Fenway Sports Group bought Liverpool in 2010 in a £300m takeover; the owners are believed to be considering a sale although they would prefer to attract new investors; an FSG statement read: “FSG remains fully committed to the success of Liverpool, both on and off the pitch”
Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group are working with two US banks to see how much the club is worth – and city insiders believe it could be as much as $5bn (£4.4bn).
FSG, who bought the club in a deal worth about £300m in October 2010, are believed to be considering a sale although they would prefer to attract new investors by selling a minority stake.
They have asked Goldmann Sachs and Morgan Stanley to gauge buyer interest and the banks are expected to sound out whether some of the shortlisted bidders who missed out on buying Chelsea are interested in investing in Liverpool.
Premier League clubs are rarely officially available for sale as that would affect their value – and a statement from FSG read: “There have been a number of recent changes of ownership and rumours of changes in ownership at EPL clubs and inevitably we are asked regularly about Fenway Sports Group’s ownership in Liverpool.
“FSG has frequently received expressions of interest from third parties seeking to become shareholders in Liverpool. FSG has said before that under the right terms and conditions we would consider new shareholders if it was in the best interests of Liverpool as a club.
“FSG remains fully committed to the success of Liverpool, both on and off the pitch.”
Earlier this year, Russian Roman Abramovich completed the sale of Chelsea to an investment group led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital in a deal advised by Goldmann Sachs placing the overall takeover value at £4.25bn.
The strong dollar and weak pound has theoretically made it cheaper for US investors to buy Premier League clubs at the moment.
Chicago Cubs owners The Ricketts Family, Boston Celtics owner Stephen Pagliuca and a consortium led by former Liverpool chairman Sir Martin Broughton all lost out in the race to buy Chelsea in May. Sir Jim Ratcliffe also failed with a late bid worth more than £4billion.
Liverpool are principally owned by John W Henry, alongside FSG chairman Tom Werner.
Under FSG’s ownership, Liverpool have won the Premier League, the Champions League, the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup twice. The club have also won the FIFA Club World Cup, UEFA Super Cup and the Community Shield in that time.
FSG also owns Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox and the National Hockey League’s Pittsburgh Penguins.
Fans group Spirit of Shankly has written to Liverpool asking for clarification on FSG’s current position.
A statement read: “We have seen reports today that FSG have put Liverpool FC up for sale.
“Spirit of Shankly have written to LFC for clarification and will await a reply before making comment. We do, however, expect both the Supporters Board and SOS to be engaged in some part of the process so that supporters are front and centre of any sale and the first thoughts of prospective owners.”
Source: Skysports
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