Bruno Venanzi completely disappeared from Standard after the settlement of the financial dispute with 777 Partners. The former owner admits he may have made mistakes, but he rejects the accusation that he took the club to the brink.
“Since I left, the situation has only gotten worse,” Venanzi says in The Importance of Limburg. When he sold the club in 2022 to 777 Partners, it seemed like the best choice. “At that time, they were simply the best candidates. PwC, a major Belgian bank, an American bank and the licensing commission approved the sale.”
Venanzi describes how, based on 777 Partners’ numbers, he had no reason to be suspicious. “They had three billion in assets. The first payment was made correctly, but six months later they started contesting the remaining payments through their lawyers,” he says. This type of situation was new to him: “I have already sold large companies, like Lampiris to Total, but I had never experienced this.”
Bruno Venanzi rejects accusations from Standard supporters
The choice of 777 Partners came after careful consideration, while the Canadian group JKC Capital was also in the running. “They wanted to reduce the price at the last minute, which made me doubt a future collaboration,” says Venanzi. He asked 777 Partners to go the extra mile, to which they agreed.
Professionally, Venanzi remains active, notably with a consulting firm and real estate projects. But he categorically rejects accusations that he left Standard carelessly.
“It’s easy to blame the previous owner. Everything was in the data room,” he emphasizes. Venanzi considers the Americans’ decision to take out a loan of ten million instead of the recommended fifteen million in capital as one of the biggest mistakes since his departure.
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