The 49ers offer a timely lead to Leeds United which they know must precede the transfers

A subtle change in corporate structure is how Angus Kinnear described Elland Road’s change of ownership this week. The documents were signed in March, but the publication of the stadium’s business accounts prompted an announcement from Leeds United yesterday.

Elland Road Limited is still the company that controls the ground, but that firm is now owned by Leeds United Football Club Limited, the club’s holding company. In the six months since Andrea Radrizzani sold everything, it has fallen under the direct control of 49ers Enterprises Global Football Group LLC.

With the 49ers group owning the club, they still own Elland Road and have their hands on the future, but at least he’s been brought in from the cold, so to speak. The American group owns the club and the club owns its home again.

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The questions and fears Radrizzani sparked when he explored the idea of ​​using Elland Road as security in taking over Sampdoria have put supporters on red alert. How safe was the stadium from such an event?

Leeds United Supporters’ Trust has led the charge on reinventing the ground as an asset of community value with Leeds City Council. This statute implements checks and balances for any significant event involving the future of the stadium, particularly its ownership.

With that in place and confirmation that the 49ers owned 100 percent of the field since September, fears were allayed. Trust is always needed between fans and their club ownership.

In business terms, a majority shareholder can pretty much do whatever they want. An unwanted choice may cause the biggest outcry he’s ever seen from a passionate fan base, but if he doesn’t care about that relationship, he’ll do as he pleases and deal with the consequences.

Supporters have the power to protest and make their voices heard when it comes to their club, their second home, but they have to put hope and trust in United’s ownership to do the right thing. So if the 49ers must be trusted to run the club, the same trust applies to the ownership of the stadium.

Since the takeover, there has been no clamor for the paperwork to bring Elland Road back under the club’s control. If the 49ers own the field, they own it, be it directly or indirectly through United’s holding company.

And yet, Paraag Marathe et al. they watched such a change. As Kinnear said in his brief statement, it’s a broad signal of intent from the 49ers. He wants Leeds and Elland Road to be linked, so fans can be reassured that they understand the importance of those links.

There is still a month to go before the start of the season and another seven weeks until the transfer window closes, so verdicts on the summer must be made in that context, but it has been a challenge for fans so far. Once the signings start to arrive and the positive results hopefully start to flow, spirits will improve, but 13 departures against two arrivals naturally raises some concerns.

Joe Rodon’s return is a remarkable deal, but Archie Gray’s departure, however lucrative, will always sting. Red Bull’s investment has also drawn some skepticism, though Marathe has tried to allay those fears publicly.

In a summer that has followed Wembley heartbreak, all of this inevitably makes it difficult for the 49ers to curry favor. Supporters want new faces to be signed yesterday, which is the currency they trade with, and until they start to land, experienced administrators like Marathe and Kinnear must know it’s an uphill battle.

Bringing Elland Road home, at least, brings credit to the bank for the fans, a positive footnote in the wider novel of their ownership that will be judged for years to come.