For the last 16 years, Liverpool Football Club ownership structure has brought about invaluable stability at the club.
Following the fractious and divisive Hicks and Gillett-era, Fenway Sports Group took over the club in 2010, owning the vast majority ever since.
During this period, the Reds have won two Premier League titles and the Champions League, among numerous other major honours, but is the Anfield boardroom about to undergo a seismic change?
As reported by Mark Kleinman of Sky News on Monday morning, a consortium is "closing in on a deal to buy a roughly one-third stake" of Liverpool. The most prominent figure in the consortium if Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, who is purportedly worth around $286 billion, making him the third richest person on earth, behind Elon Musk and Larry Page, according to the latest Forbes rich list.
Alongside in the consortium is Eduardo Saverin, co-founder of Facebook, and Amit Bhatia, who could be the most important of the trio. His father-in-law Lakshmi Mittal, a fellow billionaire, is the owner of EFL Championship side Queens Park Rangers, with Bhatia sitting on QPR's board for almost two decades, before stepping aside last month.
His previous football expirence will certainly be useful.
How much is Liverpool worth?
16 years ago, FSG, led by John W. Henry, paid £300 million to buy 100% of Liverpool from Tom Hicks and George Gillett. The club is now reportedly worth around £4.5 billion, so this consortium is going to have to pay an astronomical amount to accrue even roughly a 30% share.
What impact will this investment have for Liverpool?
This is not the first time Fenway Sports Group (FSG) have sought outside investment, albeit never before on this scale. Three years ago, global sports investment firm Dynasty purchased around 3% of the club for £150 million, but this pales into insignificance when compared to what is happening now.
At the time, FSG President Mike Gordon reiterated that "our long-term commitment to Liverpool remains as strong as ever". He added that they were open to this cash injection to help fund recent major infrastructure projects, namely the opening of AXA Training Centre in 2020, as well as the major expansions and renovations of the Anfield Road and Main Stands.
This time though, Bezos, Saverin and Bhatia's group would buy a large enough stake to potentially have a say on major decisions. Many Liverpool supporters have been frustrated by FSG's lack of spending in recent transfer windows, so perhaps this will help them compete with the wealthiest clubs around.
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