Peter Swann
Peter Swann (born 29 October 1965) is British businessman and the current chairman of Scunthorpe United Football Club, having taken over from the retiring Steve Wharton in 2013.[1]
Football chairman
Gainsborough Trinity
He became chairman of Gainsborough Trinity in October 2008. During his time at the Lincolnshire club, he is believed to have invested £1.5 million.[2]
Scunthorpe United
He became chairman of Scunthorpe United during the 2013 pre-season, seeing off competition from Sheffield-based boxing promoter Dennis Hobson for the post. He sacked manager Brian Laws following the first-round FA Cup defeat to local rivals Grimsby Town.[3] In 2015, he said of his takeover: "We picked up a club with no systems in place, it was run as a hobby and that is what we have cleared up. There were no records in several departments, no invoices, no purchase ledger, no structure and certainly no leadership at key levels and it has been a huge job to try and achieve."[4]
Swann currently holds an 87.5% stake in the club.[5]
In December 2013, he spoke of his intent to construct a new stadium for Scunthorpe by as early as 2015.[6] The club are scheduled to move in to the new ground for the start of the 2016-2017 English football season.[7]
Under his direction, Scunthorpe waived shirt sponsorship money and allowed the charity Prostate Cancer UK to have their name and logo displayed on the front of the team's shirts, to help raise awareness of the disease during the 2015-2016 season. The charity's director of fundraising said he was "incredibly grateful" to Swann and his family for their support in an "exciting project".[8]
Business
He is the owner of Cool Fun Ltd, which operates the Sands live music venue in Blackpool. His wife Karin is joint-chairman of the Wilkinson Hardware Stores chain and is the granddaughter of its founder.[9]
His family fortune was estimated by the Sunday Times at £340 million in 2013.[10]
Personal life
He is married to Karin Swann who was formerly a part owner of Wilko. In May 2012, he had a suspected brain haemorrhage. In October 2013, he said it has not "cleared up totally" but that he was "ninety-five percent".[11]
He is interested in golf and horse racing, owning a number of racehorses.
References
- ^ Scunthorpe United: Peter Swann set to be named new chairman - BBC Sport
- ^ New Scunthorpe United chairman Peter Swann will always value his time at Gainsborough Trinity - Lincolnshire Echo
- ^ Peter Swann: Why I sacked Brian Laws as Scunthorpe United boss - Scunthorpe Telegraph
- ^ Chairman's statement: 'Belief' - Scunthorpe-United.co.uk. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
- ^ Statement: 'PROGRESS' - Scunthorpe United. 18 November 2016. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
- ^ Scunthorpe United's new £18-million ground set to open in 2015 Archived 2013-12-19 at the Wayback Machine - Scunthorpe Telegraph
- ^ New Scunthorpe United stadium: Peter Swann reveals when Iron may move in - Scunthorpe Telegraph. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
- ^ - Scunthorpe United waive shirt sponsorship fee to support Prostate Cancer UK - Scunthorpe Telegraph. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
- ^ New Scunthorpe United chairman: Peter Swann profile Archived 2013-12-31 at the Wayback Machine - Scunthorpe Telegraph
- ^ New Scunthorpe United chairman: Peter Swann profile Archived 2013-12-31 at the Wayback Machine - Scunthorpe Telegraph. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
- ^ Peter Swann Q and A (Part 2): Cheltenham Town (H) - YouTube. 1:15. Retrieved 1 August 2015.