A MILLIONAIRE and former owner of a £321million football team has revealed he left school at 16 to paint on the floor before setting up a dating site.
After his company, King, the hit Candy Crush game, went public, Mel Morris has become one of the richest men in the United Kingdom.
The businessman pocketed a fortune of around £515 million, making him the richest man in the East Midlands.
This 58-year-old man, born in Littleover (Derbyshire), had set up a parquet and real estate business in Spain after abandoning it when he was only 16 years old.
Morris also launched dating site uDate in 1998, which sold for £100 million in 2003.
For the sale he was given £20 million, which he then invested in King.
By the time he was in his 20s, Morris was already a controlling representative and was looking for an Internet entrepreneur.
After the good fortune of his dating site, thanks to the use of cutting-edge technology with a giant clientele, the millionaire component of a consortium took over the county of Derby.
The wealthy Brit also raised a whopping £10 million after selling his web security company to an American company.
The businessman entered the Sunday Times rich list thanks to his fortune between JK Rowling and businessman Peter Jones.
Unlike most of Morris’ business activities, his career as a football owner ended in disaster.
The former owner revealed he spent more than £200million to take Derby into the Premier League, before putting it into administration.
The millionaire admitted that his time was a “failure” in his own eyes, but also warned that football was lacking other people like him willing to pay “£3 million checks every month. “
Morris spoke about his surprise decision to put Derby under control, saying: “This is something we take lightly.
“There is no long-term sustainable position without buying.
“I’m going to run out of money, without all my assets. You have to decide in a moment. And we have other people interested.
“I wanted to find a client for the club and so it continues. Over the weekend we received about 15 requests. As for the serious requests, there are two or three, based on reputation, that are very serious. “
Morris believes he was promoted several times, a result that would have allowed him to sell at a profit, before the latest decline.
He said: “I would have tried and failed rather than not tried at all. But financially, I regret it. I lost over £200m. “
“I’ll do any recovery at the stadium, I’ll work with the directors to make sure we have the right customer on board.
“I have invested a lot of money in the club and we have had very good moments. But in the end I failed. “
Morris claims a deal was agreed in January 2020 before the EFL challenged the sale of the stadium and shows others tried to buy it but did not generate the money.
He warned: “It has been horrible. In times of Covid, it is very unlikely that the effect this has will be perceived. Do I have £30 million in winnings or £10 million?
“My biggest mistake was to say that I would sell the club and that I would not seek to make a profit.
“He didn’t leave me room to negotiate. People came in and waited, hoping the value would change.
“We are missing football club owners writing checks for £1m, £2m or £3m every month. ”
Morris also criticised the EFL for treating Derby differently over conceivable penalty issues for non-payment to its players, and the dispute over its Financial Fair Play issues.
It comes after a boy who left at 16 after hating elegance and failing exams revealed he now runs a multi-million pound empire.
And a young entrepreneur whose business now generates £1. 5 million a year has told how she left after thugs broke her up.
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