Hartlepool United

Exclusive: New Hartlepool United owner Landon Smith eyed Pools pride for 16 years

Hartlepool United’s new American owner Landon Smith was given a hero’s welcome at Victory Park yesterday before revealing he first learned about the club almost two decades ago via an internet deep-dive.

by
The Non-League Football Paper Team
18 January 2026

New Hartlepool United owner Landon Smith

By Paul Fraser

Hartlepool United’s new American owner, Landon Smith, was given a hero’s welcome at Victory Park yesterday before revealing he first learned about the club almost two decades ago via an internet deep-dive.
The 40-year-old, from Iowa, has spent his first full week at the club since officially taking over the National League outfit from Ray Singh on New Year’s Eve.
With the USA’s Stars and Stripes flag waving in the wind in one corner, Smith was paraded in front of a packed Victoria Park.
Thousands of stayaway fans returned to watch the televised Altrincham game following previ...

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