A deal for a American investor group backed by former England forward Eni Aluko to invest in Women’s Championship side Lewes has fallen through.
The investment would have resulted in the Mercury 13 group taking a co-ownership role at the fan-owned club.
Mercury 13 is promising $100m (£79.1m) of investment across women’s football in Europe and Latin America.
Lewes said the “club’s foundational principles diverge considerably from Mercury 13’s operating priorities”.
The second-tier club have had the same playing budgets for their men’s and women’s teams since 2018.
Lewes are 100% fan-owned and 67.8% of those who turned out voted in favour of moving forward with Mercury 13’s proposal earlier in November.
Club chief executive Maggie Murphy said: “Lewes FC is a club that has always had community and social impact at its core.
“Through our discussions, we found that while we shared a common belief in the future growth prospects of women’s football, the structure needed to make this specific opportunity work would be too disruptive to other values that we hold dear.
“We are committed, as always, to identifying other opportunities for investment that can help us realise our full potential on and off the pitch.
“We remain a club with the vision, heart, and passion that we know can impact the wider football ecosystem for the better.”
