Town have announced additions to the boards of both the club and Gamechanger 20 Ltd, new investors into Bright Path Sports Partners, and former skipper and current club ambassador Matt Holland.

US-based investment fund Bright Path, whose investment in the club was announced in March, now own around 44 per cent of the club following new fundraising.

The co-founder, CEO and chairman of Avenue Capital, a partner in Bright Path, Marc Lasry, is joining the board of Ipswich Town Football Club.

Moroccan-born billionaire Lasry brings experience in both business and sport, having been a co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks NBA franchise, who were winners of the NBA Championship in 2021.

Travis Viola is joining the board of Gamechanger 20 Ltd. Travis’s father Vincent Viola is the owner of the Florida Panthers NHL franchise, the current holders of the Stanley Cup. The Viola family own and control the global trading platform Virtu Financial.

Blues legend Holland is joining the boards of both Gamechanger 20 Ltd and Ipswich Town Football Club. The 50-year-old former Republic of Ireland international is the first ex-player to have become a Town director.

Town chairman and CEO Mark Ashton told the club site: “The investment from Bright Path Sports has been a significant one at an exciting time for the Club as we enter the Premier League.

“We are delighted to welcome both Marc Lasry and Travis Viola. Both bring invaluable experience as well as an outstanding track record in sport, having each won a major championship in the United States in recent years, and will be hugely valuable assets to the club.

“Matt Holland is, of course, an Ipswich Town legend and is an excellent addition to the Board, bringing a unique perspective and deep understanding of the Club’s values and goals.”

Lasry added: “The club has demonstrated remarkable focus and energy in its successive promotions and we welcome the opportunity to support chairman Mark Ashton and the rest of the staff as Ipswich Town begins life back in the Premier League.”

We understand the further investment has taken the overall Bright Path investment in the club to £120 million from the £105 million announced in March.

Viola and Holland join Ed Schwartz, the CEO of ORG, the US investment firm which manages funds on behalf of the Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System (PSPRS), the club’s majority owner, Brett Johnson, one of the Three Lions, CEO and chairman Ashton, Bright Path investors Sam Simon and Jake Zahnow, and finance director Tom Ball on the Gamechanger 20 Ltd board.

Lasry and Holland will serve as Town directors along side Schwartz, Ashton, Ball, another of the Three Lions Berke Bakay and chief operating officer Luke Werhun.

Photo: Matchday Images

Jeff added 16:16 - Aug 13 Is that extra investment of £15m, so they can push some of these transfer through?
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Tommy_ITFC added 16:26 - Aug 13 Great to have a legend like Matt on the board
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SquamishBlue added 16:31 - Aug 13 This is excellent.....increased stability....diversified investors and representation. Building for the long term. Onward!
8

JPR77 added 16:31 - Aug 13 Love this. Great to have a club legend and someone as young and enthusiastic as Matt involved at board level. They certainly seem to understand their audience.
7

ArnieM added 16:40 - Aug 13 WOW, just WOW!
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BotesdaleBlue added 16:43 - Aug 13 I think this further investment brings the value of my 20 shares down to just below a farthing (for the more senior fans only)! And I don't mind one little bit - the more bredth of experience coming onto the company boards (bringing additional funds with them) the better. I must admit though, the ownership structure and shareholding has now become quite complex for the ordinary supporter to readily grasp. However what is of paramount importance, is that the fantastic executive management team (Mark Ashton et al) are firmly routed at the helm, so these changes should be welcomed. In particular, I've very pleased Matt Holland is now part of the FORMAL executive management team.

9

Monkey_Blue added 16:47 - Aug 13 Jeff….I doubt the extra investment was required to aid transfers. The limitations are on operating profits/losses. The extra investment won’t be profit, even if the cash is kept in the club. Newcastle have the wealthiest owners on the planet and are still having PSR issues. To not fall foul of them we need to increase revenue through prize money, commercial operations, sponsorship and player sales.

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Hatman2 added 16:53 - Aug 13 Hugely encouraging - Sports business expertise that has delivered an NBA championship and a Stanley Cup in recent years, and the shrewd addition of Matt Holland who has firsthand experience of what went right in winning promotion and getting into Europe from the playing perspective, and also what went wrong with the relegation that followed. Tremendous, relevant experience to add to the club boards.

6

therein61 added 17:08 - Aug 13 What a transformation our club is undergoing after the promised much and did eff all Evans days we are on the up with a solid team off the field and with hope a few more additions to make us stronger on the field C.O.Y.B.
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Dutchman1 added 17:17 - Aug 13 Congratulations Matt Holland. A great ambassador for the club.
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johnwarksshorts added 17:33 - Aug 13 Just gets better and better.
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bournemouthblue added 18:01 - Aug 13 One day after Norwich's announcement, I wonder if Look East will cover this as enthusiastically
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Tedray added 18:17 - Aug 13 Mr Holland is hardly a club legend I would not mention him in the same breath as Alan Hunter ,Mick Mills Paul Mariner etc. This needs to be sorted out...........
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SpiritOfJohn added 18:54 - Aug 13 Er @Tedray not sure what makes a legend in your world but Matt Holland played for Town a similar number of times as Hunter and Mariner, including 223 consecutive appearances!
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Gforce added 18:58 - Aug 13 Whatever Matt Holland has to drink, I think I'll have a few,he's looking pretty good for 50.
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BlueWax added 19:46 - Aug 13 Congratulations Legend Matt Holland!! The maximum effort you put in every single match during all those town games along with skill and leadership qualities does, I repeat DOES put you in Legend status!
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IpswichT62OldBoy added 19:53 - Aug 13 Its all going in the right direction.
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