Grizzly Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 Why don't any of these guys put any money into Canadian soccer? Derby reveals Canadian businessman Brett Wilson as main investor By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Soccer/2008/10/07/7000201-ap.html DERBY, England - Canadian businessman Brett Wilson was revealed as Derby's leading investor by the international consortium that bought the English soccer club in January. The 51-year-old Wilson is also a panelist on the CBC television show "Dragons' Den," a program that sees entrepreneurs compete for financing. "I want to use my profile in Canada to promote the club whenever possible," Wilson said in a statement. "As a Saskatchewan boy I know that fan commitment can run pretty deep but I was blown away by the level of community and corporate support that the Rams enjoy. "I believe the potential to expand that level of support both locally and internationally is extraordinary. The number of hardcore football fans here in Canada is staggering and I believe that European football provides an unrivalled level of entertainment that is only beginning to be tapped in North America." Michigan-based General Sports and Entertainment, which manages Derby, is trying to enhance the club's profile despite it having dropped out of the Premier League with the lowest-ever points total in May. Derby is 15th in the 24-team second-tier League Championship. Wilson owns the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx, a Southern League baseball team based in Jackson, Tenn., and is managing director of Prairie Merchant Corporation, a private merchant bank. "His role on the CBC show . . . will give Brett a fantastic platform to promote our great club in his home country," GSE and Derby chairman Andy Appleby said. "This is the reason Brett has waited until now to step forward as a leading investor. Brett's investment supports our long-term plan to establish Derby County as a real force of the future, not just in England but worldwide." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny Boy Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 maybe because they want to make money? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squizz1402635577 Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 Reading this article makes me want to punch this man in the mouth, for reasons I can't adequately articulate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redhat Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 "I believe the potential to expand that level of support both locally and internationally is extraordinary. The number of hardcore football fans here in Canada is staggering and I believe that European football provides an unrivalled level of entertainment that is only beginning to be tapped in North America." Good for him. Philantrophy in sports (ie. losing money) is alive and well, I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ed Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 quote:Originally posted by redhat "I believe the potential to expand that level of support both locally and internationally is extraordinary. The number of hardcore football fans here in Canada is staggering and I believe that European football provides an unrivalled level of entertainment that is only beginning to be tapped in North America." Good for him. Philantrophy in sports (ie. losing money) is alive and well, I guess. Is he talking about Derby? Did I fall down? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redhat Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 quote:Originally posted by Ed Is he talking about Derby? Did I fall down? Yep, can you believe it? Derby surely exemplifies ... European football. Riiightttt .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youllneverwalkalone Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 This guy is pretty crazy. Last night on the DD he gave $250k to some emotional unstable street performers. I guess investing in the Rams makes sense considering the source. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VPjr Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 quote:Originally posted by youllneverwalkalone This guy is pretty crazy. Last night on the DD he gave $250k to some emotional unstable street performers. I guess investing in the Rams makes sense considering the source. ROTFL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free kick Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 quote:Originally posted by youllneverwalkalone This guy is pretty crazy. Last night on the DD he gave $250k to some emotional unstable street performers. I guess investing in the Rams makes sense considering the source. I watched last night show. I thought that they all turned thumbs down to the street performer. The 250K was for the lady ( teacher from Victoria) who got fleeced by that other panelist into giving up 50% of her company for a mere 250K. Yet she had a terrific product that had potential. Last nights show also had me in stitches laughing at the mexican canadian who came up with the idea for a canadian sombrero. Its a baseball cap with a shield in front looking like a maple leaf. Rapidly becomming one of my favpurite shows on TV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fort York Redcoat1555362293 Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 Derby is an outstanding area of the country for football and the opportunity of being a cheap buy that is so close to being in the premiership must be mouth watering. That said. WTF not go in with the three prospective Canadian cities wanting teams in MLS? Or better yet grow a pair and create another side to replace any Canadian team that leaves for the MLS. one of Montreal, Vancouver, Ottawa are chosen and you got this mook with a new USL property (let your imagination decide the next football city in Canada). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ed Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 From that article, sounds like he is in it to make money. And he prattles on about throwing Calgary a bone by bringing over Barcelona, oops, make that Derby, for some sort of exhibition. How about buying a few acres and putting up a pitch? My local club could use a nice facility. That might actually help the local scene. Nope, we'll see them on the fake turf at McMahon no doubt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vancouversoccerman Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 I can see it now: Derby-Barcelona at McMahon. Hell...more power to him. Promotion to the BPL is what...a cool 60 million pounds? Probably outweighs any investment he made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcaout Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 I already watch soccer on TV (Not Derby so much with championship games only every so often on Setanta). He praises local support for the Rams, and you'll never hear the end about "Rider Pride" (as long as you hide the beer cans) yet he wont support local soccer. Clearly the Rams inspired him to take his money somewhere else. Hope that 2nd round FA Cup tie to Yeovil or Exeter 'on the march' to silverware can inspire a generation of Canadian youth to sit and watch Derby all their lives. He better make sure its on Setanta. