Weir buys Jags for the fans
BY FRASER WILSON
EUROMILLIONS winner Colin Weir sealed a stunning takeover of Partick Thistle – then told fans it will be theirs for free within months.
The Jags diehard has bought a majority stake in a seven-figure move through his group Three Black Cats, bringing months of uncertainty over the club’s ownership to an end.
And the 71-year-old will gift his 55 per cent shareholding to a fan entity that is being developed no later than March 30.
Weir had backed fans’ group Thistle For Ever over a proposed takeover in September and they will work with PTFC Trust to get a new structure in place to accept the share transfer.
He said: “This is a major financial commitment on my part as fan owners will not need to repay a penny – but I believe this gives fan ownership the best possible start.
“There will be a further announcement about the members of the interim board and, subsequent to that, in relation to my funding of the Thistle Weir Youth Academy.
“Today is a great day for a club that means everything to me. I hope that fans can get behind this exciting development.
“They talk about Thistle being their club and now it really will be.”
Thistle will again take ownership of the Main Stand – named after Weir – and the unused ground to the south of the stadium from Firhill Developments.
Winning £161million with ex-wife Christine in 2011, he had previously ploughed around £2.5m into the club and wiped out its debt. But he withdrew his backing in August, citing uncertainty over ownership plus instability caused by board changes.