Preston North End owner Craig Hemmings steps down as chairman and reveals a detailed vision on what next for the club.
He will be succeeded by Ian Penrose, a lifelong PNE fan and experienced businessman in sports, technology, and gaming.
After six years, Hemmings, representing the owning Hemmings family, cited increasing responsibilities across family businesses as the reason for his decision to step down.
Craig says in his time in the role, the club are financial stability post-Covid, have a consistent Championship performance, reached record season card sales, and made significant investments in facilities, the academy, and the squad, including the most expensive squad in club history for 2025/26.
The club achieved record revenues of £20.6m and partnered with local brand SpudBros, boosting global reach.
Hemmings highlighted ongoing financial challenges in football, criticising the unsustainable parachute payment system and advocating for a fairer financial model via the Independent Financial Regulator (IFR).
The family has invested over £100m in PNE, including stadium upgrades, a new training facility at Euxton, and academy improvements aiming for Grade 2 status.
Looking ahead, the Hemmings family, with Rothschild & Co, plans to seek new investors or owners within two years to enhance PNE’s global potential while maintaining financial support.
Penrose will focus on sustainability, fan engagement, and achieving Premier League promotion. Hemmings urged fans to support the team to maintain their strong start to the season.
We can confirm Craig Hemmings will step down from his role as Chairman and Ian Penrose will become the new Non-Executive Chairman, with effect from 13th October 2025. 📝#pnefc
— Preston North End FC (@pnefc) October 7, 2025
Craig Hemmings has provided a club strategy update, following the news that he will be stepping down as Chairman. 👇#pnefc
— Preston North End FC (@pnefc) October 7, 2025
– Hemmings family have put in £100m+ since 2010
– Record revs, academy upgrade &, contrary to rumour, increased budget
– But can’t compete w/ parachute clubs
– Needs “new deal” with PL & looking for external investment
– New chair found to let Craig H focus on other family firms https://t.co/lKJTsoBjPW
— Matt Slater (@mjshrimper) October 7, 2025
STATEMENT:
Preston North End can confirm Craig Hemmings will step down from his role as Chairman and Ian Penrose will become the new Non-Executive Chairman, with effect from 13th October 2025.
Ian is a proud supporter and season card holder of PNE. He has enjoyed a successful business career in sport, technology, gaming and media, having been CEO for over 20 years of two international businesses listed on the London Stock Exchange, Arena Leisure PLC and Sportech PLC. He is currently the Senior Independent Director of Playtech PLC, one of the world’s largest gaming technology businesses, and the Vice-Chairman of Weatherbys Limited, the leading technology and administrative services provider to the horseracing industry internationally. Ian is also a Non-Executive Director of DataWorks Group, a Sydney-based business providing responsible gaming technology solutions. Previously Ian has also been Trustee (and Chairman for four years) of the National Football Museum.
Craig Hemmings, current Chairman and representative of the owners, the Hemmings family, said: “Having been Chairman of this historic club for over six years, and with growing responsibility across the other family businesses, I have felt it was time for me to find a successor, the right successor, for some time.
“I am therefore delighted that Ian has agreed to take over the role of Chairman. I have known Ian for many years, and I look forward to working with him as he oversees the Hemmings family financial support of the club and works with us to find new custodians. Success on the pitch is our primary wish, but also a club with community and people at its core. I am sure that Ian will bring some fresh ideas and impetus to PNE, to help guide the club forward over the important period ahead.”
Ian Penrose added: “It is an absolute privilege to be appointed Chairman of the football club that I have supported since I was a boy. This is a proud football club, with incredible heritage, and I have taken my own personal pride in trying to spread the message of our great club as I have worked around the world. The Hemmings family have been supporters and financial benefactors for many years, weathering times of great difficulty and change in the football industry, and I look forward to working with them and all at PNE to achieve the best we can for the club and for the fans, of which I will always remain one.”
Now that we have entered a short international break, I wanted to take the opportunity to update the fans on some important matters both internal and external to the club.
I have been an avid fan of PNE for well over 50 years. I first attended football matches at the old Deepdale stadium in the early 1970s with my mother, father, grandfather, other family members and friends. We have always loved the club and understand its importance to the community.
It has been my privilege to be the Chairman of our famous and historic club since June 2019. During this time, we have:
– weathered the significant financial strains of Covid and come through a much stronger club.
