Owners of Liverpool, FSG, are reportedly in talks for a huge investment that would value the company at $ 8 billion and enter the public stock market
The main owners of Liverpool, Fenway Sports Group, are said to be in talks about a huge investment as part of a merger with the company founded by moneyball mogul Billy Beane
Beane – Major League Baseball’s Oakland Athletics executive – and sports banker Gerry Cardinale revealed they had raised $ 575million (£ 433million) earlier this year in hopes of buying a professional sports franchise
The Wall Street Journal said this morning that it hopes to acquire a 25% stake in the company that owns Liverpool Football Club and the Boston Red Sox – John Henry’s FSG
This would value FSG at $ 8 billion and cause the company to list on the public stock exchange
According to the Financial Times, the potential holding company list of current Premier League champions and 2018 World Series winners is said to be one of the most publicized sports offerings of its kind in recent years
Talks are believed to be at an early stage and there is no certainty that a transaction will take place, but FT reports that Henry is keen to strike a deal and get his company listed on the public market
It will likely be a big financial boost in times of uncertainty due to the coronavirus pandemic, but it’s unclear what exact impact, if any, it would have on the LFC
As reported earlier this year, Beane, who was once played by Brad Pitt in the movie Moneyball, and Cardinale formed their special-purpose acquisition company RedBall Acquisition Corp, which attracted money from investors to buy an acquisition target to be determined within the next two years, after which the money will be returned to investors if no purchase has been made
They raised $ 575 million in August for this purpose and an additional $ 1 billion to complete a deal with FSG
The FSG has been open for some time to the possibility of making a minority stake in the Premier League champions available to outside investors, but has consistently denied suggestions that he was considering selling the club outright
Henry attempted to take Beane from Oakland for the FSG’s Boston Red Sox baseball franchise, and relied on Beane’s « Moneyball » strategies – which use statistics to eliminate the subjectivity of the signing players – to identify new talent for Red Sox and Liverpool
RedBall is likely to invest in an English football team that recruited former Premier League executive Peter Scudamore as a board member Scudamore, who led the top flight for 19 years, works in an advisory and consultant role
Basketball star LeBron James is already a minority owner of Liverpool since 2011, while Gerry Cardinale recently acquired French club Toulouse and discussed buying Serie A squad AS Roma, but none of these discussions
ECHO has reached out to Billy Beane for comment – you can read our interview with him earlier this year here
Boston Red Sox, Fenway Sports Group, John W Henry, Special Purpose Acquisition Company, Billy Beane, Fenway Park, Liverpool FC
World News – GB – FSG « In investment talks » with Moneyball mogul Billy Beane
