Huge Evangelos Marinakis takeover twist as talks revealed with new club

The Forest owner is not backing down in his efforts to expand his footballing influence

Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis is claimed to have opened investment talks with another club, as he continues to look to expand his footballing empire.

Marinakis has been linked with a move for Brazilian side Vasco da Gama over the past few weeks, but the 57-year-old is said to face tough competition for the club, with it possible that he could be beaten to the post by one of his competitors despite Vasco fans being keen on his takeover.

Therefore, Marinakis is said to be turning his gaze to fellow Brazilian club São Paulo.

Reported by Terra, São Paulo’s president, Julio Cesares, has lifted the lid on their early-stage negotiations over investment into the club.

“We’re talking. It’s still embryonic, I’m taking it very calmly, but we’re moving well towards bringing in a businessman linked to the sports platform, not just the financial one,” Cesares revealed.

The Tricolor’s president ruled out any chance of a complete sale of the club to Marinakis at any point in the near future, highlighting that they are looking for the Greek to participate in a ‘revenue share’. This would mean that the investor puts money in and participates in proceedings without taking full ownership and control.

However, Cesares was open to giving Marinakis first refusal should the club ever be displayed in the shop window.

“He (Marinakis) arrives with this expectation, if he arrives, but, of course, if one day the institution discusses a SAF, naturally he will have the preference to listen first,” Cesares said.

“São Paulo has a lever that could be discussed in the future, if the institution thinks so. I’m not going to talk about money, but São Paulo will start to breathe and be competitive.