– remained a solid Championship club, consistently punching above our weight in the league (despite last year’s timely reminder of how difficult the Championship can be).
– refocused on signing younger players with potential long-term value to the club.
– invested significantly in the club’s facilities.
– brought in new branded commercial partners in Sodexo and Castore, hugely improving the quality of product on offer to the fans.
– achieved the highest season card sales income in the club’s history.
– achieved the highest average attendances since the 1960s.
– consistently offered one of the lowest season card prices in the Championship, ensuring football is more affordable.
– continued to invest into the PNE Academy and have tangible plans to elevate the academy status from Grade 3 to Grade 2.
– for the 2025/26 season, the most expensively assembled squad in the club’s history.
This summer, we have connected with fans both locally and internationally in innovative ways, such as by announcing a front-of-shirt sponsorship with SpudBros, a local Preston business making headlines all around the world. Thanks to this partnership with one of the UK’s fastest-growing food brands, we’ve had the highest-ever launch sales of PNE replica shirts, a significantly increased social media presence and consequently global reach greater than we could have ever imagined, resulting in increased sponsorship and corporate income for the club.
As outlined above, we are currently enjoying our highest season card sales ever, and last season we had the largest matchday attendance since the 1960s, at our FA Cup quarter-final against Aston Villa leading to record club revenues of c£20.6m, a significant increase in club income over my tenure.
This represents good progress, but I know there’s still lots of room for improvement and growth across all areas of the club.
We had a very busy summer transfer window. The number of players out and the players in has long been planned with the manager and the recruitment team and in most cases, because we acted quickly in the window, we achieved our primary targets. We believe we have strengthened in all the key areas and are confident and optimistic for the season ahead; of course, time will tell.
I am aware that during any transfer window some fans become increasingly frustrated and vocal, wanting ever more investment into the squad. I can confirm that the budget for this season has been increased compared to last season. Any suggestion to the contrary is incorrect.
To try and give our transfer activity some context, we currently have the most expensively assembled squad in the club’s history. The financial commitment through transfer fees, player salaries and (Premier League) loan player salaries and fees is at the highest it has ever been – and yet we face the reality that even this pales when set against the squad costs of the parachute clubs which will be four or five times greater than ours.
We have been able to invest more into the squad this season due in part to the trading improvements and small windfalls we’ve realised from some player trading, but the majority of the extra investment comes directly from us, the owners, as we try to improve on last season’s results. This season’s financial commitment by the owners is greater than last season’s.
As custodians, as owners and as supporters, the Hemmings family share the fans’ ambition of being successful, and in ultimately getting to the Premier League.
Investment
In the decade since getting promoted back to the Championship, we have committed significant investment each year into PNE, to cover the annual losses to ensure the club remains solvent.
In the period of time under our ownership we have invested well over £100m into the club we love. This investment has been spent on:
– continual strengthening of the playing squad and paying player wages.
– investing considerable sums on the maintenance and upkeep of Deepdale, to ensure it remains one of the best stadiums in the Championship for our fans to enjoy.
– we have purchased and significantly upgraded the new first team training facilities at Euxton.
– we have invested further significant sums at Springfields for our developing Academy, ensuring that it is now Grade 2 academy status ready.
– we have proposals in development and are striving to find the extra funds for the indoor arena, which, once built, will mean we attain the Grade 2 Academy status we are targeting.
There’s a great deal of further investments that we would like to be in a position to make, whether into the stadium, the Academy or in the squad, to continue to enhance the club legacy. Unfortunately, we are not able to make all these investments all at once. We have to prioritise and invest, each season, within the budget.
The investment we make into PNE each year is done by way of equity, and not “debt” that could hang like a millstone around the club’s neck in future years. As a result, there are no interest charges. By structuring it this way, the investment we make helps protect the long-term stability of the club.
On 5th September we reiterated our commitment to the club by announcing a further debt to equity swap, strengthening the club’s balance sheet.
Independent Financial Regulator (IFR)
I have stated on many occasions that the financial model for football, especially the flow of money (parachute payments) down from the Premier League to the Championship, is just not fit for purpose. For clubs like PNE, to have to try and compete (both on and off the field of play) with teams whose income is artificially and unsustainably inflated to four or five times that of clubs who receive no parachute payments is increasingly onerous and fraught with financial pitfalls. To the best of my knowledge there are no clubs in the Championship that exist or are financially sustainable without the financial help and support of an owner or benefactor (whether to a small or to a large degree) helping to cover financial losses. This cannot be right. This cannot continue.
