Vlad Torgovnik - New Director

[Guller Bull]

Just fans of Burnley, don't care about any other team. But they have to have a passion for Burnley even if they don't even know where Burnley is!

Especially if they don't know where Burnley is, then they need to prove their fandom even more so.

[louieollie]

But then the pool of investors/new recruits would surely be very small wouldn't it?

[Guller Bull]

But then the pool of investors/new recruits would surely be very small wouldn't it?

No, don't try and baffle me, we don't have to hire midgets do we or is that a thing?

[Carwin261]

It’s not been Barnfield since they switched their sponsorship to the cricket field stand. The club now refer to it as the Burnley Training Centre. Pace i believe is a Chelsea fan, not that it matters.

Can’t really agree about it not mattering him being a Chelsea fan ,would you say the same if he was a fan of the dreaded Rovers ?

[ClaretTony]

Can’t really agree about it not mattering him being a Chelsea fan ,would you say the same if he was a fan of the dreaded Rovers ?

We have Blackburn fans working at the club, we’ve had Blackburn fans play for us. Doesn’t matter to me as long as they are the best for the job.

[boyyanno]

Can’t really agree about it not mattering him being a Chelsea fan ,would you say the same if he was a fan of the dreaded Rovers ?

I don't think it matters in the slightest, and I'd say the same if he was a Blackburn fan. Consider how many players play against their boyhood club or club they support, they're still trusted to do the job and I think all that matters is wether they are the best person for that job or not.

[Paul Waine]

New director's profile from LinkedIn.

Vlad Torgovnik is Chief Information Officer at Millennium and a member of the Firm's Senior Management team. With over 30 years of experience in technology, he is responsible for technology infrastructure, operations, and middle office functions.

Millennium is a large global investment management firm with over $58 billion in assets under management, and more than 4,800 employees, including over 1,000 technology employees.
Before joining Millennium in 2011, Vlad worked at Bank of America as CIO of the Consumer Bank, overseeing the largest technology infrastructure within the bank, and before then was CIO of Bank of America Capital Markets. He was recognized as the Capital Markets CIO of the Year by Bankers Magazine in 2006. From 1992 – 2001, Vlad worked at J.P. Morgan in a variety of technology leadership roles within their fixed income derivatives business.

He received his BS in Math and Computer Science from New York University and his Masters in Computer Science from Columbia University.

If I had to guess, Vlad Torgovnik is an investor in his own right in ALK US or Velocity Sports US. It is possible, though I believe less likely, that Millenium have taken a stake in Velocity Sports US and VT has been appointed to BFC board as Millenium's representative. However, VT is a CIO rather than an investment role, so less likely to be asked to sit on a board to represent Millenium.

Of course, like all our other US directors, VT has long term US investment banking and investment management experience.

The club appears to have a generous budget in this transfer window. Maybe there has been some success attracting a hedge fund or two, such as Millenium to take a stake. We may or may not learn more over time.

UTC

[Chester Perry]

New director's profile from LinkedIn.

Vlad Torgovnik is Chief Information Officer at Millennium and a member of the Firm's Senior Management team. With over 30 years of experience in technology, he is responsible for technology infrastructure, operations, and middle office functions.

Millennium is a large global investment management firm with over $58 billion in assets under management, and more than 4,800 employees, including over 1,000 technology employees.
Before joining Millennium in 2011, Vlad worked at Bank of America as CIO of the Consumer Bank, overseeing the largest technology infrastructure within the bank, and before then was CIO of Bank of America Capital Markets. He was recognized as the Capital Markets CIO of the Year by Bankers Magazine in 2006. From 1992 – 2001, Vlad worked at J.P. Morgan in a variety of technology leadership roles within their fixed income derivatives business.

He received his BS in Math and Computer Science from New York University and his Masters in Computer Science from Columbia University.

If I had to guess, Vlad Torgovnik is an investor in his own right in ALK US or Velocity Sports US. It is possible, though I believe less likely, that Millenium have taken a stake in Velocity Sports US and VT has been appointed to BFC board as Millenium's representative. However, VT is a CIO rather than an investment role, so less likely to be asked to sit on a board to represent Millenium.

Of course, like all our other US directors, VT has long term US investment banking and investment management experience.

The club appears to have a generous budget in this transfer window. Maybe there has been some success attracting a hedge fund or two, such as Millenium to take a stake. We may or may not learn more over time.

