âJeff Bezosâs stake in Liverpool buys a fanbase and the cultural influence that comes with it.â
Nope, on the contrary. Iâve had a LFC TV membership since many years. Itâs expensive for what it is, but it was my way to financially support the club on a regular basis, and to show my appreciation for fsgâs steady work to get us back among the top clubs.
Iâm now seriously considering to cancel it, and will probably do it. After all, with the Bezos billion coming in, they donât need me anymore, do they?
So regarding the quote above, Bezos doesnât buy me. On the contrary, heâs pushing me on the brink of becoming âdisenfranchisedâ as they say in Trumpland.
Thanks for reminding me, just canceled it.
Dang, youâve rumbled me being naughty
Iâm wondering whether the Bezos connection is that there is another revenue stream coming up that they want to tap into.
Iâm not sure what that could be, but could it be tech related? I saw a demo of a VR headset at a trade show in Glasgow about 10 years ago. It was impressive enough for what it was, but I asked the rep at the time whether it would be possible to get a virtual seat in a football ground. He said yes, but not yet.
Could it be that a virtual matchday ticket is going to be the next big thing and Amazon wants in on it?
https://x.com/TheAthleticFC/status/2089694266838679897
Early suggestions on both sides of the transaction indicated the purchased stake was in the range of approximately 30 per cent to one-third, but The Athletic can reveal the figure is actually much closer to 40 per cent, according to sources with knowledge of the deal, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the confidentiality of the process.
1892 Holdings, a consortium headed up and led by Amit Bhatia, the former Queens Park Rangers co-owner who will take up the position of vice-chairman at Liverpool, has purchased around a 38 per cent shareholding in Liverpool.
Ok folks, a quick but important point on the revised 38% figure: under UK company law, anything above 25% ownership already gives a shareholder blocking power over âspecial resolutionsâ. What that means is that the votes needed for big stuff like changing the clubâs constitution, restructuring share capital, or approving major asset sales all require 75% approval. At 38%, 1892 Holdings can single-handedly block any of that, because FSG and everyone else combined can never hit 75% without them.
Thatâs a real structural veto, not just a board seat and a friendly quote in a press release, folks. This exists right now, whether or not the 12-month buyout option is ever used. One caveat or hope, in this case is that the 25% threshold is just the legal default, and deals like this often have a separate private shareholdersâ agreement that adds to or adjusts those rights. Unfortunately, right now, we are not privy to that or whatâs exactly in it. But even taken as the bare minimum, 38% is a much stronger position than that of a "minority investor hoping for a future option.
Good point. And if that is so, there is a more than a good chance that these c*nts are going to be the next owners of LFC in not very longâŚ
exactlyâŚthe question i have is the valuation, because if they bought 38% and not 30% at that 1.6 billion, then the club value is less than we thoughtâŚso instead of the club being valued at about 5.5 billion pounds based on the 30%, its actually valued at about 4.3 billion based on the 38%
all of a sudden that âoperational controlâ is a narrower claim than it sounds, and it quietly leaves out the very real structural veto 1892 now holds. FUCKâŚ
That was equally true at 30%.
I wonât be lying in bed awake at night worrying about the valuation of LFC.
True, Whatâs new is how much closer they now are to outright control, and how much bigger a slice of the clubâs value they actually hold.
Good take! 38% seems to be the price for a long term introductory course to running a top flight, high profile EPL club for 1892 holdings.
Combining this with Simon Hughesâ previous post, it does seem that FSG is already planning to handover control to 1892 holdings in the very near futureâŚ
Paul Joyce
Amit Bhatia group owns 38% of Liverpool â and can buy majority stake
Deal announced on Friday was believed to be for a third of the club, raising questions over why owners FSG were not more transparent
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Bhatia was owner and director of QPR between 2007 and this year
Ian Tuttle
Paul Joyce, Northern Football Correspondent
Tuesday August 18 2026, 4.40pm BST, The Times
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Liverpoolâs owner Fenway Sports Group sold a 38 per cent stake in the club to the consortium which includes the new vice-chairman Amit Bhatia and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
The size of the shareholding is greater than the club, and sources close to Bhatiaâs 1892 Holdings, originally indicated, which has served to raise questions as to why FSG was not more transparent.
The deal announced on Friday was understood at the time to be for a third of the club, and was said to value Liverpool at between $7 billion and $8 billion (ÂŁ5.5 billion). However, the increase, which was first revealed by The Athletic, means 1892 Holdings have paid just more than ÂŁ2billion for its slice of Liverpool.
In addition, there is an option for 1892 Holdings to up their stake to a majority shareholding in the next 12 months, although FSG has said it is not committed to that agreement.
Bezos is set to be represented on Liverpoolâs board by his associate Bryan Baum
Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu via Getty Images
Bhatia, the former owner and director of Queens Park Rangers, had been in talks with FSG for more than a year after being introduced to the US owners by Will McDonough of Corestone Capital. McDonough was the former business manager of the NFL star Tom Brady.
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Bezos, the third-richest man in the world with a fortune of ÂŁ209billion, was subsequently invited to become part of the consortium along with Eduardo Saverin, the co-founder of Facebook.
Elaine Saverin, Eduardoâs wife, has joined Bhatia on an expanded board along with Bryan Baum, who is representing Bezos. The deal remains subject to approval from the new Independent Football Regulator and those involved must pass the Premier League ownersâ and directorsâ test. That could take up to 90 days.
A Liverpool supportersâ group, Spirit of Shankly, has already contacted the new Independent Football Regulator and is seeking engagement with 1892 Holdings and Bhatia, who was previously involved with fansâ bodies at QPR.
I think from FSGâs perspective they are just looking at a way to extract their profit. The way the football industry works, simple excess revenue is fairly modest. The other options are loading debt against the club, or selling shares. That appears to be what they are doing.
Itâs what the buyer has in mind that concerns me.