Football needs a complete financial reset for the good and for the soul of the game. At PNE, we constantly try to play the game on and off field the right way. There are many other clubs like PNE, who strive to do things the right way, and long may that continue. I fear, however, for the future of the game unless there’s a significant reset in terms of the finances across the whole of the pyramid. It is becoming increasingly difficult for owners such as us, to afford and control the levels of investment required to compete against those clubs who have been awarded riches and therefore spending powers way beyond any rational level of sustainability. I do not believe that either the Premier League or the EFL wish to drive owners like us out of the game. The inevitable consequence, however, of the current structure and gulf in riches between the Premier League, the parachute payment clubs, the rest of the Championship and the balance of the football pyramid, is that the reckless boom or bust mentality of some owners will drive responsible owners out of the game we love.
We are the clubs that need the intervention of the IFR to ensure a fairer distribution of resources across the whole of the football pyramid, as the Premier League and EFL have been unable to reach any form of agreement. Without this, the gulf between the haves and the have nots will continue to widen and the long-term future of the game will suffer accordingly. The only true losers here are the fans.
We sincerely hope the IFR can quickly come to a solution that ensures all clubs, across all divisions, can compete financially on a much more even playing field. By making the game financially fairer, and by financially fairer I also mean the right mechanism and controls over how clubs spend/invest their money, fans of all clubs can live with the hope that one day their team could be competing at the top end of whichever division they’re in. Surely genuine fair competition represents the soul of the game that we all love and why we were attracted to it!
If the IFR is successful in making football clubs more financially sustainable and the economics of the game fairer, this should attract new owners and investors into the game. This must be a positive for all involved in the football pyramid.
Interest In The Football Club
In previous statements I have made comment about the Hemmings family being open to bona fide approaches for the club. I am aware of the recent heightened media speculation of specific interest in PNE, and claims that we, the owners, have had offers and have either failed to engage or have “frightened them off” with high valuation demands. None of this is true.
As both Peter Ridsdale and I have stated publicly, from time to time we do receive approaches from individuals claiming to be interested in buying a club like PNE. We have always been willing to engage with and accommodate these approaches.
To repeat what I’ve said before, should any genuinely interested party make contact, and they demonstrate to us their ability to take PNE on financially and have a strategy to continue investing in the club, we will have a realistic valuation and welcome their approach for the club.
Longer-Term Football Club Ownership
As was reported at the time, about 12 months ago we engaged with Rothschild & Co to prepare a review of the football landscape and PNE’s position within it. In particular, we wanted to be able to consider the various options in terms of future potential ownership models, medium and long-term investment requirements, and other financial considerations (such as the potential impact of a new funding model driven by the IFR).
As a consequence of this review, we have concluded that for PNE to continue to be successful in the Championship and have the best opportunity to strive for Premier League status, we – the owners – need to reach out and engage with international sports organisations, private institutions or investment funds better geared, both commercially and financially, for maximising the true global potential of PNE. We will therefore be actively engaging with such potential organisations or individuals who would be interested in investing in or owning a club like PNE.
The club is enjoying its highest ever levels of revenue, its highest season card sales and highest average gates since the 1960s. The club is consistently cited as being one of the best run football clubs in the Championship. We have one of the lowest squad salary levels in the division and yet almost every season we punch above our weight in terms of league position. We hope that, with the IFR now in place, we are on the cusp of a new and fairer redistribution of money across the whole of the football pyramid. We have tremendous and capable staff across all aspects of PNE. What we, the owners, don’t have are the right global sports insights, experience and investment firepower to take on the parachute funded clubs at the top end of the Championship (whilst ever this outdated financial disparity between the Premier League, and the Championship remains).
Working closely with Rothschild & Co, we will be proactive in looking to find potential new investors or custodians of the club.
Timeline/Next Stage
There is no immediate requirement for us to find partners or sell the club. We have long-term financial stability within our successful group of businesses. However, we feel it would be prudent to set ourselves a target of two years to try and find the right fit for PNE. There will be no changes in the way we fund the club nor the amount we are prepared to commit to the club during this process. A successful PNE remains our priority.