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youllneverwalkalone Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 quote:Originally posted by Free kick I watched last night show. I thought that they all turned thumbs down to the street performer. The 250K was for the lady ( teacher from Victoria) who got fleeced by that other panelist into giving up 50% of her company for a mere 250K. Yet she had a terrific product that had potential. Last nights show also had me in stitches laughing at the mexican canadian who came up with the idea for a canadian sombrero. Its a baseball cap with a shield in front looking like a maple leaf. Rapidly becomming one of my favpurite shows on TV Check the tapes my friend. He gave her $250k, which was more than she asked for. After she started crying. I **** you not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piltdownman Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 Derby? I scored more than they did last season Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe MacCarthy Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 Peschisolido says Canadian entrepreneur invested wisely in Derby County By Neil Davidson, THE CANADIAN PRESS Having played for nine teams across the Atlantic, Paul Peschisolido can be considered a bit of an expert when it comes to English soccer. And the now retired striker believes fellow Canadian Brett Wilson chose wisely in investing in Derby County. Wilson was part of an international consortium that bought the club in January. But the identity of some of its members has only filtered out recently. "If I had that kind of money to spend, I think it definitely would be the club I looked at. Without a shadow of a doubt," Peschisolido, a 37-year-old native of Pickering, Ont., said Wednesday from Birmingham. "Because the infrastructure's there. You've probably got one of the nicest stadiums in the (Football) Championship, the training ground is probably (up there with) one of the top 10, 15 within the Premier League. Literally you're buying a club that's ready-made. it's just a matter of getting the team right and getting yourself in the Premier League because you've got the core crowd there as well. "It would be a great investment. It's even got history." Derby won the English championship twice in the '70s and also competed in the European and UEFA Cup. Wilson, a native of North Battleford, Sask., is co-founder of Calgary's FirstEnergy Capital Corp. He's also known as a panellist on the CBC-TV show "Dragons' Den" which showcases would-be entrepreneurs competing for financing. He says he is the largest single shareholder in the C$96 million Derby investment. Peschisolido played for Derby from 2004 to 2007, helping the club climb into the Premier League in his final year. It proved to be a short, painful stay in the top flight of English soccer, however, and Derby returned to the Football Championship after gaining a record low 11 points in the Premiership with a 1-29-8 record and a goal difference of minus-69. Still the Derby fans, whom Peschisolido calls probably the best within the Championship, have stayed faithful to the cause. "The supporters didn't care," said Peschisolido, noting the team still has 21,000 season ticket-holders. Peschisolido's wife Karren Brady is managing director of Birmingham City and the couple was at Derby on Sept. 30 to see the Rams draw 1-1 with Birmingham in a game that drew 29,743 to Pride Park. Derby, who drew 33,010 for its home opener against Doncaster in August, currently sits 15th in the 24-team Championship with a 3-3-4 record. "Fabulous stadium, fabulous training ground, And with support like that, can go no wrong really," Peschisolido said. Under manager Paul Jewell, the team stumbled out of the gate with an 0-3-1 record this season but has since gone unbeaten in six games. Peschisolido had an interesting time of it in his four years at Derby. The team staved off relegation from the Football Championship in his first season, lost out in the promotion playoffs in the second, almost got relegated in the third and won promotion to the Premier League in the fourth. "I had an absolutely fabulous time there," he recalled. "To be honest, I still go back because I've got a real good affinity with the supporters. As far as my career goes, it was probably one of the happiest times." Newly retired after an injury-plagued season with Luton, the former Canadian international is earning his coaching licences, working on a soccer academy and looking to develop new talent. He held a camp in his native Pickering this summer and is looking to come back next year, with another one planned for the Vancouver area. Peschisolido, who had four British coaches helping him in Canada this summer, brings in teams and their coaches to work with them. He hopes to improve talent and ultimately help showcase it in Europe. Peschisolido is already coaching his 10-year-old son's soccer team - he also has a 12-year-old daughter with Brady - and plans on remaining in the game. "When it's something you've done your whole life, it's very difficult to just go cold turkey on it and I'm finding that now. If coaching job or managing jobs were to come along, then I'd have to seriously consider them." The five-foot-seven forward played for Canada 53 times at the senior level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ed Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 Well nice to see Pesch getting into coaching and wanting to develop Cdn talent. As to the megabucks guy from Calgary, I hope you have an Exeter of a time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tuscan Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 Hey, all you take it easy towards Brett Wilson, he is an Edwards School of Business alumni![:0] This guy could be my ticket to realizing the dream of a professional club out west here... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcaout Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 ^There's an article in Issue 17 of Soccer 360 about CSL expansion out west. Mentions SToon Winnipeg and Edmonton as possible interested markets. Is there any noise in SToon on these lines Tuscan? According to the magazine, CSL needs a $125 000 franchise fee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VPjr Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 I've sent an email to Mr. Wilson to see if he has any interest in Canadian footy. no reply yet (i'm not holding my breath). lets see what comes of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.