Who are Igor Levin and Patrick Treuer? Sunderland's new directors after Kyril Louis-Dreyfus takeover is approved

The pair are both close associates of the Louis-Dryefus family and will take places on the Sunderland board following the takeover of the club.

Stewart Donald and Juan Sartori have resigned as directors, but retain minority shares in the Black Cats along with fellow former director Charlie Methven.

The behind the scenes changes are further evidence that it’s now Louis-Dreyfus calling the shots – but what do we know about the duo? We take a look:

Who is Igor Levin?

Levin, who is based in New York but of Russian origin, is the Louis-Dreyfus family lawyer.

He was hands-on alongside the family as they ran Marseille, with reports in France suggesting he played a key role in player and managerial negotiations – including the dismissal of Marcelo Bielsa, among others.

Levin is known to be heavily trusted by Kyril Louis-Dreyfus’ mother, Margarita, and has at times acted as a public-facing representative of the family.

Who is Patrick Treuer?

Another man with close links to the Louis-Dreyfus family, the Financial Times described Treuer as a ‘close confidant’ of Margarita when he was appointed as the Louis-Dreyfus Group’s chief financial officer and chief strategy officer in December 2019.

Treuer is a former investment banker with Credit Suisse and has also worked as chief strategy officer at Biosev – a sister company to the Louis-Dreyfus Group – and he holds a business degree from the University of St. Gallen.

A message from the Football Clubs Editor:

Our aim is to provide you with the best, most up-to-date and most informative Sunderland AFC coverage 365 days a year.

This depth of coverage costs, so to help us maintain the high-quality reporting that you are used to, please consider taking out a subscription to our new sports-only package here.

Your support is much appreciated. Richard Mennear, Football Clubs Editor