Liverpool’s US-based owners are understood to be courting bids for the club.
Mukesh Ambani, an Indian billionaire ranked by Forbes as being among the wealthiest people on the planet, has expressed an interest in pursuing a bid for Premier League giants Liverpool, according to reports from UK media.
News emerged in the past week that the club’s US-based owners, Fenway Sports Group (FSG), would be open to receiving bids and that they’d sought the services of Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to help investigate a potential sale, in whole or otherwise, of the football club and that they’ve received tentative interest from figures in the Middle East and the United States.
But Ambani, who has a reported net worth in the region of £90 billion ($106 billion), is said to be among those who have expressed a firm interest in pursuing a takeover and that he is intrigued by the idea of purchasing the club outright – with a bid in the region of £4 billion ($4.7 billion) thought to be enough to get a deal over the line.
Ambani has already grown a considerable sporting portfolio after investing in IPL cricket side the Mumbai Giants as well as playing an integral role in the launch of India’s football Super League.
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However, ownership of a football club of the magnitude of Liverpool would easily be the jewel in his crown, particularly with Liverpool’s brand becoming increasingly popular in his native India.
It is thought that Ambani, 65, would be happy to keep financial pace with the likes of Manchester City, who are owned by the incredibly wealthy Sheikh Mansour and City Football Group.
Premier League rivals Chelsea have also recently received a cash infusion after the US billionaire Todd Boehly purchased the club from Roman Abramovich in May.
News of the potential takeover is sure to spark a flurry of comment from Liverpool supporters, with some likely to question Ambani’s credentials to operate a high-level football club while others will possibly see the potential investment as a factor which could close the financial gap between the Merseyside club and Manchester City.
But any deal won’t come easy, and certainly wouldn’t transpire in the same white-knuckle style that Boehly’s Chelsea takeover did – a deal which was agreed under the veil of sanctions placed against Abramovich by the UK government in the wake of the Russia’s military operation in Ukraine.
FSG initially purchased Liverpool for a fee of around £300 million ($355 million) in 2010.
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