Burnley FC is set to receive significant funding following an investment made by one of its Board of Directors.
Burnley FC’s parent company ALK Capital have received upwards of $200m in investment from newly-launched private equity firm Cynosure Checketts Sports Capital.
The investment firm, led by the Co-Founder of Major League Soccer’s (MLS) Real Salt Lake David Checketts, is a part of a wider initiative to raise as much as $1.2bn in capital across high-potential sports assets.
Cynosure Checkett’s investment will directly help fund ALK’s football operations. This may see fresh funding in both ALK-owned football clubs Burnley FC and RCD Espanyol in what has been described by ALK as “one of the most ambitious new investment funds in global sport”.
The $200m investment represents Checketts first under his new firm and reunites him with Alan Pace, with whom he served as President of Cheketts Sports Capital Partners and Real Salt Lake, helping the MLS team win the MLS Cup in 2009.
“It’s incredibly rewarding to reunite with Dave after our success together at Real Salt Lake,” said Pace, Managing Partner of ALK Capital.
“We share the same vision for what great sports ownership looks like — combining integrity, innovation, long-term value creation, and championship culture, which we believe will enable us to accelerate our growth across Burnley, Espanyol, and the wider ALK network.”
What Cheketts can bring to the table
The investment unites ALK Capital’s football expertise with Cynosure Checketts’ experience across the sports industry.
Cheketts, a Utah native, became the youngest NBA general manager in Utah Jazz’s history at 28-years-old when he was appointed in 1983.
He then became the general manager for the New York Knicks in 1991, which he helped guide the franchise to two NBA Finals in 1994 and 1999 while also becoming the most valuable NBA franchise in 2001.
Having been inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame in 2022, as well as securing a range of premium sports hospitality deals for Legends with the likes of the New York Yankees and Manchester City, Cheketts became a Member of the Board of Directors at Burnley FC in 2021.
“Alan and I have known each other for decades — as partners, colleagues, and friends. We built Real Salt Lake from the ground up, and now we can collaborate once again on two of Europe’s most historic football clubs,” said Cheketts.
“I’ve long admired what Alan has accomplished with Burnley and more recently with Espanyol. We’re thrilled to join forces to support their continued growth and global ambitions.”
