Black Knight FC president Tim Bezbatchenko says player transfers within the group’s multi-club system will only happen if they are mutually beneficial.
Hibs have been part owned by Bill Foley’s group since February 2024 when they acquired a 25 percent stake in the club.
But since then, only Owen Bevan has moved directly between Premier League side Bournemouth – who sit at the top of BKFC’s multi-club pyramid – and the Easter Road side.
Gordon Strachan was critical of Hibs and Bournemouth’s partnership and thinks there could be a conflict of interest between the two parties.
He argued in November last year: “If you want complete control of the club, buy it. Don’t give me 25% then start to tell us what we’re doing because there are two different things going on here.
“Bournemouth probably send players up there and generate money for the players. What do the Hibs want to do? Hibs want to make a good team for the community, their fans, and stay in the league.
“So there’s maybe a conflict when you get these set-ups with teams.”
Tim Bezbatchenko says Hibs not a feeder club for Bournemouth
However, speaking recently on The Athletic FC Podcast, Bezbatchenko has stressed that Hibs – as well as FC Lorient and Auckland FC – will not be treated as feeder clubs for Bournemouth.
He says a balance will be struck in terms of moving players up and down the multi-club pyramid while respecting the aims and objectives of clubs like Hibs.
Bezbatchenko said: “We don’t look at the clubs as feeder clubs. I think within the multi-club ownership groups, there are different groups that do consider their clubs feeder clubs.
“It doesn’t mean that we’re not looking for the players to move up the pyramid, and I think Bill Foley has been clear about that.
“But we have to respect their own identity and what they’re trying to achieve, and that’s really important, especially right now at a club like Lorient, where they’re trying to get promoted.
“But we’ve done good transactions that we feel like the clubs have benefited from the moves, like Dango Ouattara, and then we’ve recently done Junior Kroupi, but we’ve also allowed Junior Kroupi to remain at Lorient so that they can achieve their goals.
“If he were to have gone to another club outside of our network, I don’t know if he stays at Lorient. So I think that the same goes for the transactions we plan to do at Hibs. What’s good and suitable for both clubs? What helps achieve their objectives?
“But ultimately, players want to realise their potential. They want to move up the ladder. So whether or not that’s within Black Knight or not, we’re never going to stand in a player’s way as long as we can find a mutually beneficial situation.
“We just feel like through the club network, we’re achieving two things. You’re controlling your supply, and there’s cost and risk mitigation. That’s the hardest thing about acquiring players – you don’t really truly know them.
“You can do as much scouting, as much recruiting, you can have as many interviews as you want, but until that player is in the locker room and out on the training pitch with the other players, you don’t know how he’s going to fit in with the group.
“But when you have your own network, I can go to the training, I can go to the matches, I can sit in the locker room at one of the clubs and see how he interacts after a loss, and that really is what brings people together.
“It’s not the wins and the championships. It’s actually when you lose and who’s there and who’s around you. That’s what I think is the fabric that can bring a multi-club together beyond the single crest of one club.”
Black Knight FC’s five-year plan involving Hibs
Bezbatchenko went on to outline that over the next five years, he wants Black Knight FC to have acquired another club, strengthened relations between the group’s clubs and increase the number of players moving up and down the pyramid.
Moreover, he wants Black Knight FC clubs to be competing in Europe and challenging for trophies, with Hibs in good position to secure European football for next season.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 2 |  RangersRangers | 30 | 19 | 5 | 6 | 62 | 28 | 34 | 62 |
| 3 |  HibernianHibernian | 30 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 45 | 41 | 4 | 44 |
| 4 |  AberdeenAberdeen | 30 | 12 | 7 | 11 | 38 | 46 | -8 | 43 |
He said: “I think right now we’re in phase one. We’re assessing and we’re in creation mode, where we’re coming up with a three to five-year strategy. We’re in growth mode, so I think we’re still looking at potentially acquiring another club.
“We did a strategic partnership with Kyoto Sanga in the J-League in Japan. We’re talking with MLS teams about a potential strategic partnership there, so in five years, I think we will have grown in size.
“I think we’ve made the ties between the clubs stronger, we’ve increased the number of transactions between the clubs.
“You want to see the ties within the pathway from our club to Hibs, to Lorient, to Bournemouth to those clubs all the way down and around the world to be stronger. So I think in five years, I would like to see the number of players who have moved increase.
“And then, we’d love to play in Europe, and certainly a couple of our clubs are in positions now where they’re in the mix, but we’re in sport for a reason. We want trophies. Who doesn’t?
“Some of the best experiences I’ve had in my career are lifting trophies with people that you work with and that you care about. And I don’t think it should be any different for our clubs.”