The move, which includes a front-of-shirt sponsorship deal, was followed by assurances from club chairman Paraag Marathe, head of the 49ers Enterprises ownership group, that this is not and will not be more than a minority stake and there is no desire from either party to create a ‘Red Bull Leeds’ identity.
Nobody can predict what will happen after the 49ers’ custodianship, so we are taking the opportunity at an early stage to let Red Bull, or any other potential custodians of our club, know that we will not allow any of these fundamental heritage or identity changes to happen to our club.” The Trust also say that the importance of Leeds United’s club heritage and traditions is why an independent football regulator remains an urgent need in the game.