Most Saints fans are confused by the way that the club is set up these days, who is responsible for what, now there is a big announcement from St Mary's, find out more here.

The Daily Echo has reported that Southampton FC Chairman and co-owner in Sport Republic Henrik Kraft is stepping down from his role as Saints Chairman.

Kraft has overseen the club's operations since Sport Republic acquired Southampton in January 2022 and will remain a shareholder in Sport Republic and on the board, he is just stepping back from looking after the running of the club.

Saints supporters are often confused about the role of the Chairman, as usually in corporate government terms , the Chief Executive Officer(CEO) will run the club on a day to day basis and the Chairman is in a non operational role, overseeing the operation, with the CEO reporting to them, rather than a hands on approach. This was the case with Henrik Kraft we assume.

But starting with Rupert Lowe and then repeated by Nicola Cortese, corporate governance went out the window at Southampton FC, both were CEO's of the club, but they were also their own Chairman, therefore they reported to themselves and essentially had a free rein.

Kraft will be succeeded by Sport Republic's majority shareholder Dragan Solak who had this to say:

“I would like to thank Henrik for the dedication and passion he has invested in his role.

“Whilst I am pleased with many aspects of the club’s management, I am deeply disappointed with the football results this season.

"We will be strengthening our football management team in the near future, and we will share details of that as soon as things are confirmed.

“Our aim at the start of the season was to stay in the Premier League, and I know our fans share in my frustration at how this season has gone so far.

"I ask everyone to continue supporting the club with as much passion and dedication as they have shown all season as we navigate the rest of the season together.”

Solak was initially chairman of Sport Republic, as well as sitting on the board at Saints, since they acquired the club over three years ago.

Sport Republic CEO Rasmus Ankersen is also named on the board, alongside Saints CEO Phil Parsons and director appointed by Katharina Liebherr, Ralf Bogli.

Andy Young is also listed as an independent director, having been named following the club's relegation from the Premier League in 2023.

This is good news, indeed it is a rare piece of news from those running the club, those Southampton fans who look closely at the club of the pitch as well as on it, will point the finger for our decline in CEO Parson's & Chairman Kraft's failure to replace Director of Football Jason Wilcox when he effectively left the club around 10 months ago..

Since then we seemed to have lacked direction, neither Kraft nor Parson's seemed to have the courage to stop Russell Martin's determination to keep playing a tactical game that was failing, they were indecisive and from the fans perspective showed a complete lack of leadership, both in dealing with what most saw as only ending in one way and also in the lack of communication between the club and it's supporters in all areas.

Now it seems Dragan Solak has had enough and is taking personal charge of things, he has highlighted the failings of the last year and confirmed that in his statement

"We will be strengthening our football management team in the near future, and we will share details of that as soon as things are confirmed."

That shows that he like the fans sees what the problem is and is not going to let it run any longer, the first signs of that were last month when Russell Martin was replaced by Ivan Juric, but it runs deeper than that, we need a Director of football and we need to support Juric with a larger coaching team and more importantly coaches with experience.

All Photos Via Reuters

Centurion added 12:42 - Jan 14 Very interesting. Time will reveal what strengthening of the management will involve.
4

WestSussexSaint added 12:43 - Jan 14 As you say this appears to be a positive move in the sense Dragan has had enough of the failures and is getting directly involved. I don’t expect he will have any hands on football experience but then neither does Kraft or Parsons who were more about the commercial side of the club. The indication is that he will bring in that football expertise, which I expect will be a new director of football to replace Wilcox and work alongside Parsons day to day. It’s sad it has taken this long and the almost inevitable relegation but hopefully but getting the right structure in place now it will set us up for the summer and next season.

