Monday, September 28, 2009

Saudis 'eye stake in Liverpool'

Liverpool players
The move could boost Liverpool's profile in the Middle East

A Saudi Arabian prince is looking to buy up to half of Premier League football club Liverpool, reports say.

Prince Faisal bin Fahd bin Abdullah al-Saud was quoted by the Saudi Al-Riyadh newspaper on Sunday as saying "we are seeking... to own a 50% stake".

The reported price of £200m to £350m for the 50% stake would be in excess of the £174m US owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett paid for the whole club.

Liverpool recently signed a sponsorship deal with Standard Chartered bank.

That deal, which begins next July and runs to the end of the 2013-14 season, should lead to an increase in the club's commercial revenues.

Debt burden

Mr Hicks and Mr Gillett have been looking to reduce Liverpool's £245m debt and paid off £60m in July.

That was when the loan used taken out to buy the club in February 2007 ran out and was renegotiated with banks RBS and Wachovia.

Considering what Hicks and Gillett paid it is a huge increase in the club's value
Harry Philp, Hermes Sports Partners

"We are currently seeking to buy 50% of the shares in the club which is now suffering with debts worth £245m," the prince was quoted in Al-Riyadh paper.

The Saudi interest comes after a document was leaked showing that since March 2009 the club has been seeking to attract new investors in return for a stake in the Anfield club.

In March 2009 a prospectus drawn up by investment banks Rothschild and Merrill Lynch told potential investors that for £50m they could get a minority stake in "one of the world's most successful football clubs".

Prince Faisal bin Fahd bin Abdullah al-Saud, who was at Anfield on Saturday for the 6-1 win over Hull, now appears to be seeking to invest much more than £50m.

He is chairman of Saudi holding company FAMA Group and the F6 sports investment firm, which said at the weekend that a memorandum of understanding had been signed with George Gillett and Richard Petty Motorsports.

That envisions setting up sports academies in Saudi Arabia, and could also see the Liverpool brand, and that of US motorsport Nascar, promoted heavily in the Middle East.

Stadium on hold

"Considering what Hicks and Gillett paid it is a huge increase in the club's value to somewhere between £400m and £700m," Harry Philp, managing director at sports financers and advisers Hermes Sports Partners, told the BBC.

"They had to refinance their debt with their banks recently. Despite paying off £60m of their debt recently as part of that refinancing it is still surprising, particularly considering that plans for a new stadium are on hold."

However, a number of questions remain over any possible investment, should the Saudis take a stake.

"The Saudis will have to take 25% of the club from each of Hicks and Gillett if they want half the club, but whether they both would be willing to sell any more of their holdings is unknown," added Mr Philp.

Mr Hicks has promised that a new stadium will be built when the current global financial turmoil settles down.

ะพ 12:29 AM

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