Former Crystal Palace owner John Textor has reportedly made a £400m ($532m) bid to takeover Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The Athletic revealed Textor is interested in buying the Premier League club after selling his 43% share in Crystal Palace for £190m in June 2025.
The American businessman intends for Wolves to become part of Eagle Football Group, the multi-club ownership model which currently includes Olympique Lyonnais, Botafogo and RWDM Brussels.
Textor’s bid includes an initial offer worth up to £150m with £262.6m in shares to buy Wolves. The club’s current owner, Fosun International, have stated the club is not for sale and is opting for outside investment.
The bid comes following fan discontent with both Fosun and Manager Vitor Pereira; Wolves currently sit bottom of the Premier League table being the only club this season yet to register a win.
During and after Wolves’ recent 3-2 home loss to Burnley on October 26, chants from fans could be heard calling for Fosun to sell the club and chants towards Pereira.
Fosun’s tenure at Wolves
Fosun acquired Wolves in 2016 for £45m from Steve Morgan, quickly investing heavily in the club which saw Wolves promoted to the Premier League in 2018.
The club also gained a reputation for signing Portuguese players, primarily players who have Jorge Mendes as their agent. This saw the likes of Ruben Neves, Joao Moutinho and Diogo Jota sign for the club and help Wolves finish 7th in 2018/19, the club’s best finish in 40 years.
However, Fosun has recently focused on becoming more “sustainable” with its portfolio of assets, raising questions regarding future investments in Wolves and its long-term strategy.
Wolves has also had a string of lower league finishes in recent years , having not finished in the top half of the table since 2022.
Is Textor the right man?
Textor was the centre of a multi-club ownership debacle this past summer. His part ownership of Crystal Palace and Lyon ultimately meant Palace were demoted from this season’s Europa League to the Conference League due to breaking UEFA’s multi-club ownership rules.
He has also had issues in Brazil with his ownership of Botafogo. Recently, a Brazilian court ruled his actions stepping down as Lyon Club President – in order to help the club remain in Ligue 1 – to ring fence money for the Brazilian club had to be reversed.
Ares Management is also in the midst of a legal dispute with Textor and Eagle Football Group over a $425m loan which was used to help fund the acquisition of Lyon three years ago.
Furthermore, Iconic Sports Eagle Investment, a shareholder of Eagle Football Group, is seeking an additional $75m insurance policy over a failed public offering in 2023 as Textor agreed to buy back shares if it failed.
