This rumour has started in the Sun and is also on a few other sites. Not getting too worked up about it as it is the Sun after all, but in this lack of "anything to do with West Ham" news perhaps I've started to clutch at straws! Anyway, it appears he is a multi-millionaire/billionaire whose family ties are in the oil industry. He is chairman of the Kansas City Chiefs and owns two MLS clubs - FC Dallas and good ole' Columbus Crew, who we played in a pre-season friendly last season. His late father apparently was one of the founders of MLS in 1993, so the love of 'soccer' seems to run in the family. His name was in the frame for Newcastle but that seems to have been dismissed. Any of our stateside friends know much about him? Just wondered if any links may have been established when we played Columbus.
Clark's dad, Lamar, was arguably one of the most influential people in American sports. Lamar was the founder or co-founder of three sports leagues (including the NASL and MLS) and has owned three MLS teams, one NFL team, and one NBA team. In 1999 the US equivalent of the FA Cup was renamed the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. When he passed away, Clark took over most of his father's sports-related responsibilities (i.e. chairmanships). So, essentially, the family is in the business of owning sports teams. I'll leave it to others more informed (opinionated?) than me to say how well they do at it. While I'm always a little skeptical when I see Americans buying English football teams, the Hunt's at least have a long background in soccer/footaball so would hopefully understand, better than others, what the expectations are when buying into the EPL.
He is hated by most fans in Dallas that follow the team. He hired his college coach for FC Dallas last year so he could have some job security. We have an accountant as someone who is in charge of the team. Hell he let his coach at Columbus leave for an expansion team right after they won the league. Just take a walk over to the FC Dallas forum and see what we think of Hunt Sports Group.
What he said. Out of the frying pan and into the... if not fire... at least the toaster or some other similarly unpleasant heat source. In addition to the clusterf*ck in Dallas and the boneheaded moves in Columbus, his NFL team, the Kansas City Chiefs, is also notoriously mismanaged.
He's got one of those funny reversible names, like Kenny Lunt. The press will take the mick out of his name straight away. He'll get called Clark Kent and all sorts. Of course, having a funny name means he is destined to own West Ham.
A guy who couldn't organise a piss-up in a brewery, whose wealth and position is derived from his father being smart. Christ, please let it not happen.
Clark Hunt is an idiot of the 10th magnitude. Yes he hired his college coach to coach a professional team and that is sad. His FC Dallas team is run by a bunch of amateurs who know nothing about football other than the ball is round. The Dallas team treats supporters like they are criminals and if Clark buys West Ham I only hope some lingering members of the ICF remember how to handle a brick!
i hope Gold and Sullivan sell Birmingham then team up with Michael Tabor to buy us out. 3 hammers as owners i'll be appy.