Analytics, will identify new signings for Derek McInnes. The former head coach of Aberdeen and Kilmarnock took charge last month as Hearts finished seventh of 12 teams in the league, a whopping 40 points behind champions Celtic and 23 points adrift of runners-up Rangers, under Steven Naismith in the early stages of the season and Neil Critchley for the majority of the campaign. 'We think this is a game-changer, and we think this is something which can put us on a different level,' said chair Gerry Mallon during an interview on FoH's YouTube channel in March. 'I think bringing somebody on board with the integrity, with the capability and of the calibre of Tony Bloom is a great coup for us.' Bloom has chosen aptly by buying into Melbourne Victory in the A-League in Australia — the home country of his wife Linda and a destination for regular family visits with their two children. His purchase of a 19.1 per cent stake in the club in March was accompanied by memes on social media about Seagulls, Brighton's nickname. AAMI Park, Victory's home stadium, is renowned for being overrun by these coastal birds. Victory have a chequered financial history. They announced around the time of Bloom's investment that they are no longer owned by A-Cap. The U.S. insurance firm took control last year of the assets of 777Partners, the Miami-based investment company that made a failed attempt to add Everton to its portfolio of football clubs two years ago. Victory, A-League champions four times but not since 2014-15, posted a loss of £4.8million ($6.2m) in 2023-24, so it is not surprising that Bloom's arrival on the scene has received an enthusiastic thumbs-up from supporters. 'They were very pleased to see Tony Bloom come in because they knew of his reputation for incredibly well-run organisations,' Australia football writer Joey Lynch tells The Athletic. 'It was rumoured for a while and they were absolutely ecstatic when it was confirmed. Advertisement 'A-League observers welcomed Tony Bloom into the fold as well. He is only a minority owner without a controlling stake, but he carries a reputation for good custodianship of his clubs in a league that desperately needs investment from fit and proper characters.' Bloom's joy with USG in Belgium in May contrasted with pain for Victory the following weekend as they lost 1-0 at home to rivals Melbourne City in the grand final that decides the A-League champions. They were also beaten in the 2023-24 final, suffering a 3-1 defeat against Central Coast Mariners. Bloom's expertise in player recruitment modelling is key to their plans. 'The short-term hope for Melbourne Victory would be access to scouting and data analytics for recruitment, because the A-League operates with a salary cap,' says Lynch. 'Melbourne are expected to sell or lose a lot of players during the off-season, as free agents or transfers. 'All of those players need to be replaced in a salary-cap environment where you have a limited number of foreigners and, if you want to remain competitive year in and year out, you need smart recruitment. Victory have made the grand final to determine the champions two years in a row and they've lost both times, so they need someone to help them take the next step.' If Bloom's record of success with Brighton and Union Saint-Gilloise is a dependable yardstick, Hearts and Melbourne Victory can both look forward to brighter futures.
The National
13-06-2025
- Sport
- The National
Arzani links up with ex-Celtic hero after SPFL return links
The 26-year-old, who spent an injury-ravaged year and a half at Parkhead, was linked with a move to Heart of Midlothian earlier this summer. A switch to Tynecastle potentially beckoned for Arzani, with Hearts viewing him as an option to bolster their wide areas. Read more: The Aussie has instead opted to sign for Hungarian champions Ferencvaros, who are managed by ex-Celtic hero Robbie Keane. Keane spent half a season on loan in Glasgow's east end, scoring 16 goals and providing three assists in 19 appearances. He was appointed boss of Ferencvaros at the beginning of this year and soon guided them to Hungarian top-flight glory last season. Arzani, his latest summer signing, played 29 times for Melbourne Victory last term, setting up six goals and netting three. In other news, Ange Postecoglou is reportedly being lined up for a shock return to management in Saudi Arabia. The ex-Celtic boss was sacked by Tottenham Hotspur last week despite leading the North London club to Europa League glory. Now, he is being 'lined up' to replace highly-rated young German coach Matthias Jaissle at Saudi Pro League outfit Al Ahli, claims The Telegraph. The former Parkhead gaffer already has vast experience of managing in Asia, having led Yokohama F. Marinos to the J. League title and Australia to Asian Cup glory.
BBC News
10-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Kilmarnock secure Brandon after Livingston exit
Kilmarnock have secured Jamie Brandon on a two-year contract after the Livingston captain rejected a new contract with the promoted club as well as "a lot of clubs competing for his signature".The versatile 27-year-old defender had spent three years with the West Lothian outfit, who will be opponents next season after finishing runners-up in the Scottish Championship and beating Ross County in the Premiership Play-off becomes Kilmarnock's first signing since Stuart Kettlewell became manager and the former Motherwell boss is delighted to capture someone he believes was much sought after. "There have been a lot of clubs competing for his signature," he told his club website."He's been a standout performer for Livingston and he adds to the leadership qualities that we already have in abundance here. He understands the demands of Scottish football."Whitburn-born Brandon, who can play at right-back, right wing or central midfield, started his career with Heart of Midlothian and had a loan spell with Greenock Morton before joining made 98 appearances for David Martindale's side, including 48 out of 50 last season, all of them starts, and is delighted to have joined "a big football club".
