SUNDERLAND chairman Kyril Louis-Dreyfus has admitted he owns just 41 per cent of the club – with the ‘Madrox group’ of Stewart Donald, Juan Sartori and Charlie Methven continuing to hold a majority shareholding at the Stadium of Light.

The Black Cats’ ownership structure has been the subject of ongoing debate ever since Louis-Dreyfus was announced as the club’s new ‘controlling shareholder’ at the end of 2020.

At the time, Sunderland’s official club statements failed to spell out exactly what the term ‘controlling stake’ meant, and with Sartori and Methven having continued to attend matches, questions over the ownership arrangement were raised at a supporters’ meeting last year, only for the club to continue to refuse to provide clarification.

The events of the past fortnight, in which the club initially attempted to appoint Roy Keane as head coach, only to subsequently have to turn to Alex Neil as performances nosedived, brought the issue into renewed focus, and ahead of another supporters’ meeting tomorrow, the Sunderland hierarchy have finally spelled out the current situation.

Louis-Dreyfus owns 41 per cent of Sunderland’s shares, with Donald, whose reign as majority shareholder came to an end in 2021, retaining a 34 per cent stake in the club.

Sartori, a Uruguayan businessman who is also involved in politics in his homeland, has held on to the 20 per cent stake he gained during Donald’s reign, while Methven, who sat alongside Donald when the former chairman took charge after replacing Ellis Short, owns five per cent of the club.

The Northern Echo: IN CHARGE: Charlie Methven (left) and Stewart Donald (right) have taken over at the Stadium of Light

The division of shares means that while Louis-Dreyfus owns more of the club than any other individual figure, the combined shareholding of the three members of the former ownership group amounts to 59 per cent, effectively making Donald, Sartori and Methven majority owners if they act as one unified group.

Given how unpopular both Donald and Methven became towards the end of their majority ownership period, today’s clarification, which was provided in a note to attendees ahead of the supporters’ collective, has caused considerable concern amongst Sunderland’s fanbase.

However, senior club sources have stressed that it is Louis-Dreyfus rather than Donald, Sartori or Methven that remains the key decision maker and who is responsible for the day-to-day running of the club.

The Northern Echo: Kyril Louis-Dreyfus looks on at the Stadium of Light alongside Sunderland sporting director Kristjaan Speakman

As part of his message, Louis-Dreyfus said: “As previously stated, I have executive control of the running of the football club – something that was a fundamental requirement upon the purchase of my shares – and the executive management team inclusive of Steve Davison and Kristjaan Speakman report directly into me on a day-to-day basis.

“All major strategic decisions relating to the running of the club continue to be taken by the Board of Directors, compromising of myself, Maurice Louis-Dreyfus, David Jones, Steve Davison, Igor Levin, Patrick Treuer, Juan Sartori and Simon Vumbaca.

“Over the past 12 months, SAFC has required significant shareholder funding as part of our ongoing investment within the club and as a result of the lasting financial challenges from the pandemic.

“Substantial investment will continue to be required moving forward to ensure we fulfil our collective objectives and all shareholders remain wholly committed to honouring their respective financial obligations.”