'New era' for Larne as Bruce sells stake

Bruce's multi-million pound investment helped Larne win back-to-back Irish Premiership titles

Larne have confirmed that Kenny Bruce has sold his 50% stake in the Irish Premiership club.

Bruce, the co-founder of an online estate agency, took over the then-Championship club in September 2017.

Since then, Larne were promoted to the Premiership and won the club's first two top-flight titles in 2023 and 2024 before a run to the league phase of the Uefa Conference League last season.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Inver Park club said Redball Global FC's Nick Giannotti and Eric Perez, who are described as "two seasoned executives with deep experience in international football and sports business", have acquired Bruce's stake.

American firm Redball are also involved with English Football League club Plymouth Argyle and League of Ireland side Athlone Town.

"I have always said that when it came time to hand over my shareholding in the club it would be to people who could give Larne FC a competitive edge moving forward and I am firmly of the belief this is the case," said Bruce, native of the East Antrim town and lifelong fan of the club.

"Since the moment our conversations began, both Nick and Eric have been an absolute pleasure to work with throughout the due diligence and legal process.

"Neither are strangers to football in this part of the world and I am confident they will bring immense value to Larne FC in the years ahead, with their drive and professional experience."

More change at Larne

In September 2023, an American business consortium bought a minority share in Larne, before the Veeck family - who previously owned Major League Baseball sides St. Louis Browns and Chicago White Sox - made a minority investment three months later.

"We want to thank Kenny for all of his dedication to Larne. The club is in a strong position because of him, and his investments in infrastructure," said Giannotti.

"It's very exciting to join a club with a great community, a great ground, great partners, and more. Together I expect glorious days ahead."

Bruce's departure marks the latest change for Larne.

In November, Tiernan Lynch ended his seven-year reign as head coach to join Derry City.

Lynch was soon replaced by Nathan Rooney. However, just three weeks into his tenure, the Englishman moved into the club's head of football role after it emerged he was unable to lead the team in their Uefa Conference League campaign as he did not hold the required licence.

Gary Haveron assumed head coaching duties for the remainder of the 2024-25 season before Rooney was reinstalled as manager in May following his enrolment on a Uefa Pro Licence course.

In March, chief executive Niall Curneen left his role to take up a new role outside of the club, while last month general manager Shay Kennedy departed to become head of business operations for the Northern Ireland Football League [NIFL].