EditDutch court ruling casts shadow over former owner of United Group
With the final loss in court now behind him, Dragan Šolak finds himself on the outside of the influential media group for the first time in decades
Media mogul and Southampton FC owner Dragan Šolak suffered a significant setback last week after a Dutch court rejected his bid to be reinstated in his position at United Group, the telecommunications conglomerate he once controlled.
Last June Šolak, who built the company from a local Serbian cable provider into a €3 billion-a-year regional giant, filed a legal complaint in the Dutch Enterprise Chamber in Amsterdam, calling for an investigation into what he described as a “serious governance crisis”.
Leadership shake-up at United Group raises fears over media freedom in the Balkans
In a hearing on 16 October, the Dutch court ruled Šolak’s request to launch an investigation into United Group’s affairs inadmissible, ending the Serbian businessman’s campaign to return to the group at the first hurdle.
In rejecting his request, the Enterprise Chamber has effectively drawn a line under Šolak’s long running efforts to reassert control over the telecoms Group, leaving him with limited legal recourse.
As Dutch outlet Het Financieele Dagblad observed, the media magnate “has failed in his attempt to involve the Enterprise Chamber in the conflict surrounding the company”, a setback that effectively closes one of his last potential paths back into United Group’s leadership.
The article also noted Šolak’s attempts to frame the case through a political lens in Serbia, an approach that United Group has dismissed as “a fabrication” intended “to regain his influence and income”.
For years, United Group was synonymous with Šolak’s personal rule and the influence of his close circle of associates. It has been widely reported that up until his removal in June 2025, Šolak was generously remunerated, receiving a salary of over EUR 10 million per year at United Group, alongside bonuses, dividends and access to corporate expenses.
As the Greek outlet The Liberal reported, the Dutch ruling “ratifies” the shift to a new era for United Group, in which Šolak has been relegated to a “passive shareholder, without a board seat and without access to salary or bonus payments”. The report also underscores the contrast between United Group’s current stability and transparency under its new leadership with Šolak’s controversial history, marked by self-enrichment and governance failures.
The ruling marks the conclusion of a protracted shareholder dispute and raises questions over the future and financial stability of Šolak’s other projects.
For observers with a keen interest in football, the ruling leaves Šolak’s ownership of Southampton F.C on notably weaker foundations, as he is no longer connected to the cash-flow engine that once fuelled his business empire.
In trying to downplay the ruling’s implications, Šolak told The Athletic that the court decision “has no impact on Sport Republic or Southampton… If anything, I can now devote even more of my time to ensuring the club’s success and sustainability.”
This follows his June 2025 BBC interview denying sale rumors, where he welcomed investors but stressed: “Selling the club [is] never on my mind.”
As noted in a 2023 Times article, Šolak’s acquisition of the English football club in 2022 was funded by a substantial loan from United Group – the very company that has now severed ties with him. With United Group no longer available as a source of credit or funding, Šolak’s ability to sustain the club, let alone support its ambition of returning to the Premier League, remains far from certain.
Southampton, relegated from the Premier League in 2024-25, sits mid-table in the Championship under Will Still. Šolak’s €100 million investment via Sport Republic (80% stake since 2022) has drawn mixed reactions—praise for funding but ire over managerial turnover (five since takeover) and poor results.
Recent social media posts reflect fan toxicity post a 3-1 loss to Middlesbrough on October 25, with calls to “sell up” and blame Šolak for “ruining the club.”
Dragan Šolak remains a deeply polarizing figure: to admirers, a self-made telecom titan who built an empire from scratch; to detractors – and notably to authoritarian Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić – a dangerous regime foe. But in neighbouring Bulgaria, one of the three public channels owned by United Media, Nova TV, has been no different under his watch than the other two in churning out infotainment and paying lip service to a corrupt establishment.
With the final loss in court now behind him, Solak finds himself on the outside of United Group for the first time in decades. Whatever fights he wants to pursue next – on of off the football pitch – he will have to face on his own.
Caption: Dragan Šolak [C, dark suit] at Wembley, 26 May 2024 @JimWhite on X
Updated: October 28, 2025 - 07:00
