Karl Oyston
Encyclopedia
Karl Oyston is an English
businessman and the chairman of Blackpool F.C.
, farming
interests and publishing
.
, and mother, Vicki, from whom he inherited the role. Initially he took over the role of Managing Director, following the resignation of both the previous Managing Director, Gill Bridge and Vicki Oyston, who had resigned as chairman following what was described as "an ugly 'Oyston Out' demonstration by fans at the stadium". Oyston had been handed control of the club by his father, who was, at the time, still serving a prison sentence for rape. Oyston stated that his mother had quit to give him a level playing field and let him run the club his way after his father had promised he would not seek to take over again upon his release.
In 2001 he oversaw the building of new West and North stands at Bloomfield Road
, the first new facilities at the ground in around eighty years. He has also seen the club improve its financial situation and avoid the worst effects of the ITV Digital
collapse, which saw several Football League clubs go into administration.
In July 2005 he was elected onto the Football League Board of directors
as a representative of League One
, and in June 2006 was elected back onto the board.
In September 2006 after an undercover investigation into illicit payments in football on the BBC
Panorama
current affairs
documentary
series, Oyston claimed that he had been offered bungs by football agents, saying "I've been offered cash as a bribe to bring a player to the club and it's happened more than once. In one instance, someone wanted me to take a player on a higher salary than we would normally pay, so he offered me a certain amount of cash as a gift to get me to do it. I said no and it didn't take any time whatsoever to reach that decision. Since 1999 when I became chairman here, my managers have been offered bungs. We've missed out on a lot of footballers because of it and that is one of my biggest concerns. It is very disturbing and in the Premiership where there are huge, huge deals taking place, it is a major problem." The Football Association
asked Oyston, and others who made similar claims, to name the agents concerned, saying that they had a duty to provide evidence.
The Sunday Times Rich List
, which annually lists the 2,000 wealthiest people or families in the United Kingdom
, has Oyston's wealth along with his father Owen
at £105M, making them the 759th-richest in the country, down from 659th in 2007.
On 26 January 2010, Oyston was elected to the Football League Board of Directors as a representative of the Championship
in a ballot for the vacant position. but had to leave this post at the end of the season following Blackpool's promotion to the Premier League.
In August 2010, Oyston offered to stand down as chairman of the club, stating his belief that he has a different approach to the rest of the Premier League chairmen and the difficulties of dealing with top-flight players and their agents
. Oyston said: "The offer (to stand down) is still open. I have told the board and, yes, I am very serious. Why? Because I'm not sure I have the right approach to be in this division. The more I speak to other people at other clubs, the more I realise I am a lone voice. There was some support for things I did and said in the Championship but there doesn't seem to be any in this division. Everyone else seems to subscribe to the way that business seems to be conducted and it is a way I find unacceptable, so we'll see."
He added about agents: "We are the ones who are the employers. We are the ones offering the terms and the contracts. It is up to us how we go about things. I don't think any deal should be about the agent. It should be about the player, and about giving the player a platform under a wonderful manager to perform on one of the best footballing stages in the world. Agents are sometimes denying their clients that chance."
On 18 August, he stood down as both chairman and director of the club with immediate effect, although he remained as Acting Chief Executive.
The following day it was reported that Oyston was involved in a bankruptcy
hearing. Lancaster Crown Court
confirmed that a judge was considering bankruptcy papers involving Oyston. The order was annulled on 12 October.
Oyston returned to the his role as chairman in 2011.
, near Lancaster
. They honeymoon
ed in Chile.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
businessman and the chairman of Blackpool F.C.
Blackpool F.C.
Blackpool Football Club are an English football club founded in 1887 from the Lancashire seaside town of Blackpool. They are competing in the 2011–12 season of the The Championship, the second tier of professional football in England, having been relegated from the Premier League at the end of the...
Background
Up until 1999, Oyston spent much of his time involved in running the Oyston family businesses including property managementProperty management
Property management is the operation, control of ususally on behalf of an owner, and oversight of commercial, industrial or residential real estate as used in its most broad terms. Management indicates a need to be cared for, monitored and accountability given for its usable life and condition...
, farming
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
interests and publishing
Publishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
.
Blackpool F.C.
On 3 April 1999 Oyston took over as chairman of Blackpool F.C, becoming the third member of the Oyston family to occupy the role, after his father, OwenOwen Oyston
Owen John Oyston is a controversial self-made multimillionaire English businessman who is the majority owner of Blackpool F.C.. He was convicted of rape in 1996 and served three years of a six-year sentence in prison....
, and mother, Vicki, from whom he inherited the role. Initially he took over the role of Managing Director, following the resignation of both the previous Managing Director, Gill Bridge and Vicki Oyston, who had resigned as chairman following what was described as "an ugly 'Oyston Out' demonstration by fans at the stadium". Oyston had been handed control of the club by his father, who was, at the time, still serving a prison sentence for rape. Oyston stated that his mother had quit to give him a level playing field and let him run the club his way after his father had promised he would not seek to take over again upon his release.
In 2001 he oversaw the building of new West and North stands at Bloomfield Road
Bloomfield Road
Bloomfield Road is an all-seater football stadium in the English town of Blackpool, Lancashire. It has been the permanent home of Blackpool F.C. since 1901 and is named after the road on which the stadium's main entrance used to stand. The stadium has been in a process of redevelopment since 2000...
