Sunderland Women Takeover: Bay Collective Seals Major Investment Deal

People might be familiar with Bay Street, the global investment firm in the United States, who have spread their investment portfolio across sports, media, and finance. They have now taken their first steps into football in the United Kingdom, as recently completed Sunderland Women takeover.

The parties agreed on a deal to acquire a majority stake via their subsidiary Bay Collective in Sunderland Women ownership, a club that plays in the second division of women's English football. However, the approval from the league is still pending, after which, the full Sunderland Women takeover will be completed.

In this article, Sportsdunia takes a look at who are Bay Collective Owners and what this means for Sunderland Women and women's football in the UK.

Sunderland Women To Get New Owners?

Sunderland Women are set for a historic takeover as Sixth Street have agreed on an impressive deal to be the majority owners of the club. The plan is to enhance Sunderland's training ground and academy to create a platform for the women players to elevate to the highest levels.

Bay Collective, which is a subsidiary of the U.S.-backed Sixth Street, has been key in this investment. Sunderland Women are currently eighth in the Women's Super League 2nd division, and such an investment means the world to them. While Sixth Street will have the majority stake in this Sunderland Women takeover, the men's team will continue to have a minority share.

Who Are Bay Collective Owners and Sixth Street?

Bay Collective, which also owns the side Bay FC in the National Women's Super League, are backed by Sixth Street. They are a multi-club ownership platform who are dedicated to building football clubs particularly for women.

This Sunderland Women takeover has seen Sixth Street expand their investment portfolio in the sports sector after successful ventures with FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, and basketball teams, namely San Francisco Giants and Boston Celtics.

Sixth Street is owned by Kay Cossington, who happens to be a former women’s Technical Director of the English Football Association. She is also the CEO of Bay Collective, and sees this move as a big step towards the welfare of women's football.

Sixth Street is the parent company of Bay Collective, who have over $100 billion plus in assets and investments across different sectors. Women's football has been in the shadows for quite some time, but it is getting its flowers in due time.

It remains to be seen how effective this takeover proves to be, and if the Sunderland Women's football team can replicate what the men's team has been doing in recent times.