Well the value of futobo tv has dropped 80/90 per cent so the question is where is he finding this money , hope it’s not just pledges !

Personally I suspect I'll be drooling on myself as some nice young nurses aid tries to get me to finish all the contents of an unsweetened fruit cup.

In investment terms cornerstone can be plural I.e. yiu can have a few cornerstone investors on a significant new project. I’m sure his interest in Lyon, as well as Palace, Botafago and Molanbeek is just portfolio investment. Will need to watch though that debt doesn’t creep onto the balance sheet as I’m sure that it will be financed by borrowing.

FWIW, apparently this is how much of his money he's kicked in, not the whole whack obv.

Friends with deep pockets.

(I believe that he's genuinely passionate about what he's doing and have no concerns over his stake with us)

The full quote from Textor gives context that the original quote seems to wilfully omit.

“I feel a responsibility for this club that I don’t feel for Crystal Palace. Crystal Palace is very capably managed by Steve Parish and has been for many years”.

Obviously I'm a barbecue.

Am not keen on being a cog in these inter-country, cross-continent 'partnerships' and 'investments,' personally.

We have to ensure it doesn't put a dent in our identity.

I'm not going to have an affiliation with a random team just because a businessman thinks it's a good investment. Am I a Lyon / Molenbeek fan now too? No. (And what he wants with Molenbeek is anyone's guess).

I found the Botafogo link with corporate advertising of face paints, etc mid-match far too much, but their fans are genuine and well-meaning, even if there is something massively lost in the cultural exchange between our concerns and their mindless fanaticism.

Worth keeping an eye on all this.

I have no idea what this means.

Unless the definition of cornerstone investment has changed, are we about to be listed?

Good question. Probably not as long as the current owners can sell to another investor.

Something something unjustified superiority complex.

The reality is if it's good enough for Man City then we shouldn't be turning out noses up at it. The real big money is in player development and sales. If you look at all the clubs he's actually invested in they all are sat in areas where decent to high quality professional players have come from. The other thing that will almost certainly happen is the moving of youth players around. Textor referenced Brazil and Belgium offering additional opportunities for academy players. Being able to put players into leagues in the top flight leagues in Brazil, Belgium UK and France has value from being able to move them around plus you get a huge scouting network and multiple bites at developing a super star.

Someone suggested that the logic of owning a European team was that South American talent can move across to there, make loads of appearances, and if good enough for us in the Premier League, then they will have sufficient experience (played a high enough % of games in a European League) to qualify for a UK work visa to play here, because our home office have more stringent rules about who can come and work in this country.

Agree though about the other clubs - do I support Botafogo? No, not remotely interested!

To me it feels like a kid in a candy shop, the rate he is snapping up other clubs! Kind of reminds me of the wierd Simon Jordan experiment with 'Crystal Palace USA'!

I can help you.

A few Palace fans have expressed concerns about the setup on Twitter, but Botafogo fans are just mindlessly fanatical and don't understand the nuances involved in our right to question it.

For them it's just one big party = money, an ambitious American. These Brazillians are a nice bunch, but barely stop to think. It's all somewhat lost in translation.

Exactly my thinking - and certainly aspects of Jordanism to it all.

I get that we'd end up with potential south American players, via this dubious, dubious trade route - but is that even worth it? It seems a far-fetched and elaborate setup just to make it easier to sign south Americans?!

It all comes at a time when we've achieved Cat 1 status and south London is producing arguably some of the biggest talent in the world. Also at a time when our transfer policy is finally robust and targeted, with Palace style players and best of the championship.

The few (frankly bizarre) benefits are massively outweighed by how gung-ho and risky this all looks.

Every time I read an interview with him there's a always a worrying little quote or expression and a little part of me that dies.


Aside from all the flowery spiel ( most of it apparently straight out of the 'Neil Warnock guide to what to say when joining a new club' handbook ) saying stuff like "football clubs are undervalued" suggests that he just doesn't seem to get the fundamentals:

They are never 'undervalued' by us the fans; if anything we do just the opposite. But this is an emotional valuation and he doesnt do that. Hes a money man. 100%

I simply hate the idea of palace being packaged up into a worldwide group of clubs and I fear that's where this all ends.

I wish he'd just disappear.

I agree being linked with other clubs doesn’t feel good to me. We’re palace we’re not a feeder club or part of a franchise to please textor. I have a uneasy feeling about him and his motives.

Maybe a bit of devil's advocate here as I don't wholly disagree with you.

The counter-point is that this is the way things are going and clubs that aren't part of these conglomerates will be left behind.

If the likes of Blitzer and Textor can put conglomerates together and manage to keep intact the core values traditions and community of the clubs involved then that's the best of both worlds.

If the alternatives are sinking a few leagues into obscurity and poverty or RedBull Palace or some shit like that, I'll take Textor.

The thing I don't like about Textor is he always seems to be marketing and never just speaking. I don't trust a salesperson, especially one who never stops selling.

Like it or not football is going to change & if Palace are to remain in the top tier & grow we need to be prepared for change the ESL has not gone away. Barcelona are dead club walking if they cannot tap into the new revenues ESL will bring them, Real Madrid similar although not so serious a financial position.

Representatives of Barcelona Real Madrid & I think Juventus are in the courts now trying to overturn the UEFA ban and seek financial penalties against those teams who jumped ship including the 6 English clubs involved. If they succeed and the ESL becomes a reality the financial implications will have a serious effect on the remaining EPL clubs.

IMHO there will be some fudge there always is and when that hapoens Palace need to be in as strong a financial position as possible.

I was speaking to a friend of mine who runs a team in north America, I asked him the same question as there is potential for Textor to invest in his team.

1. He seemed to think Texter is well backed, my guess there are others in the background based on this comment.

2. He said of all the clubs including the French acquisition still made CPFC top of the food chain as the Premier league is where the money is in terms of value of player transfers.

3. He also suggest SP is ruffling a few feathers both inside and outside of the club (looking after CPFCs best interests)

4. and that the European Super league has definitely not gone away!

This except is from an article in the Telegraph (Saturday I think)

"In the European Court of Justice this week, counsel for A22, the Spanish-registered company created as the legal entity for the once-doomed ESL, argued that Uefa’s monopoly on organising club competitions was illegal under European law. The EU’s Advocate-General will offer his advice on the merits of the case on December 15 and the judges will adopt a decision in the early part of next year. The proviso being that, in all but a few cases, the judges go with the recommendation."

Will try and add the link to the full article.