Marcus Evans

Marcus Paul Bruce Evans (born 18 August 1963) is an English businessman. He is originally from Walsham-le-Willows, near Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, but grew up near Wimbledon, London. He founded his company, Marcus Evans, in 1983. The group organises live business, sports and entertainment events around the world. Its global regional head offices are in Dublin, Chicago, and APAC – Kuala Lumpur. Evans is best known for being the former chairman and owner of Ipswich Town F.C., which he bought in December 2007. He remained the owner for over 13 years before selling the club to a new U.S. consortium in April 2021 while retaining a 5% share in the club. Evans himself has maintained a low public profile throughout his professional career, with limited photos and interviews of him available online. Career Marcus Evans attained a bachelor's degree at King's College, Cambridge University and a M.B.A. from Waseda University Graduate School in Japan. According to Companies House, Evans started his first firm, Associated Promotions, in 1983 when corporate hospitality was a relatively new market. By 1992 he had renamed his company The Hospitality Group (THG Sports Tours). That same year, he bought into a clothing and gifts company, Castle Mills International, but sold it to investor Brian Rousell within a year. THG Sports Tours is now part of the wider Marcus Evans Group. In 1994, he paid £325,000 for a stake of just under 5 percent in the electronics firm Ross Group, where he was appointed Chief Executive. In 1999, he was reportedly removed as CEO after a shareholder coup. In 2004, Evans made an unsuccessful £700+ million offer for the Daily Mirror, followed by another rejected offer of £550+ million in 2006. 2007 Rugby World Cup In June 2007, the organizers of the Rugby World Cup failed to secure exclusive control over corporate hospitality at the event. In a ruling, the Paris Commercial Court awarded Marcus Evans the right to run hospitality packages without the approval of the organizing committee. Marcus Evans won his case after arguing that the Hospitality Group's packages included receptions before and after the matches, but not tickets to see them. This claim was contested by the organizing committee. However, despite taking The Hospitality Group to the highest appeal courts in France, in 2008 THG Group won its case in the courts.