The Liverpool board has accepted a takeover bid from the American group New England Sports Ventures (NESV) with the sale is conditional on Premier League approval, resolution of the dispute concerning Board membership and other matters. One of those other matters is the fact that current owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett have launched a legal action to try to block the sale.
A statement from Martin Broughton, Liverpool FC Chairman, on the Liverpool web site said:
“I am delighted that we have been able to successfully conclude the sale process which has been thorough and extensive. The Board decided to accept NESV’s proposal on the basis that it best met the criteria we set out originally for a suitable new owner. NESV’s philosophy is all about winning and they have fully demonstrated that at Red Sox. We’ve met them in Boston, London and Liverpool over several weeks and I am immensely impressed with what they have achieved and with their vision for Liverpool Football Club. By removing the burden of acquisition debt, this offer allows us to focus on investment in the team. I am only disappointed that the owners have tried everything to prevent the deal from happening and that we need to go through legal proceedings in order to complete the sale.”
The key part here is that NESV will move “all acquisition debt” away from Liverpool. That move alone should free up something like £36m bid that was being used to make interest payments on Liverpool’s existing debt that can now be used on new players. So if I am Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson I am checking my wish list of new players this morning, as the NESV have shown a commitment in Boston to spend money on players.
It will be interesting to see what NESV does with Anfield. For years the talk has been that Liverpool need a new 60,000+ seater stadium in order to compete with Man United and Arsenal.
When NESV bought the Boston Red Sox they faced a similar situation and there they decided to redevelop Fenway Park instead of building a new stadium and I wonder if they will do the same at Anfield?
