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Sunderland remain in active talks around securing the sale of a significant majority stake in their women’s team, even as a period of exclusivity with one interested party expires today (Friday).The club have received multiple offers from would-be buyers or investors over the past 12 months, according to sources briefed on proceedings.
Bay Collective, a multi-club ownership group focused on women’s sport, launched by global investment firm Sixth Street, were one such bidder and were selected to enter a period of exclusivity with a view to buying a controlling stake. That period is set to end without a deal being agreed but negotiations are ongoing, sources say.
The purported deal would see Sunderland Women, currently playing in the Women’s Super League 2, taken over by an entity which has Kay Cossington, the Football Association’s former women’s technical director, as its CEO. Cossington’s time at the FA coincided with success for England Women, who won the European Championship in 2022 and reached the World Cup final a year later.
Cossington departed for Bay Collective in May 2025, two months before England retained their European title with a penalty shootout victory over Spain.
Sixth Street is already active in women’s football, having owned Bay FC in the National Women’s Soccer League since the club was founded in 2023. Sixth Street paid a then-record $53million franchise fee to join the NWSL, and has since invested more into the team.
The size of the bid for a majority stake in Sunderland Women has not been disclosed and Sixth Street have declined to comment.
Sunderland have been in discussions with several parties in the past year and have received three separate offers for either investment in or a majority acquisition of Sunderland Women.
If the Bay Collective deal is completed, Sunderland would retain a minority stake in Sunderland Association Football Club Women Limited, which sits below the legal entity that houses the men’s team. No new entity would be set up as part of the deal.
One source with knowledge of the matter, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, confirmed to The Athletic that other undisclosed parties remain interested in buying a stake in Sunderland’s women’s team. The end of Bay Collective’s exclusivity period now re-opens the door to other investors.
What would this mean for Sunderland?
If Sunderland were to complete a sale, it would add to a growing trend of English clubs generating value by selling stakes in their women’s teams.
Outside investment has arrived at both Chelsea and Aston Villa in recent years, though those deals have been somewhat overshadowed by the two clubs ‘selling’ a majority stake to other entities controlled by the club’s owners. Those internal sales allowed the pair to book significant asset sales in the accounts of their men’s teams, in turn aiding compliance with the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability rules.
Sunderland, too, would benefit at the bottom line, but no internal sale will take place and financial positives are expected to be a corollary rather than the primary motive behind the sale. Despite significant summer transfer spending, Sunderland are not expected to have PSR troubles, having entered the Premier League this season with low historic losses. The significant increase in broadcasting rights revenue that top-tier status confers funded the summer activity, and the club does not need to book a one-off transaction to boost profitability in the manner others have.
Instead, the sale of a stake in Sunderland Women is intended to aid the long-term growth of the women’s team. Expenditure on the team has increased under the ownership of Kyril Louis-Dreyfus, who arrived at Sunderland in February 2021 and owns a controlling stake in the club.
Investment in the women’s team dropped precipitously under Sunderland’s ownership by Madrox Partners, an entity ran by Stewart Donald, Charlie Methven and Juan Sartori, who remains a shareholder at the club, with just £83k spent in the 2020-21 season when Louis-Dreyfus arrived. By 2023-24, the last season for which we have public filings, Sunderland were spending more than £1m annually on their women’s team.
The sale to outside investors would, feasibly, generate even greater investment, while the retention of a minority stake would ensure the women’s team remains in close proximity to the broader Sunderland AFC entity.
The club is aiming for promotion back to the top tier in England, an objective understood to be share by interested investors. Sunderland were relegated in 2017-18 after failing to apply for a license to play in WSL.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Sunderland, Sports Business, Women's Soccer
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