Receiver Paul Cooper starts work on sale of Blackpool FC and reveals: I've received more than 20 expressions of interest already

Receiver Paul Cooper revealed the interest in buying Blackpool FC has already been 'significant'

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The only one to go public so far is the consortium involving football finance specialist Terry Pritchard, although The Gazette understands an American group that had earlier attempted to strike a deal with Owen Oyston has also been in touch.

Cooper said: “We’ve already had a very significant level of interest in the club in the first six days. I’ve received over 20 indications of interest.

“Now I can’t comment on who that is, what funds they’ve got, the veracity... all those things. But this is a very, very public situation that people are aware of.

“Just like the fans and all of the stakeholders who have been waiting for change here, I think a lot of people who are interested in the club have seen that latent demand build up and now it’s coming to the fore because they see the opportunity for change.”

One concern among the club’s fan-base is that the receiver will simply sell to the highest bidder regardless of the consequences for the club and long-suffering supporters.

While Cooper admits it is his responsibility to “maximise” the return of the assets, he suggested there are other things to consider.

He added: “Ultimately there’s a situation where counterparty A owes counterparty B money and my duty is to maximise the return of the assets – so, yes, money talks.

“But at the same time, there are different sorts of money in terms of understanding where they money is from, what is the likely amount of money that comes through in future, what is the proof of funding, who we are talking about – there are all those sorts of considerations.

“But ultimately I’m not going to say that if someone bids the highest for the club they’re not going to be able to get it – they probably are.

“But one has got a duty to consider all the aspects surrounding that as well.”

Cooper believes that should the sale go through without a hitch the future will be bright for the football club.

“I’ve actually been overwhelmed with the number of emails I’ve had from people saying, ‘If you need something, we want to help’,” he said.

“If that energy can be harnessed in the right way, I think it will be incredibly powerful because it will be a community coming together in so many ways.

“That’s the story here as well as the ultimate sale of the club.”