Aston Villa Football Club is one of the oldest and longest-running clubs in English football. With a rich history and legacy of ups and downs, along with significant triumphs both domestically and in Europe, Aston Villa is one of the most popular clubs in the country.
For the most part, the progress and development at the Birmingham-based club have been in part due to the remarkable players and managers they have brought in over the years. However, a lot of it can also be attributed to the Aston Villa owner. Throughout its 150 years of existence, there have been many names associated with the club’s hierarchy, with varying reputations.
As such, in this article, we will briefly summarise and gloss over the history of the owners of Aston Villa, how the club came to be, its golden age, subsequent downfalls, and finally how things have changed under the current Aston Villa owners.
Background
As always, let us start things off by taking a quick look at the brief history of the club and its accomplishments. For those unaware, ‘The Villans’ have won the First Division / Premier League title 7 times, whilst finishing as runners-up on 10 occasions. In addition to that, they have also captured the FA Cup 7 times and won 5 EFL Cups.
As for their triumphs in Europe, Aston Villa is surprisingly one of the select few clubs with a European Cup (Champions League) to its name along with a European Super Cup, among others. Thus, all of their success over the years has culminated in the club ranking 5th in the all-time English top-flight table, having played in the top-flight for 111 seasons, which is the second most of any club.
Whilst it is by no means the most popular English club, Aston Villa still boasts a supporter base of nearly 6 million fans. Notably, that number is rapidly on the rise thanks in part to the club’s recent resurgence at the top level. How much of that is due to the owners of Aston Villa? Let’s find out.
List of Aston Villa owners
Like most clubs, there have been many owners of Aston Villa throughout its existence. As such, the club has almost had numerous owners and shareholders as well. That said, the origins of the club can be traced back to Handsworth: which is now part of Birmingham.
In November of 1874, Jack Hughes, Frederick Matthews, Walter Price, and William Scattergood, members of the Villa Cross Wesleyan Chapel’s cricket team, founded the football club, as a means of keeping fit during the winter months.
| Name | Years |
| Jack Hughes, Frederick Matthews, Walter Price, and William Scattergood (Founders) | 1874 |
| Frederick Rinder | 1898- 1925 |
| Frederick Rinder | 1936-1938 |
| Sir Herbert Douglas Ellis | 1968-1975 |
| Sir William Dugdale | 1975- 1979 |
| Ron Bendall | 1980 – 1982 |
| Sir Herbert Douglas Ellis | 1982- 2006 |
| Randy Lerner | 2006-2016 |
| Tony Xia | 2016- 2018 |
| Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens | 2018- present |
In its early days, the club would compete in competitions across Birmingham County. With the professionalization of football in 1885, the club began expanding and in 1888, Aston Villa became one of the first clubs to be a part of the Football League First Division, the world’s first football league.
This was thanks in part to William McGregor, one of Aston Villa’s owners and directors who was also the founder of the league. However, it was the work of longtime committee member Frederick Rinder, who fully took over the reins at the club in 1898, that kickstarted Aston Villa’s golden age.
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History of Aston Villa’s ownership
Between 1893 and the early 1930s, Aston Vila enjoyed some of its best years in the top flight. By the end of the Edwardian Era in 1910, Villa had won 6 league titles and 4 FA Cup victories, which included a historic double in 1896–97. However, by 1934, the club, having lost its beloved manager George Ramsay a few seasons ago, found itself relegated for the first time.
Notably, Frederick Rinder, who had forcefully handed in his resignation in 1925, made his return after an 11-year absence. Within a couple of seasons, Rinder, who loved and believed Villa to be a top institution, ensured that the club was back in the First Division.
Since then, the club has had a topsy-turvy journey with many owners and chairmen trying their best to steady the ship. From finding themselves relegated to the Third Division 1969–70 season to making it back to the First Division by 1975 before going on to win the league in 1981 and then finding European triumph in 1982, it had certainly been some journey for the Villa faithful.
That said, there was also considerable unrest and turmoil in the boardrooms, with no Aston Villa owner being a prominent figure for too long, except Douglas Ellis. Ellis, who’d had two stints as the Aston Villa owner and chairman, eventually agreed to sell the club to American billionaire Randy Lerner in 2006 for £62.6 million, who put the club up for sale after it had announced losses of £53.9 million in 2012.
Who is the current Aston Villa owner?
In 2016, Chinese businessman Tony Xia became the new owner of Aston Villa, buying the club for £76 million. However, Xia brought the club to financial ruin and to the brink of going into administration. Then, in 2018, billionaire pair Nassef Sawiris (net worth $9bn) and Wes Edens (net worth $3.8bn) stepped in and became the current owners of Aston Villa in 2018.
Initially, the NSWE group ( now V Sports), who owns Aston Villa paid £30 million for a 55% stake, before paying an additional £30 million in 2019 to fully acquire the club. Notably, the new Aston Villa owners further shelled out close to £60 million in cash injections and covering tax bills. Since then, the club has returned to the English top flight and in 2023-2024, qualified for the Champions League, Europe’s top club competition after 41 years.
That said, the club’s current resurgence is accredited to the owners of Aston Villa, and player Jack Grealish, who was bought by Manchester City for a record £100 million in 2021. Whilst the club was once again reverting to their middling form, the appointment of four-time Europa League-winning Spanish manager Unai Emery in 2022 has once again turned them into top contenders whilst simultaneously challenging in the Champions League as well.
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Q. Who is the new owner of Aston Villa?
A. Billionaire pair Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens became the new owners of Aston Villa in 2018
Q. How much does Nassef Sawiris own of Aston Villa?
A. Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens’ V Sports owns 100% of the club.
Q. Who did Man City buy from Aston Villa?
A. Manchester City bought winger Jack Grealish from Aston Villa for a record £100 million in 2021.
Q. Who is managing Aston Villa now?
A. Four-time Europa League-winning Spanish manager Unai Emery has been managing Aston Villa since 2022.