6

mattlegod added 12:50 - Jan 14 I've been saying for months that we lack experience in "football" at board level and have done since Jason left. Perhaps this is what Dragan is referring to when he says football management? Either way, a change at the top, made by the top man has to been seen as positive news
4

Number_58 added 12:55 - Jan 14 This is a shock. I didn't know we had a Chairman.
1

PaleRider added 13:17 - Jan 14 I get what Solak brings to the party - money. I get what Ankersen brings to the party - alleged football experience. I have no idea what Kraft brings to the party - does anyone know?
-1

Bowlercow added 13:57 - Jan 14 PaleRider Kraft as well as Ankersen was part of the successful set up at Brentford so he knows "football business" Top priority is to replace Wilcox Man Utd also took a guy from Newcastle for a similar post I can't remember his name but he has since been sacked He could be worth a look Obviously Solak is desperate for his business venture to succeed and he hasn't been shy of spending a few bob

3

dirk_doone added 13:58 - Jan 14 This sounds like good news. Hopefully, it will be a change for the better. I've certainly not given up hope on the owners or the new manager. The win against Swansea was the first indication that Juric is starting to make an impact with his team selection and tactics.
1

underweststand added 15:49 - Jan 14 Failure to replace Jason Wilcox was a major failing. Admittedly it will be a big challenge to find someone of his caliber (as his past record was unique in the game at this level), and he might not have left, had it not been for the lure of a prestige job at MU. Ideally we need someone who is well-acquainted with the English game. Not necessarily a proven international, but someone who knows the game at the highest level and will not deterred by the impending prospect of Championship football for a season ( or two). Sadly, the " family feel " that has clearly pervaded Saints for almost half-a-century has prevented the inevitable sacking of Martin much earlier, and the writing was on the wall side after his blatant refusal to change the system he was so dedicated to, when working with a squad that seemingly fell below the required level for Prem. survival. RM may have been a " Mister Nice Guy" and popular in the dressing room, but like many of his ilk couldn't cut it at the highest level and should never been allowed to continue after the humiliation of the defeat (by what was essentially) Chelsea's B side. Many Prem. chairmen would (and some already) have acted more quickly to make the changes to stop the rot. Sadly we may already have passed the point of no return and Dragan has now moved to try and protect his not insignificant investment in the club.

3

sidsaint added 15:54 - Jan 14 Agree it sounds like good news and it will be interesting to see what or if anything happens during the January window.
2

mushinexile added 16:10 - Jan 14 Halleluja! Glad to see it at long last. Better late than never. I hope this is going to put some points on the board, cause us to shift the dead wood, get rid of Ankersen's leading role and provide the impetus to keep the few good players we have. As for what Kraft brings to the party, that's easy. Dairylea. That's why we play little triangles.
1

GRIM added 16:17 - Jan 14 Watch this space. Gareth Southgate as our New Director of Football.
-2

Jesus_02 added 16:27 - Jan 14 I don't believe that this is a reaction to them not sacking Martin early enough. I think its reaction to woeful recruitment, specifically a policy of buying very good young players at above market rate and neglecting more proven players. Since Juric has come in I haven't seen a massive improvement . Some people are happier with the style of football but results are results and in my book the Brenford game was the worst performance of the season so far. Lets face it IF (and its a big if) Saints were midtable people may still be frustrated about the style of play but would have accepted it. If we had spent 24m and the equivalent wages on 1 half decent striker rather than on 2 hopefuls all that possession might well have had an end product. The more disturbing truth is that maybe RM was actually getting the best out of what was available. The result of the recruitment strategy is a team bloated with average players and the odd decent signing. Of this seasons new players only Fernandez and Ramsdale (who we were forced into) have made a positive improvement. Effectively we are playing a team that did well to achieve promotion through the playoffs . This is the boards failure, and the reason they are moving on. Hopefully we can get someone in with a connection to the club that values what the people of Southampton think of them and wont skip ship as soon as a more lucrative or glamourous opportunity arises.

4

NewburySaint added 23:31 - Jan 14 Strong, and much needed, words and actions from the man who has invested the most from SR. It’s good to see that, although there are a few good things happening around SFC, Dragan has recognised our bread and butter has been a disaster (& not just this Premier League season), appears to share in our frustration and disappointment, and that he recognises this, and appears to want to redress the balance. I feel quite positive over this although I feel a little sympathy for Kraft because it could have been any of the board that is “stepping down”.

1

Blogs 31 bloggers

Brighton and Hove Albion Polls