UTC

the intriguing element of that last paragraph is how does the money get to the club

a capital injection via share issue has categorically not occurred - the small investors have not been invited to join or informed of such an intended action

the other standard way in football is a friendly loan from a shareholder - this may have happened but we have not heard anything

In our case there is a third option - that is repaying part or all the monies that the club has loaned to CVHL. It would be a welcome and positive action

[Vegas Claret]

anything that keeps Kompany here for a very long time will do for me !!

[elwaclaret]

While I have nothing other than a hunch… I suspected “Directors” will be troubleshooters, on annual retainers. They come in put in the new stuff and then they disappear into their own circles until called upon again, “on board” as and when they are required by the clubs brass.

[fidelcastro]

I know he doesn’t NEED to know anything about football…

I think it always helps if the individual has some interest in the industry they're working in.

Doesn't mean it can't work though.

[Spiral]

It’s not been Barnfield since they switched their sponsorship to the cricket field stand. The club now refer to it as the Burnley Training Centre.

This has got me thinking. Before the new facilities were built and sponsored by Barnfield construction was the old training ground ever officially referred to as Gawthorpe, or was that a more colloquial thing? And if it was (or even if it was not) officially recognised as Gawthorpe, upon expiration of Barnfield's sponsorship why not revert to calling our training base Gawthorpe? It would seem a very traditional thing to me, and there's a nostalgic side of me that quite likes the idea of our training ground being named for the old Elizabethan stately grounds adjacent to it.

[Chester Perry]

This has got me thinking. Before the new facilities were built and sponsored by Barnfield construction was the old training ground ever officially referred to as Gawthorpe, or was that a more colloquial thing? And if it was (or even if it was not) officially recognised as Gawthorpe, upon expiration of Barnfield's sponsorship why not revert to calling our training base Gawthorpe? It would seem a very traditional thing to me, and there's a nostalgic side of me that quite likes the idea of our training ground being named for the old Elizabethan stately grounds adjacent to it.

The real name of the Gawthorpe Training ground is Home Farm. which is what Bob Lord bought in the 1950's

[Hipper]

I wonder if this is likely to be the first non- share owning director in the long history of the club

Changes in the articles earlier this year would certainly allow for that, it can be easily and reasonably argued that such changes were long ovrdue - this is what I wrote about that for the London Clarets earlier this year

Burnley Football and Athletic Club Limited is an institution now in its 126th year as a corporate
entity. It has witnessed a lot of change in both Company Law and Football rules, not least in how
they are written. February 15 2023 saw a surprising, ultimately sensible, filing of a new set of
Articles of Association for the club. These are the business rules, practices and restrictions on
activity that the directors and shareholders must adhere to. They replace ones that were
somewhat bedraggled, updated and added to a numerous times over the years. Now, mainly as a
result of modern language and phrasing being applied, they are a much clearer and easier read.
It feels like a positive change, particularly as these new articles make extensive use of the Model
Articles provided by Companies House. Those familiar with such things say that there appears to
be little if any deviation from the ‘boilerplate’, which is good practice.....

....In line with rules long disappeared from the FA’s rulebook, Burnley FC directors are now allowed
to be paid for their roles and hold jobs at the club, having previously been prohibited from doing
so. Given that Company Law requires disclosure of director pay and the separate detailing of the
largest remuneration given to a single director, we should view this as a helpful transparency in
our understanding of how the club is run. From a governance perspective, I see it as a good and
right thing that directors are paid for their efforts in running the club, particularly if they are
working for it full-time.

The change works in tandem with the removal of the requirement for directors to hold at least
4,000 shares in the club, another antiquated rule that meant only significant shareholders could
be directors. The changes may bring Burnley in line with many clubs and across most forms of
business where Chief Executives/Finance Officers etc. hold a place on the board.

Is this really about converting a local club into a business?

[Goobs]

I don't think it matters in the slightest, and I'd say the same if he was a Blackburn fan. Consider how many players play against their boyhood club or club they support, they're still trusted to do the job and I think all that matters is wether they are the best person for that job or not.

I'll never forget Sam Vokes scoring and celebrating his winner away at Southampton. At that moment it didn't seem to matter he and his family are a Southampton fans.

[Ilkley claret]

He’s been hired to write a pricing algorithm for the pies!

[ŽižkovClaret]

He’s been hired to write a pricing algorithm for the pies!

Bring back mushy peas!

[Jamesy]

The wifi isn't painful, it's just not available to fans.

And as we know the mobile phone 3G/4G is non existent on match days. Forget 5G we are more like Ali G.

[aggi]

Is this really about converting a local club into a business?

