Anthony Kleanthous

Anthony Andrew Kleanthous (born January 1966)[1] is the current chairman of Barnet Football Club. He became the youngest football chairman to enter the football league when he bought the club in 1994.[2]

Early life

The Kleanthous family moved to London from Cyprus and Tony Kleanthous was born in Finsbury Park, North London in 1966[3] He went to school in Highgate then on to college in Waltham Forest to study motor vehicle engineering.[3]

Career

Kleanthous started out in the motor trade and then moved into petrochemicals. He also started a telecommunications company called NAG Telecom.[3] He won several industry awards as one of Cellnets' (now O2) largest distributors of mobile phones (NAG Telecom) and also bought Samsung Telecom when chairman of Service Direct UK PLC to form what was then the largest independent supplier and maintainer of telephone systems in the UK.

Kleanthous has seen Barnet Football Club reach its furthest position in the FA Cup, League Cup and League Trophy as well as qualifying four times for the play offs. The relegation of the Club from the Football League was followed four years later by its promotion but the club needed a new modern home. He bought Barnet Cricket Club adjacent to the ground of the club as he thought it would be an ideal site to develop a larger stadium Underhill Stadium which led to a dispute with Barnet Council who did not want the expansion.[4]

Kleanthous was responsible for the planning, construction and opening of "The Hive London” at the Prince Edward's playing fields, in Edgware, Middlesex. The 44-acre (180,000 m2) initial site cost totalled £11 million, consisting of several astroturf pitches, 10 grass pitches, 14 dressing rooms, physiotherapy rooms and meeting rooms. It was opened as a centre of footballing excellence on 15 December by Fabio Capello and Sir Trevor Brooking. He has subsequently invested a further £26 million to turn the site into an Internationally recognised world class sports training and medical sports science facility and partnered with Toshiba Medical Systems to form the first medical imaging academy in the UK. The site has hosted international teams from Brazil, Germany, Peru, Sweden and many other premier overseas clubs. Development is ongoing with the announcement in November 2017 of two further planning applications for an Academy, Indoor Hall, stadium expansion and two level parking costing £17m.

Kleanthous owns a group of over 30 companies across the UK and Europe involved in Property, Leisure, Football, Medical and various other Trading businesses. His medical scanning company “The Imaging Centre” in March 2018 will be opening the most advanced sports medical scanning unit in Europe at the £800m Hive London Football Centre and Leisure complex which he also owns.

Kleanthous was the youngest director of the Football League and youngest ever director of The Football Association as well as serving on The Professional Game Board and sitting on a number of committees for the governance of football in the UK.[5]

He served twice as a director of The Football Conference and was responsible for creating The National League and National League Broadcasting which produced the BT Sports highlight shows. He recently formed a new ladies football team, The London Bees, who won a license in 2013 to play in The FA Women's Super League. The London Bees have joined Barnet FC as resident clubs of The Hive London.

References

  1. ↑ "MR ANTHONY ANDREW KLEANTHOUS profile". companycheck.co.uk. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  2. ↑ "Football League Article". Archived from the original on 20 July 2010. Retrieved 2 November 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 "The Cypriot Who Likes To Be Involved". The Independent. 26 October 1998. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  4. ↑ "Interview with the Barnet FC Supportors Association". Retrieved 2 November 2010.
  5. ↑ "Official FA committee listings". The FA. Retrieved 2 November 2010.


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