Leeds ‘not for sale’ – Umbers

Leeds chairman Andrew Umbers has insisted the club is not for sale after actor Russell Crowe prompted speculation he may be ready to make a bid.

Crowe caused a stir among Leeds fans on Wednesday when he asked his 1.6million Twitter followers whether or not he should buy the club.

Russell Crowe had been linked with a bid for Leeds

The 50-year-old, a lifelong fan of the Whites, replied to a tweet from a supporter asking him if he would consider buying Leeds.

United fan @Samwild90 wrote to Crowe saying: “Please buy Leeds. In need of help!!” Crowe retweeted the message and added the comment “Anybody else think this is a good idea?”

That prompted more than a thousand retweets with numerous hopeful and positive responses, one of them coming from the recently formed group Leeds Fans LLP, a working party of supporters which is trying to get a seat on the Elland Road club’s board.

And with president Massimo Cellino having sold his personal stake in Eleonora Sport – the company he set up to buy Leeds a year ago – in order to independently appeal his Football League disqualification after failing its owners’ and directors’ test following a tax evasion conviction, it appeared any potential bid from Crowe could gain some traction.

But Umbers was quick to quell any talk of a takeover, saying the current owners have no intention of walking away from Elland Road.

“The club is not for sale, nor do the Cellino family wish to sell and nor have we received any approaches contrary to reports in the press today,” Umbers told BBC Sport.

“The ongoing legal discussions between Massimo Cellino and the Football League are being completely misinterpreted.

“Leeds United is currently being successfully restructured, rebuilt, significantly invested in, with care and planning for the longer term with the Cellino family at its heart, for the benefit of its long-suffering and passionate fans, the city and its players and staff.”

Crowe, who bought a 75 per cent stake of rugby league team South Sydney Rabbitohs in 2006, dates his support of Leeds back to watching them on television in the 1970s when they enjoyed a period of success under Don Revie.