More likely just a bit of housekeeping. There was nothing unusual about the new ones.

[Suratclaret]

The real name of the Gawthorpe Training ground is Home Farm. which is what Bob Lord bought in the 1950's

Any idea what the club paid for Home Farm or was the fee undisclosed?

[ClaretTony]

And as we know the mobile phone 3G/4G is non existent on match days. Forget 5G we are more like Ali G.

And it's gone worse - I struggle to use my phone in the town centre in Burnley on any day now

[ClaretTony]

The real name of the Gawthorpe Training ground is Home Farm. which is what Bob Lord bought in the 1950's

But was referred to as Gawthorpe on day one which was 25th July 1955 when Bob Lord welcomed the players for pre-season training.

[Chester Perry]

Before Elon Musk decide to trash is $43 billion investment in social media i used to be able to keep up with this kind of data thanks to @CIESsportsintel - hopefully he will see sense at some point.

The Guardian with a report about the level of private investment companies in European football, I assume that our club is one such club, though as of today there has been no money actually put into the club - though recent spending may suggest that some monies have been returned to the club

Private capital funds 35% of clubs in Europe’s top leagues, research shows
Chelsea, Milan and Newcastle owned entirely by private capital
Most investors want to ‘crystalise’ returns within a decade
https://twitter.com/i/flow/login?redire ... portsintel
https://archive.is/9WDQj

[Chester Perry]

.. wrong thread

[Paul Waine]

the intriguing element of that last paragraph is how does the money get to the club

a capital injection via share issue has categorically not occurred - the small investors have not been invited to join or informed of such an intended action

the other standard way in football is a friendly loan from a shareholder - this may have happened but we have not heard anything

In our case there is a third option - that is repaying part or all the monies that the club has loaned to CVHL. It would be a welcome and positive action

The beauty of a leveraged purchase is that new funds can be paid into the club by the shareholders by paying into the club thus reducing the loan they have previously taken from the club and it all remains beyond the public gaze until the next set of the club's accounts are published/filed at Companies House or otherwise come into the public domain. Given that this announcement of the (future) appointment of a new board director was made on 2nd August, a couple of days after the 31st July 2023 year end, it will either be that changes in the amount to the club are disclosed as "event after balance sheet date" when the accounts are published at the end of April next year. Or, there is no need to report in the 2022/23 accounts and there is no record in the public domain until April/May 2025. - Always assuming that the accounts of Calder Vale and Kettering Capital don't catch up in the publication cycle and actually reveal changes in the amount of money those entities have borrowed from BFC entities.

[Paul Waine]

Before Elon Musk decide to trash is $43 billion investment in social media i used to be able to keep up with this kind of data thanks to @CIESsportsintel - hopefully he will see sense at some point.

The Guardian with a report about the level of private investment companies in European football, I assume that our club is one such club, though as of today there has been no money actually put into the club - though recent spending may suggest that some monies have been returned to the club

Private capital funds 35% of clubs in Europe’s top leagues, research shows
Chelsea, Milan and Newcastle owned entirely by private capital
Most investors want to ‘crystalise’ returns within a decade
https://twitter.com/i/flow/login?redire ... portsintel
https://archive.is/9WDQj

Football clubs used to be owned by one private individual, Bob Lord being an example, Jack Walker being another. The only different between Bob Lord and Jack Walker is that one had a lot more money that the other. A few clubs have sought to raise funds by public share listings. These are the exception. I know of no publicly listed company that would claim different objectives to the ones the Guardian ascribes to "private investment companies." As we all know, over recent decades the money in football has grown and grown. The inevitable result is that more and more private investment funds get involved, replacing the private individuals who either individually (Jack Walker, Bob Lord) or collectively, (Barry Kilby, Mike Garlick et al) didn't have enough of their own money to "remain in the game." Private investment funds have many advantages including access to much broader and deeper wealth by gathering together many more individuals into funds that each individual is often able to trade in and out off depending on their own specific situation. When Premier League tv revenue is above £100 million per season, when Premier League footballers are paid in multiples of £10,000 per week - or £millions a year - it is inevitable and essential that investment funds are the clubs' owners.

PS: All Guardian articles I try to read these days "cut off" and request that I fund the Guardian journalists. Is this the same for everyone - or is everyone else a subscriber?

[Stalbansclaret]

Re you query on Guardian articles I get the same thing but can usually make the “appeal” disappear via a bit of intuitive clicking and carry on reading the article .

[ClaretTony]

Regarding us having one individual owner in Bob Lord. I always thought he never held 50% of the shares