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Egyptian businessman Assem Allam, 74, has sold his 100% stake in Hull City to Portsmouth-born billionaire Joshua Hull.
Allam took control of Hull City back in 2010 after the club had been relegated from the Premier League with extensive financial problems. He purchased the Yorkshire club for a nominal fee of £1 but soon invested in excess of £30 million. During his tenure as chairman, he hired Steve Bruce as manager in July 2012 and he led them back to the Premier League in the 2012/13 season as Hull finished in an automatic promotion spot, 2nd place.
Despite the positives of helping Hull to the Premier League and funding the signings of players such as Tom Huddlestone, Shane Long and Nikica Jelavic, Allam’s spell at Hull was highly controversial and he became a hugely disliked and unpopular figure due to his actions regarding the name of the football club. On 9 August 2013, Allam announced that the club will discard its 109-year old name and be, henceforth, "marketed" as Hull City Tigers locally and Hull Tigers to national and international audiences. Announcing the change in the Hull Daily Mail newspaper, he said: "'Hull City' is irrelevant...it is common. I want the club to be special. It is about identity. 'City' is a lousy identity. 'Hull City Association Football Club' is so long." Hull fans, rightfully, have seen Allam’s actions as massively disrespectful to the football club and that he is ruining the tradition which is part of Hull City AFC.
The Premier League and FA announced that Hull City AFC would remain with that name for the 2013/14 and had not been approached about a name change. That led to Allam submitting an official request for a name change and threatening to leave the club if the name was not changed. Hull fans in response held up banners such as ‘City Till We Die’ and ‘Hull City AFC: a club not a brand’ and have protested Allam’s decision. Now, The Premier League and FA have announced their decision to reject the approach for the name change and Allam has been quick to take action over his threat and has sold the club to Joshua Hull for a reported fee of £70 million.
Joshua Hull, only 25 years old, is a Portsmouth-born billionaire businessman who made his money from the telecommunications industry. He is an avid football fan but does not support Hull and in fact is a follower of his local club Portsmouth. He has been a season ticket holder at Fratton Park for a number of years but has no ties to Hull City AFC.
In a press conference he revealed his motives for purchasing Hull and his long term plans for the club, “I am delighted to be able to have become the new owner and chairman of Hull City AFC. After finding out that Mr. Allam was looking to sell, I jumped at the chance of taking control of the club which I share my name with. There is a good fan base here, a pretty good squad and a relish the challenge of establishing Hull as a Premier League club and helping them become a top club in England and the world. On a side note, I intend to keep the name Hull City AFC as I am not such a fool like Allam to ruin the history and tradition of this club.”
It remains to be seen as to whether Steve Bruce will remain as manager of Hull City despite leading The Tigers back to the Premier League. Joshua Hull did not mention his name during the conference and refused to answer questions concerning the former Manchester United defenders future.
