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Sir Robert Sydney Murray CBE (born 3 August 1946) is a businessman and former chairman of Sunderland AFC. An accountant by trade, he made his fortune through the growth and sale of the Spring Ram kitchen manufacturing company. [1]
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Sir Robert Sydney Murray CBE (born 3 August 1946) is a businessman and former chairman of Sunderland AFC. An accountant by trade, he made his fortune through the growth and sale of the Spring Ram kitchen manufacturing company. [1]
Murray was born in Consett, County Durham. He became chairman of Sunderland AFC in 1986, replacing the motor magnate Sir Tom Cowie.
Murray's first season as chairman ended with the dismissal of manager Lawrie McMenemy and the club's relegation to the Third Division for the first time in their history. A revival saw Sunderland reach the First Division in 1990, only to be relegated after one season. They did not return to the top division until 1996, though they did reach the FA Cup final in 1992 and lost 2-0 to Liverpool.
By 1991, Murray was investigating the possibility of building a new stadium for Sunderland to replace the aging Roker Park; after plans to build a stadium near the Nissan car factory failed, he turned his attention to the former Monkwearmouth colliery site on the banks of the River Wear, which became available with the colliery's closure in December 1993. His funds went towards the new Stadium of Light, which opened on the Monkwearmouth colliery site in July 1997 with an all-seater capacity of more than 42,000 (which within a few years was increased to more than 48,000).
In seasons 1999/2000 and 2000/01 Sunderland finished seventh in the Premiership but Murray became unpopular when Sunderland were relegated in 2003 with a then record low of 19 points as well as debts of nearly £30 million. Promotion was gained two years later but Murray was criticised again as Sunderland endured a poor season back in the Premiership.
Sunderland had progressed well during the final 11 seasons of Murray's ownership. They never finished below third place in the league's second tier; whereas the club had finished below this position 7 times in Murray's first 9 seasons as chairman.
Murray had stated that he was willing to sell his shares in the club if an investor demonstrated a willingness to invest considerable money in the club - not simply purchase his shares. In 2006 former player Niall Quinn made an offer for the club, backed by a consortium of Irish businessmen. In order to for this to proceed Murray resigned as chairman, enabling the Drumaville Consortium takeover to occur, although he remained on the board in the interim.
At a press conference on 28 June 2006 he confirmed that the club would be sold to Quinn's consortium for £10 million. [2] Murray received £5.7 million of the total, although he has stated that the extensive negotiations were in order to ensure the bid was in the interests of the club and not, as speculated by the press, for his own financial gain. This assertion was supported by the relatively low price at which he allowed his controlling stake to be bought. On 3 July 2006, the Drumaville Consortium bid was officially confirmed and the offer of £10 million accepted, with Quinn having the unusual dual role of club Chairman and Acting Manager. [3] Murray was appointed as the club's Life President by the new owners.
Murray was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2003 New Year Honours, "for services to Sunderland Football Club and to the community"; [4] he was knighted in the 2010 Birthday Honours "for services to Football and to Education in the North East." [5]
In October 2012, Murray was announced as the new chancellor of Leeds Beckett University. [6]
Sunderland Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England, which competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football.
The Stadium of Light is an all-seater football stadium in Sunderland, England, and the eighth and current home to Sunderland A.F.C. With space for 49,000 spectators, the Stadium of Light is the ninth largest football stadium in England. The stadium primarily hosts Sunderland A.F.C. home matches. The stadium was named by chairman Bob Murray to reflect the coal mining heritage of the North East and the former Monkwearmouth Colliery site on which it stands. A Davy lamp monument stands at the entrance to reflect the coal mining industry that brought prosperity to the town.
Niall John Quinn is an Irish former professional footballer, manager, businessman and sports television pundit.
The 2003–04 season was the 124th season of association football in England. Arsenal completed the season without losing a league match, becoming Premier League champions in the process. Leeds United avoided going into administration, but were unable to avoid relegation and lost their place in the Premier League - along with Leicester City and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The 2002–03 season was the 123rd season of competitive football in England.
The 2004–05 season was the 125th season of competitive football in England.
Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated; it had been much higher, attracting a record crowd of 75,118.
Monkwearmouth is an area of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear in England. Monkwearmouth is located at the north side of the mouth of the River Wear. It was one of the three original settlements on the banks of the River Wear along with Bishopwearmouth and Sunderland. It includes the area around St. Peter's Church, founded in 674 as part of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Abbey, and was once the main centre of Wearside shipbuilding and coalmining in the town. It is now host to a campus of the University of Sunderland and the National Glass Centre. It is served by the three Church of England churches of the Parish of Monkwearmouth. The first nineteenth-century Catholic church built in Monkwearmouth was St Benet's Church which remains active today.
The 2000–01 season was the 121st season of competitive football in England.
1840s – 1850s – 1860s – 1870s – 1880s – 1890s – 1900s – 1910s – 1920s – 1930s – 1940s – 1950s – 1960s – 1970s – 1980s – 1990s – 2000s – 2010s – 2020s
Seaham Red Star Football Club is a football club based in Seaham, England. They joined the Wearside League in 1979 as Seaham Colliery Welfare Red Star. In the 1978–79 season, they reached the 5th round of the FA Vase. In 1984, they changed to their present name. For the 2014–15 season, they are members of Northern League Division Two. Seaham were confirmed second division champions on 28 March 2015 and will return to Division One for the 2015–16 season. The club has a focus on producing local players and providing a platform for talented local players to play Northern League football.
Sunderland Association Football Club are an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear. They were formed in 1879, and played several years in the FA Cup and local cup competitions before joining the Football League in the 1890–91 season in place of Stoke. They played in the top league in England until the 1957–58, season when they were relegated into the Second Division. Sunderland are England's sixth most successful club of all time, having won the English League championship six times: in 1892, 1893, 1895, 1902, 1913, and, most recently, in 1936. They have also been runners-up on a further five occasions: in 1894, 1898, 1901, 1923 and 1935.
The 1998–99 season was the 119th season of competitive football in England.
The 1999–2000 season was the 120th season of competitive football in England.
Kevin Ball is an English former professional footballer who played for Portsmouth, Sunderland, Fulham and Burnley. Since his retirement, he has held a number of positions at Sunderland, including twice being caretaker manager, and was most recently a club ambassador.
Murton A.F.C. were a football team based in Murton near Durham in County Durham, England who last played Wearside League. They were affiliated to the Durham Football Association and were Full Members of The Football Association.
The Drumaville Consortium was a group of seven Irish businessmen and one English businessman led by former footballer Niall Quinn, who were involved in the 2006 takeover of English Premier League football club Sunderland A.F.C. The consortium was named after the village of Drumaville in County Donegal.
Ellis Short American businessman and founder of Kildare Partners, a private equity fund investing in distressed European real estate assets. Short was also the owner and chairman of English football club Sunderland A.F.C. from September 2008 to April 2018.
During the 1996–97 English football season, Sunderland competed in the FA Premier League.
The Foundation of Light is a Registered Charity in the United Kingdom, and is the independent charitable foundation of professional football club Sunderland A.F.C. It is the biggest football charity in the UK.