Energy drink entrepreneur launches takeover bid for Sunderland AFC after attracting 'significant funding'

Storey, who is the CEO of Rich Energy, confirmed the news in a brief post on his Twitter account.

While the constraints of a non-disclosure agreement mean that Storey was unable to go into exact detail, he claimed he has attracted ‘significant funding from blue-chip backers’ to enable the bid.

His post read: “I am limited in what I can say due to NDA but I can confirm that I have made a formal legal offer for @SunderlandAFC.

"I have significant funding from blue chip backers. Sunderland are a giant of English football & their fans deserve a team to reflect that stature #SunderlandAFC.”

Storey is not the only party to have publicly confirmed their intent to purchase the club, with academy graduate Michael Gray looking to broker a deal with a consortium.

Mark Campbell and Sammy Yu also remain interested in striking an agreement with Donald, whose asking price stands at £37.6million.

Storey’s wealth comes from his energy drink brand Rich Energy – which has been embroiled in controversy since it was first floated as a concept in 2015. Information about the company and the energy drink itself is limited, as too is any knowledge of the exact depth of Storey’s wealth.

But Rich Energy are best known for their ill-fated sponsorship of Formula One team Haas, which lasted less than a year.

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