page_title: Manchester City F.C. ownership and finances
section_title: Swales era, 1973–1994
hierarchical_section_title: Manchester City F.C. ownership and finances / History / Swales era, 1973–1994
caption_attribution_description: ex-manchester city chairman &amp; current football association chairman, David Bernstein (2011) open source/archive project free to use (typical panny low light noise problems)
context_page_description: The Ownership of Manchester City Football Club dates back to 1894, when Ardwick A.F.C. dissolved and were reformed as Manchester City Football Club Ltd. Over recent years, the ownership and finances of Manchester City Football Club have been tumultuous with various owners of contrasting fortunes much in line with their inconsistent trend on the pitch and the club's hierarchy maintain the club is in a period of "significant transformation".
  Since 4 August 2008, the club has been owned by Sheikh Mansour, one of football's wealthiest owners, with an estimated individual net worth of at least £17 billion and a family fortune of at least $1 trillion. Sheikh Mansour bought the club in 2008 for £210 million in a much publicised deal and has since accumulated annual losses of £535 million, excluding approximately £200 million on facility upgrades. However the value of the club has soared tenfold from £210 million in 2008 to over £2 billion in 2018 according to Forbes representing a realistic opportunity of profit on Mansour's investment if he was to sell the club to a willing buyer at the market rate.
context_section_description: At the start of the 1973–74 season Eric Alexander announced his intention to step down in October. Minority shareholder Peter Swales positioned himself as a unifying figure acceptable to both Joe Smith's faction and longstanding directors such as Eric Alexander and John Humphreys (who was also managing director of Umbro). Swales was elected as chairman, and held the position for more than 20 years. Swales time in charge was one of impatience with him sacking eleven Manchester City managers in 21 years, however he had reputation as a generous chairman when providing money for transfer Swales was remembered for his gaffe with manager Malcolm Allison after Swales sanctioned the purchase of Steve Daley from Wolves for £1,450,000, a then British transfer fee record. Daley turned out to be a flop, and Allison always claimed that he had agreed a much lower fee with the then Wolves manager for Daley. Allison later claimed Swales intervened on a chairman to chairman basis and secured the transfer instantly but at a much higher, possibly rip-off price.
  After over 20 years of frustration delivering little success, Swales fell out of favour with the Manchester City supporters who led a long anti-Swales campaign. Momentum gathered in the 1990s, in the form of a movement named Forward With Franny, backing former City player Francis Lee's attempt to gain control of the club.
  In 1994, with Swales was ousted from his chairmanship by former City player Francis Lee, whose paper business F.H Lee Ltd. had made him a multimillionaire. Lee gained control of the club by purchasing £3 million of shares at a price of £13.35 per share.
  Swales was offered a role as life president at the club upon his departure but he never returned to Maine Road. It was a sad departure for a chairman who loyally invested large sums of money into Manchester City in search of new success and greater parity with a resurgent Manchester United. Swales died on 3 May 1996, 3 days before a now yoyo club, Manchester City were relegated from the top tier of English football.
caption: David Bernstein, Manchester City chairman from 1998 to 2003
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