Tony Bloom has quite a lot in common with Roman Abramovich.
Albion’s new chairman has poured around £80 million into the club in the form of interest-free loans.
He has also converted £18 million worth of his investment into a 75 per cent shareholding.
Abramovich has arranged his finances in similar fashion at Chelsea.
The Russian billionaire became the owner at Stamford Bridge six years ago with an interest-free loan of £578 million.
He has turned half of his loans to the Premier League club into shares.
It would, in the circumstances, be easy to label the diminutive Bloom as a mini-Abramovich.
There are clear comparisons in the way they have achieved their controlling interests and yet there are also important differences.
Bloom’s unsecured loans are not due to be paid until 2023. If Abramovich decides he’s had enough of Chelsea, his loan will be repayable within 18 months.
Abramovich has pumped his money into what is now an ageing team. Bloom, on the other hand, has secured Albion’s £93 million Falmer Stadium project.
His legacy will be built on bricks and mortar, not sand.
Lastly, and perhaps most significantly, Abramovich had no connection, no emotional attachment to Chelsea before he took charge. It would be pretty easy for him to walk away.
It is difficult to envisage Bloom abandoning Albion, even if the Seagulls do not make the progress he is hoping for.
The 39-year-old entrepeneur is a lifelong fan of the club. His late grandfather Harry was vice-chairman and his uncle Ray has been a member of the board and a minority shareholder for the best part of a quarter of a century.
It is refreshing that Albion’s future is in the hands of a wealthy Englishman who also just happens to be a fervent supporter of the club, rather than another mega-rich, quick-fix foreigner.
Abramovich’s spending power may be much greater than Bloom’s but I know who I would rather have.
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