, the first new facilities at the ground in around eighty years. He has also seen the club improve its financial situation and avoid the worst effects of the ITV Digital
ITV Digital
ITV Digital was a British digital terrestrial television broadcaster, which launched a pay-TV service on the world's first digital terrestrial television network as ONdigital in 1998 and briefly re-branded as ITV Digital in July 2001, before the service ceased in May 2002. Its main shareholders...
collapse, which saw several Football League clubs go into administration.
In July 2005 he was elected onto the Football League Board of directors
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
as a representative of League One
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
, and in June 2006 was elected back onto the board.
In September 2006 after an undercover investigation into illicit payments in football on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Panorama
Panorama (TV series)
Panorama is a BBC Television current affairs documentary programme, which was first broadcast in 1953, and is the longest-running public affairs television programme in the world. Panorama has been presented by many well known BBC presenters, including Richard Dimbleby, Robin Day, David Dimbleby...
current affairs
Current affairs (news format)
Current Affairs is a genre of broadcast journalism where the emphasis is on detailed analysis and discussion of news stories that have recently occurred or are ongoing at the time of broadcast....
documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
series, Oyston claimed that he had been offered bungs by football agents, saying "I've been offered cash as a bribe to bring a player to the club and it's happened more than once. In one instance, someone wanted me to take a player on a higher salary than we would normally pay, so he offered me a certain amount of cash as a gift to get me to do it. I said no and it didn't take any time whatsoever to reach that decision. Since 1999 when I became chairman here, my managers have been offered bungs. We've missed out on a lot of footballers because of it and that is one of my biggest concerns. It is very disturbing and in the Premiership where there are huge, huge deals taking place, it is a major problem." The Football Association
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...
asked Oyston, and others who made similar claims, to name the agents concerned, saying that they had a duty to provide evidence.
The Sunday Times Rich List
Sunday Times Rich List
The Sunday Times Rich List is a list of the 1,000 wealthiest people or families in the United Kingdom, updated annually in April and published as a magazine supplement by British national Sunday newspaper The Sunday Times since 1989...
, which annually lists the 2,000 wealthiest people or families in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, has Oyston's wealth along with his father Owen
Owen Oyston
Owen John Oyston is a controversial self-made multimillionaire English businessman who is the majority owner of Blackpool F.C.. He was convicted of rape in 1996 and served three years of a six-year sentence in prison....
at £105M, making them the 759th-richest in the country, down from 659th in 2007.
On 26 January 2010, Oyston was elected to the Football League Board of Directors as a representative of the Championship
Football League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
in a ballot for the vacant position. but had to leave this post at the end of the season following Blackpool's promotion to the Premier League.
In August 2010, Oyston offered to stand down as chairman of the club, stating his belief that he has a different approach to the rest of the Premier League chairmen and the difficulties of dealing with top-flight players and their agents
Sports agent
A sports agent procures and negotiates employment and endorsement contracts for an athlete.In return, the sports agent generally receives between 4 and 10% of the athlete's playing contract, and 10 to 20% of the athlete's endorsement contract, though these figures vary...
. Oyston said: "The offer (to stand down) is still open. I have told the board and, yes, I am very serious. Why? Because I'm not sure I have the right approach to be in this division. The more I speak to other people at other clubs, the more I realise I am a lone voice. There was some support for things I did and said in the Championship but there doesn't seem to be any in this division. Everyone else seems to subscribe to the way that business seems to be conducted and it is a way I find unacceptable, so we'll see."
He added about agents: "We are the ones who are the employers. We are the ones offering the terms and the contracts. It is up to us how we go about things. I don't think any deal should be about the agent. It should be about the player, and about giving the player a platform under a wonderful manager to perform on one of the best footballing stages in the world. Agents are sometimes denying their clients that chance."
On 18 August, he stood down as both chairman and director of the club with immediate effect, although he remained as Acting Chief Executive.
The following day it was reported that Oyston was involved in a bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
hearing. Lancaster Crown Court
Lancaster Castle
Lancaster Castle is a medieval castle located in Lancaster in the English county of Lancashire. Its early history is unclear, but may have been founded in the 11th century on the site of a Roman fort overlooking a crossing of the River Lune. In 1164, the Honour of Lancaster, including the...
confirmed that a judge was considering bankruptcy papers involving Oyston. The order was annulled on 12 October.
Oyston returned to the his role as chairman in 2011.
Personal life
On 19 February 2011, Oyston married his partner Vicki Wheeler at Christ Church in Over WyresdaleOver Wyresdale
Over Wyresdale is a civil parish in the City of Lancaster in the English county of Lancashire. It has a population of 348. The parish includes the villages of Abbeystead, Lee, Lower Green Bank, Marshaw and Tarnbrook....
, near Lancaster
Lancaster, Lancashire
Lancaster is the county town of Lancashire, England. It is situated on the River Lune and has a population of 45,952. Lancaster is a constituent settlement of the wider City of Lancaster, local government district which has a population of 133,914 and encompasses several outlying towns, including...
. They honeymoon
Honeymoon
-History:One early reference to a honeymoon is in Deuteronomy 24:5 “When a man is newly wed, he need not go out on a military expedition, nor shall any public duty be imposed on him...
ed in Chile.