Alexandre Pato Becomes Investor in Northampton Town

Alexandre Pato is set for one of the more unlikely next chapters of his football life – as an investor in Northampton Town.

The League Two club have confirmed they have reached agreement with a consortium that includes the former AC Milan, Chelsea and Brazil forward over a proposed shareholding acquisition in the Cobblers.

The group, Sports Alpha Capital (SAC), saw its proposed deal cleared by both the Independent Football Regulator (IFR) and the English Football League earlier this month, removing the biggest regulatory hurdle. Northampton say they expect to be in a position to confirm completion of the process next week, with only the final formalities still to be tied up.

“Football club transactions always have many moving parts and often take a little longer than you would hope, but we are thrilled to be moving forward,” chairman Kelvin Thomas said, underlining the sense of progress after a lengthy negotiation.

Joao Xavier, founding partner at SAC, struck a similar tone. “We are very happy to have reached formal agreements. Obviously obtaining IFR and EFL approvals was a big step, but this is also a very important milestone, and we look forward to closing next week.”

SAC are not new to the lower-league landscape. They held talks earlier this year over a potential takeover of Colchester United, only to walk away after initial discussions. This time, the talks have pushed through to formal agreement and regulatory sign-off.

Pato is listed by SAC as one of its investors, alongside Gemcorp Capital, a London-based independent investment management firm. The size of SAC’s proposed shareholding in Northampton has not been disclosed, leaving open the exact scale of their influence in the boardroom.

For Pato, 37, it is a move into ownership and investment just a year after hanging up his boots. He is most vividly remembered for his five-and-a-half-year spell at AC Milan, where he scored 63 goals in 150 matches and helped deliver the Serie A title in the 2010-11 season. Now his name is set to sit on the share register of a club battling in the fourth tier of English football.

If the deal is completed as expected next week, Northampton Town will step into a new era with a global name attached to their future – and a consortium that clearly sees untapped potential in a League Two postcode.