Sheffield United chief Stephen Bettis addresses Steven Rosen future prospect as Blades wait for points deduction verdict
Sheffield United CEO Stephen Bettis spoke to The Star’s Danny Hall about the possibility of co-owner Steven Rosen being disqualified
Steven Rosen's potential disqualification as a controlling person at Sheffield United is not a concern for the Blades, chief executive Stephen Bettis has insisted, as the Football League and Independent Regulator's investigation into the club continues. The concern centres on a £35m unpaid debt to former owner Prince Abdullah.
The disagreement between the two parties has already seen COH Sports Bidco, the company that Rosen and business partner Helmy Eltoukhy used to buy the Blades in 2024, wound up in the High Court as the Prince looks to recover what he believes he is owed by the American pair.
They in turn are "unhappy about certain things in relation to the deal" which they agreed with the Saudi royal to buy United, Bettis said in a sit-down interview with The Star at Bramall Lane this afternoon.
The whole saga cast a shadow over United throughout a difficult summer and could yet lead to further issues for the Blades, with the Prince's camp suggesting a 12-point penalty could be handed down by the EFL over the winding-up of the Blades' former parent company.
The moving of United to a new holding company, US-based 1919 Partners LLC, was also understood to have happened without the EFL's approval and when asked exactly why the amount remained outstanding, Bettis said: "Look, my understanding is, firstly, it's a discussion between the old owner and the existing owner currently.
"It's not a club-related issue, so I'm not 100 per cent involved in all the detail, naturally, because that's between the two of them and their lawyers. But I am obviously kept in the loop and do understand a lot of what's going on with it. There is a final amount outstanding to Prince Abdullah, which everyone's pretty much aware of.
"I think the new owners are unhappy around certain things in relation to the deal, and they've been in discussions with the Prince around it. My understanding is that it's not that they're looking to not pay the Prince the money; it's that they're looking to potentially discuss what the final amount outstanding is due to a number of things, and they're hoping to come to an agreement between both parties, basically. That's my understanding of it."
Speaking in a recent chat with an associate in the States, Rosen appeared bullish in his view that United would not be hit with a points deduction over the saga, because COH was not the parent company of United when it was wound up. Whether or not the EFL will come to the same conclusion is still to be determined.
"The only one who can give us a points deduction is the EFL, not the IFR," Bettis added. "Both parties have been aware of the entire situation since May of this year, so more than four months they've known about it for.
"The EFL, and the IFR in fairness, did open an investigation into what had happened, etc. And we've co-operated, and so have the owners, giving them chapter and verse on what actually happened.
"I think one of the areas they are looking at is a potential insolvency of one of the entities within the group, which, if that was the case, there is the risk of a points deduction, for sure. I think, from Steve's perspective, there was no issues with the club. There was no insolvency issue for the club.
"It's been meeting all of its liabilities and continues to, so nothing to concern supporters with from a club perspective. I think there's one entity that was in the group, that no longer is in the group, that subsequently now has been wound up, or went to court to be wound up, but it's still in the process.
"I think without going into a real load of detail about it, the argument from our owner's side is that that entity, whilst it was in our group, was completely in existence and not insolvent.
"Subsequently to it coming outside of the group, this winding up order did happen, so they don't feel that there's an event that causes a 12-point deduction. I will say the EFL are still investigating it, and the IFR are, but it's been going on for four months. It's not a clear-cut and easy situation.
"It's quite a complex legal case, and they continue to review it. We've given them everything that they've needed, and everything that they've asked for, and we're just sitting waiting now, really."
Another concern for United was another EFL regulation which could prohibit individuals from owning an English club if they have two insolvency events on their record in recent times. Rosen was a director of a company in America that filed for bankruptcy in 2023.
"Again, quite a bit of this stuff is confidential," Bettis added. "But what I will say to you is that, from conversations we've had with EFL, that's not a concern for us, is as much as I could probably say about it.
"On the timescale, the EFL are not going to be rushed, and I think you can look at the Man City case with the Premier League, which can give you an example of how long sometimes these things can take.
"They're not someone that's going to react to us putting pressure on them, to actually make a decision. So, unfortunately, I think we're just in their hands, and we've just got to be patient with it until it comes to a resolution."