Pak expatriate Shahid Khan buys Fulham Football Club

LONDON: American tycoon of Pakistani origin, Shahid Khan has completed the takeover of Fulham and will be unveiled as the new owner on Saturday.

Mohamed Al Fayed has confirmed he sold Fulham to Shahid Khan, who already also owns the NFL team Jacksonville Jaguars.

Barclays Premier League has already approved the transaction.

Khan assumes 100 per cent ownership of the club, debt-free. A formal announcement is scheduled to take place at 1pm on Saturday at Craven Cottage.

'My time of serving as the custodian of Fulham Football Club would one day come to an end, and I feel that time has now arrived,' Al Fayed said.

Khan, 62, is the first non-American to own a NFL club and sees the global sports picture. He describes London as ‘the missing piece’ in the growth of his NFL team. Buying Fulham for a price in excess of £150m would allow him the opportunity to promote both his sports brands to maximum effect in London.

Forbes ranked Khan last year among the world’s richest 500 people with an estimated wealth of £1.7bn, putting him somewhere between Newcastle’s Mike Ashley and Arsenal’s Stan Kroenke in Premier League terms. His arrival is likely to provide Fulham with a lot more spending power.