RANGERS are in advanced talks with the ownership group that runs the San Francisco 49ers.
But who are they, how much money do they have, and what is their sporting pedigree?
Paraag Marathe is a key figure with the San Francisco 49ers[/caption]
Marathe with former Pac-12 commissioner and 49ers chief Jed York in 2014[/caption]
Paraag Marathe is the brains behind 49ers Enterprises, who are interested in taking over the Ibrox side.
Marathe has been with the 49ers for 24 years, overseeing one of the most successful periods in the franchise’s history.
In that time they have reached the Super Bowl three times: in 2012, 2019 and 2023.
Marathe serves as the president of 49ers Enterprises and the executive vice president of football operations for the 49ers itself.
He is the son of Indian immigrants and his parents ran pizza restaurants and his role with the 49ers sees him act as the team’s chief contract negotiator, in charge of managing their salary cap wage structure and also overseeing the analytics department.
Prior to that in his role as team president he oversaw their move to Levi’s Stadium.
The firm want to become the largest single shareholder in the club and have already branched out of the NFL and into football with Leeds United.
49ers Enterprises purchased a 15 per cent stake in the Elland Road outfit back in 2018, but now own the club outright.
With Leeds, Marathe leads on both the sporting and business aspects of the club as chairman.
He also sits on the board of the NFL UK Foundation. Could we see Ibrox hosting American football games in the future?
Parathe has also been a catalyst for the growth of cricket in the United States, having served as chairman of USA Cricket from 2018-2023. In that time they launched Major League Cricket and the national team was accepted as a member of the International Cricket Council.
It wouldn’t be the first time a consortium with ties to another club in the UK has taken a controlling influence in an SPFL side.
Bill Foley’s Black Knights group, the largest shareholder in Premier League side Bournemouth, has a 25 per cent stake in Hibs. The Black Knights also own the Las Vegas Golden Knights NHL franchise and other football teams in France and Australia.
ALK Capital, who own Burnley, entered into a strategic partnership with Dundee last year.
But the proposal for 49ers Enterprises to take control of Rangers would send shock waves throughout Scottish football, with a major multi-million pound investment in the Glasgow giants on the horizon should a deal be struck.
The San Francisco 49ers are owned by the Denise DeBartolo York of the York family, who have plenty of cash to bankroll one of the NFL most respected clubs.
According to Forbes, the family is worth $6billion, with Jed York acting as the chief executive of the franchise.
Parathe works closely with York on a regular basis for the NFL giants.
Ibrox sources insist there are still plenty of hurdles to overcome as high-level discussions continue.
But there is hope that an agreement can be reached with the US investors to kick off a new era at Gers.
The consortium see huge potential in the Ibrox club, with possible access to the Champions League a reward for domestic success.
They also view Scottish football as a prime environment to bring in young talent and adopt a successful player-trading model.
Under existing SFA dual ownership rules, this is set to limit the 49ers’ ability to snap up a Gers shareholding of over 29.9 per cent.
However, there are other US investors keen to plunge money into Gers as part of a wider consortium.
These figures believe Marathe’s experience of British football can be of huge significance as part of a potential deal to revive Rangers.
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