Hull City owner Acun Ilicali becomes majority shareholder in leading League of Ireland club Shelbourne

The Turkish media mogul took over at Hull in January 2022 and the deal is likely to see links forged between the Irish outfit and the Championship.

Ilicali will serve as the new chairman at Dublin-based Shels.

He said: “I am deeply impressed by the passion and motivation of the Shelbourne FC family and we believe that the club offers great potential to succeed in European football.

"Our vision for Shelbourne FC is to become the leader of the League of Ireland and demonstrate consistent success in European competitions.

"We believe that our investment and commitment will shape the future of the football in our academy, which will become the most modern academy structure in Ireland.

"We want to scout, recruit and train talented prospects from all over Ireland and Europe to be part of our family.

"With our global expertise and vision in football, media and entertainment verticals, we aim to bring new energy to Irish football and Shelbourne FC, one of the oldest clubs in Ireland, by further strengthening the deep-rooted bond between the fans and the club, like we did in Hull City.”

New Shels vice-chairman Andrew Doyle commented: “This is a transformational deal for Shelbourne Football Club and a huge boost to our ambitions to make Shelbourne Ireland’s most successful football club both domestically and in Europe.

"The investment will give us the resources to make significant investment in club facilities, the men’s and women’s senior teams and the academy.

"There will be huge opportunities to leverage the synergies with the management expertise and resources of ACUNMEDYA, Shelbourne and Hull City in ways that can be very significant for everyone involved.”Shelbourne are currently in fifth spot in the League of Ireland Premier Division.