John Terry and Colchester - why now, and why are ex-pros buying clubs?

When Colchester United acknowledged on Monday that the club is in "detailed discussions" about a possible sale to consortium of investors, they declined to name any of the potential buyers.

But BBC Sport understands that reports linking former England and Chelsea captain John Terry to the group are accurate.

The U's have been up for sale since last year, and having had two other takeover attempts fail in that time, fans are anxious for a deal to be done before the summer transfer window.

So why would a potential deal appeal to both the club and Terry, and why are so many high-profile former footballers investing in teams?

Why are Colchester up for sale and what makes Terry's involvement attractive to them?

Colchester haven't suffered from the kind of financial instability which has dogged many rivals clubs in the Football League, but are enduring the longest spell without a promotion of any of its 72 teams, having spent 10 successive seasons in League Two.

Owner Robbie Cowling has been in charge since 2006 but put the club up for sale last year, saying he wanted to find "the right long-term steward" to propel it forward.

"I think I could grow [Colchester] incrementally, but fans aren't interested in that, all they're worried about is how it does in the league and whether it wins", Cowling said.

Two potential deals - one with an American investment vehicle, the other with a consortium involving former AC Milan and Chelsea forward Alexandre Pato - have already fallen through.

Terry has been involved in a series of controversies - a ban for racist abuse, being stripped of the England captaincy, an alleged affair with a team-mate's partner, promotion of football-related cryptocurrency, and more recently a social media message in which he responded with clapping emojis to a call for a ban on Muslim women being allowed to wear the burqa in the United Kingdom.

So what would fans make of a group involving Terry taking control?

"It might work in our favour in respect to player recruitment and things like that, because of his standing in the game," says Glen Worrell, secretary at Colchester United Supporters Association.

"Someone like him maybe could be a really good figurehead as a director of football. Having a big name like that involved might even attract other investors as well. It depends what his overall role is going to be.

"I don't think people aren't going to turn up because John Terry is involved with the club.

"The fans really do want to see something happen on the pitch to get them excited."

Why would John Terry want to run a League Two club?

Since retiring as a player in 2018, Terry has made no secret of his desire for a frontline, day-to-day role in football, but has been left frustrated in his endeavours so far.

He left his position as assistant to Dean Smith at Aston Villa in 2021 in order to focus on finding a job as a manager in his own right, but in recent years has worked away from the elite level, combining a role as a part-time mentor a few days per month at Chelsea's academy with two seasons coaching a team of influencers in the six-a-side Baller League.

"It's really disheartening, actually," Terry said in an interview with BBC Sport last year.

"I have interviewed for a few [managerial] jobs myself and not got them due to my lack of experience as a number one, but having captained Chelsea and my country, I'm not sure you can do much more in terms of leading teams and people.

"I am ready and willing. If someone needs to win football matches, I'm not sure you're going to get anyone better."

The apparent lack of interest in Terry as a manager is in stark contrast to some of his contemporaries from England's much-lauded 'golden generation'.

Michael Carrick, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard have all managed in the Premier League, while Ashley Cole now coaches Serie B side Cesena and Wayne Rooney has been in charge of three different clubs in the Championship and one in MLS.

Whether Terry would be willing to park his clear managerial ambitions and take more of a background role at Colchester, or use it as a self-appointed starting point for his career as a head coach, is unclear.

But installing himself as manager in place of current head coach Danny Cowley and assistant/brother Nicky would be deeply unpopular with fans.

"It would be 100% be controversial - there would be a backlash", Worrall says. "What those two have done has been monumental. They have developed the team and generated so much interest in the club from the surrounding community.

"They make the place buzz. If you took those two away and ended up with just John Terry as the coach, that would be damaging to the supporter base.

"He hasn't coached at this level, and it would be quite a culture shock. Is he really going to want to go away to Newport on a Tuesday night?"

Image caption,

The Cowley brothers' leadership of Colchester has proven hugely popular

Why are more ex-players investing in clubs?

Some of the most high-profile players of the 21st century have opted to purchase stakes in clubs rather than committing to full-time coaching, a marked difference from previous generations.

Perhaps Terry would aim to follow in the footsteps of another former team-mate, Cesc Fabregas, by taking on a dual role.

The Spaniard bought shares in Serie A side Como in 2022, before being made manager in 2023.

Terry's former England team-mate David Beckham is a co-owner of MLS side Inter Miami, having negotiated the rights to founding a club as part of the contract he signed when he joined Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007.

Beckham is also a part owner of Colchester's League Two rivals Salford City, alongside Gary and Phil, Neville, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, and Paul Scholes.

Others including Ronaldo (Real Valladolid), Kylian Mbappe (SM Caen), and Gerard Pique (FC Andorra), all of whom are majority shareholders in clubs based in countries where they spent significant portions of their careers.

The likes of Luka Modric (Swansea), Thierry Henry (Como), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Hammarby), and Cristiano Ronaldo (Almeria) have also become part owners of clubs outside the European elite in recent years.

When former players invest in clubs, they are often buying a much smaller amount of shares and stumping up far less than their business partners.

Adding a household name from within the game to a group of investors can lend star power and authenticity to a takeover.

"The opportunity has been created for ex-pros to stay in the game in a way that wasn't possible before, because of the way football has evolved on a commercial level," says Dan Plumley, professor of sports finance at Sheffield Hallam University.

"There are clear positives to combining business acumen with people who have lived and breathed football - it gives you a diverse range of opinions.

"Being part of a consortium also spreads the financial risk across the group of investors, rather than it all being on one owner.

"History tells us you don't make money out of owning football clubs, so there can be wider leverage for the former pro too - it can be a way for them to take on different roles in football, learn from them, and make professional progress.

"If you invest lower down the pyramid and build am project that you're a part of. That can return some gain depending on how far up the football ecosystem you can take it."

The excitement when a former star joins forces with a lower league club can pay almost immediate dividends.

"This takeover hasn't even been confirmed yet but you can see the story is all across the media and there is extra attention on the club already.

"As the game continues to move forward at pace in a business sense, we can expect to see more of this kind of model in the future."