We will continue to push for the club to become far more self-sustaining and financially viable, and we will offer the IFR all the support and encouragement we can to expedite a new agreement that’s in the best interest of the whole of the football pyramid. At the end of this two-year period, we will review our options again.
Succession Planning
In the four years since the passing of my father, Trevor Hemmings, I have had an increasing responsibility to our numerous and fast-growing family businesses. Going forward, I am duty bound to spend more of my time involved in the enhancement and continued success of these businesses, the growth and success of which remain fundamental to the financial stability of PNE. It has become increasingly difficult to balance this with the time the role of Chairman of PNE requires and deserves.
Therefore, after several months searching for the right candidate, the right fit for PNE, I am pleased to be able to announce the appointment of Ian Penrose as new Non-Executive Chairman of Preston North End, to steer the club through this important phase of its development.
Ian is a very successful businessman in his own right. He has been the CEO of two major UK public companies with global activities involved in sport, technology, media and gaming. He currently sits on the Board of a couple of international businesses. I believe that Ian’s extensive experience of working with sports in the UK and North America, particularly sports media rights and digital gaming, will be a huge asset to PNE, but most importantly, Ian (like me) is a life-long PNE fan.
Following a short period of handover, Ian will take over the role of Chairman on 13th October 2025. I have asked Ian to oversee the club, to manage our significant annual investment, to focus on the club’s long-term sustainability and to assist us in achieving our objectives of success on and off the pitch.
I would also like Ian to continue our engagement and communication with you, the fans, as we strive to achieve promotion to the Premier League and further develop the club and its facilities, including its commercial activities.
Following his formal appointment on 13th October, Ian will outline his initial thoughts and priorities for his role within the club. I am sure you’ll join me in welcoming Ian on board and wish him every success.
Summary
As owners/custodians of PNE we know that the lifeblood of any football club are the fans. We are doing our very best to protect and enhance our great club, but we know we cannot achieve anything without the fans. We have invested considerable sums in strengthening the squad over the summer and have made a very encouraging start to this season.
I therefore urge all of you fans to help us maintain this good early form and get behind the manager and his coaching team, get behind the players, get behind the whole club. We need your continued support.
Yours sincerely,
Craig Hemmings
Chairman.
Here’s the initial reaction from fans as the Preston owner steps down as chairman and reveals a detailed vision on what next for the club…
@PNEPlug: “Punching above our weight” please shut up. We’re a championship sized club playing in the championship it’s the bare minimum.
@WafcHugh: Don’t get what’s wrong with that imo, even Lowe said you had a bottom 4 budget last year, done really well to consolidate with the financial resources you have
@JT01011970: Are weight/wage bill is about where we finished last season if not lower.. Have your opinion, but give it some balance otherwise it will get dismissed… the guy bangs in over 10 million quid a year, without that we’d be in Lge1…
@InvinciblePNE: Wtf are you crying about now? They’re not wrong. We are punching above our weight and that’s thanks to the way the club has been managed over the years. They admitted they can’t invest as much as other clubs so they’re hoping to sell to someone that can. What more do you want?
@iampav: Lots to digest. Should go without saying that what Craig / the Hemmings family do and have committed is fully appreciated – the turnover of the squad and the staff and improvements are making us competitive again. The ambition to find new owners is welcomed and exciting.
@SherpaVegan: Sensible. To compete, you need football expertise. Good that the owners are thinking long term.
@Johnnyproudlove: Excellent statement and great to read the detailed vision 👌
@daveriggers: The best and possibly most important update I’ve read from the club since the Baxi days. Thanks to Craig Hemmings and hopefully the continued stewardship of the Hemmings family!!!
@micjbrown: Whatever your thoughts on the Hemmings’ family running of the club, the communication and transparency with the fanbase is first class
@CasualsNorthern: Very in-depth statement this. Thanks Craig for this clarity. Very clear and thanks for meeting me twice in your period as Chairman. #pnefc
@Crabbers: Craig has done a magnificent job for @pnefc after taking over from his dad, in tough times and his words here should reassure fans about the club’s future. The man taking over, Ian Penrose, is a great guy and a fantastic operator (as well as being a North Ender).
@alexpnefc: quite an interesting read that, good to have some clarity on the future of the club. #pnefc
@ChrisBlaylockDJ: This is very decent from the Hemmings family! A strategy to help be club forward!! I know a few fanbases that might want something like this. Fair play 👏🏻
