Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis will have no involvement in the day-to-day running of the club next season to avoid a conflict of interest should the club qualify for the Champions League.
Marinakis owns Forest along with Greek side Olympiacos and Portuguese club Rio Ave.
UEFA rules stipulate that clubs under the same ownership cannot compete in the same European competition. Olympiacos have already qualified for the Champions League, while Forest remain in contention to do so as the Premier League’s surprise package this season.
Documents filed with Companies House stat that Marinakis is no longer a “person with significant control” of NF Football Investments Limited, the company through which the club is run.
Multiple reports state Marinakis has placed his shares into a blind trust, with Forest co-owner Sokratis Kominakis, part of the takeover of the club in May 2017, returning to the board.
The board has been significantly restructured to meet UEFA rules. Three independent trustees have been appointed, while three board members have resigned. UEFA stipulates that the number of trustees must be more than the number of board members.
Marinakis will still be able to attend Forest matches next season, with Nuno Espirito Santo’s side hoping they will be competing at the highest level of the European competition after a 45-year absence. Forest last competed in the European Cup in the 1980-81 season, when they were defending champions, but lost in the first round to CSKA Sofia.
Forest, beaten in the FA Cup semi-final by Manchester City last Sunday, are in a crowded battle for the Champions League places in the Premier League, of which there are five this season. Champions Liverpool are obviously secure of their spot in the competition, while second-placed Arsenal are likely to join them.
Nuno’s side are sixth, level on points with Chelsea in fifth, but with a game in hand on the Blues as well as fourth-placed Manchester City and third-placed Newcastle United. They will leapfrog all three should they claim victory in a tricky home game with Brentford on Thursday.
