Liverpool link with £5bn Qatar Sports Investments group key as FSG target new takeover

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Liverpool and owners FSG are no exception to the rule that it is almost impossible to operate within football without some link to the state of Qatar.

Since being awarded the World Cup in one of the most heavily scrutinised episodes in the history of the sport in 2010, the tiny but resource-rich Gulf nation has gone all-in on football.

Liverpool, who were the subject of a takeover bid from Sheikh Mansour before his Man City takeover in 2008, are well aware of the Middle East’s influence on football finance, in the Premier League and beyond.

As it stands, Manchester City and Newcastle United are the only English clubs directly owned by a Gulf state, but every club in the Premier League has some form of corporate link to the region.

Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group, for example, are part-owned by RedBird Capital, a private equity firm in the US with strong links to Abu Dhabi through a partnership with IMI, a UAE-financed entity.

Indirectly, Premier League clubs are all taking money from Qatar via the league’s media deal with beIN Sports, its official broadcaster in the Middle East and North Africa.

beIN’s, and by extension that state of Qatar’s, influence over the Premier League was significant enough that it nearly derailed Newcastle’s takeover because of licensing dispute between Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Sponsorship is another financial thread between the two. Liverpool’s city rivals Everton – who they beat 1-0 last night – have held talks about naming their stadium after Qatar Airways, for example.

And before FSG opted against selling Liverpool outright in 2022, instead selling a small minority stake to Dynasty Equity a year later, Qatar and Saudi sovereign wealth were reportedly interested again.

Now, as FSG continue their quest steered by Michael Edwards to launch a multi-club network with Liverpool at the helm, the insularity of the football finance world has been further illustrated.

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Liverpool owners FSG in talks to take over Malaga but rival bidder has ownership

Last summer, FSG pulled out of negotiations to buy Bordeaux, now in the fourth tier of French football.

Now, Liverpool’s owners have reportedly turned their attention to Spanish second division side Malaga, who were in the Champions League as recently as 2013.

Malaga are owned by Sheikh Abdullah Al Thani, a peripheral member of the Qatari royal family.

Liverpool’s rival in the bidding process, which is being overseen by the club’s administrators, is £5bn-valued Qatar Sports Investments, the owners of Paris Saint-Germain and a proxy sovereign wealth fund.

Paris Saint-Germain, in turn, are minority owned by the private equity firm Arctos, who, as it happens, also own a minority stake in FSG.

And, as if that wasn’t complicated enough, RedBird Capital, who, remember, also own a stake in FSG, are said to own shares in Malaga too, though that is somewhat disputed.

“It’s reflective of globalism and the fact we live in a flat planet as far connections between entities are concerned,” says University of Liverpool football finance lecturer Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively to TBR Football.

“I expect to see more of this. The biggest challenge here is UEFA’s, not Liverpool’s. There are going to be questions of conflicts of interests when issues like this arise in the future – and they will arise in the future.

“Michael Edwards has been there and clearly sees the value in connecting with a club like Malaga.

“It’s a model but a largely untested one. I think there are a lot of clubs going down this route for fear of missing out. There is a FOMO element to this.

“There are consequences of Brexit that have accelerated some clubs’ interest in this. However, we are now nine years on from Brexit and there are plenty of clubs who have got on fine without a multi-club model.

“From Liverpool’s point of view, having a club like Malaga can act as a halfway house in terms of broader recruitment. Having consistency of style and culture through a multi-club network can have benefits too.

“If you look at City Football Group, Man City are very much the mothership and the organisation is not a success financially. They make huge losses.

“FSG, by nature, are a very cautious organisation, so we will have to see how that model plays out for them. They don’t want to lose money”

• READ MORE: FSG reveal how Liverpool can make way more than £102m from Anfield as expansion stance emerges

Could Liverpool become the Premier League’s first multi-sport club?

Elsewhere in the sports business labyrinth, the NBA has committed to launching a pro basketball league in Europe, with a rumoured expansion fee of £400m per go.

Several elite European clubs have been invited to badge a new team in the division, including Man City, Real Madrid and Barcelona.

For FSG, this could represent a unique opportunity. It has long been understood that they would love to add a basketball franchise to their sports portfolio.

They have collaborated closely with NBA legend LeBron James, who once owned a small minority stake in Liverpool and has released a range of merchandise in cooperation with the club.

Incidentally, Jordan is also an investor in RedBird with his business partner Maverick Carter.

FSG were also reportedly interested in acquiring the Boston Celtics at one stage, although that basketball institution has now been sold to a different party.

It is said that they have their eye on an NBA expansion franchise in Las Vegas, but could a Liverpool-branded NBA team in Europe be a possibility too?