Investment may be days away

[IrishPaul]

Hello Irish Paul top bloke .

How's things Jimbo me auld mucker?

[Redzion]

Read on another site that a deal was reached with the Dubai Holdings investment group on Friday night.

Will see what else I can search out.

which is a load of bollocks as there was no meeting on Friday.But expect a huge announcement this week.

[Jimthered]

How's things Jimbo me auld mucker?

Yer, doing alright thanks mate, busy as hell the last few months but doing alright.

[Red_Polo]

From what I know so far, which is obviously quite limited, I would prefer if it was Dubai holdings. Ansari is apparently a Liverpool fan, they have more capital and clout than Gillet, and I'm sure they would be incredibly professional on a business level. Isn't there also the chance that unlike Gillett they would be interested in a minority stake? At this stage though we don't really know very much at all do we?

[IrishPaul]

Yer, doing alright thanks mate, busy as hell the last few months but doing alright.

Good to hear buddy

[Jimthered]

From what I know so far, which is obviously quite limited, I would prefer if it was Dubai holdings. Ansari is apparently a Liverpool fan, they have more capital and clout than Gillet, and I'm sure they would be incredibly professional on a business level. Isn't there also the chance that unlike Gillett they would be interested in a minority stake? At this stage though we don't really know very much at all do we?

Only what we can read Mr Polo. From what I have read, Gillett wants the club lock stock and barrell, where the Dubai bid would still involve Moores and Parry being involved to some extent.

Time will tell !

[Redzion]

Anfield in £450m Dubai buyout

By DANIEL KING
Liverpool are on the verge of falling into foreign ownership, just like Premiership rivals Chelsea and Manchester United.

But the deal with Dubai International Capital faces opposition from Liverpool fans and the football authorities, who are opposed to another English club falling into overseas hands.

The Anfield board have given the company — the international investment arm of the Dubai government-owned Dubai Holdings — exclusive rights to study the club’s books and complete a deal after rejecting the £450 million bid from American multi-millionaire George Gillett Jnr, as well as up to three other rival offers.

After almost three years of searching for investment to fund a £200m new stadium, to pay off £80m of debts and provide transfer spending, Liverpool have chosen a firm ultimately owned by the billionaire rulers of Dubai, the Al Maktoum family, best known in sport for their ownership of the Godolphin racing stable.

DIC already own British assets, including Madame Tussauds, the London Eye and the Travelodge chain.

It remains unclear whether the company would take over the club lock, stock and barrel, as Gillett would have attempted, or buy a smaller stake for an injection of cash.

It has been suggested that, under a Dubai-run regime, chief executive Rick Parry might keep his job and even chairman David Moores might retain a role, extending his family’s 50-year association with the club.

The bottom line, however, is that another of the greatest names in world football would be controlled from abroad and reports that DIC’s chief executive, Samaeer al-Ansari, is a keen Liverpool fan will not dispel concerns.

If the deal is done, it would raise two new issues on top of the concern expressed by FIFA president Sepp Blatter and others about Chelsea, Manchester United, Portsmouth, Aston Villa and West Ham all falling into foreign ownership in the past four years.

Later this month, FIFA will announce new rules which aim to increase the transparency surrounding club ownership. Although they insist they have no desire or power to stop rich foreigners investing in clubs, involvement of governments in football, even at arm’s length, will ring alarm bells with the ruling body.

Also, the involvement of Dubai investors raises a potential conflict of interest within the Premiership because of Arsenal’s relationship with Emirates, the Dubai-based airline.

Emirates, like DIC, enjoy the status of an independent company but are ultimately an offshoot of the same government.

Rival clubs could argue that such an arrangement would compromise the Premiership’s integrity as a competition.

Both the Premier League and Liverpool Football Club declined last night to comment.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/liv...n_page_id=1779

[Red_Polo]

Only what we can read Mr Polo. From what I have read, Gillett wants the club lock stock and barrell, where the Dubai bid would still involve Moores and Parry being involved to some extent.

Time will tell !

Indeed. I would prefer Moores and Parry to stay involved after whoever it is buys in, would make for a much smoother transition.

[Jimthered]

Intresting reading, thnaks for posting.

Dont think the FA will do anything about it, this was from a few weeks ago.

The Football Association's hands are tied when it comes to foreign ownership of clubs, chief executive Brian Barwick has insisted.


Five out of 20 Premier League clubs will be foreign-owned when the West Ham takeover by an Icelandic consortium is completed - Chelsea, Manchester United, Aston Villa and Portsmouth are the others.

Barwick said the FA were powerless to intervene but did point out that football clubs had to abide by tough business rules.

He said: 'This is an emotive issue and the FA has to act according to the law, regardless of opinion.

'We cannot discriminate on nationality or insubstantial concerns.

'Football clubs are heavily regulated, not just under football rules but also company law and stock market controls.'

[kurtangle01]

Anfield in £450m Dubai buyout

By DANIEL KING
Liverpool are on the verge of falling into foreign ownership, just like Premiership rivals Chelsea and Manchester United.

But the deal with Dubai International Capital faces opposition from Liverpool fans and the football authorities, who are opposed to another English club falling into overseas hands.

The Anfield board have given the company — the international investment arm of the Dubai government-owned Dubai Holdings — exclusive rights to study the club’s books and complete a deal after rejecting the £450 million bid from American multi-millionaire George Gillett Jnr, as well as up to three other rival offers.

After almost three years of searching for investment to fund a £200m new stadium, to pay off £80m of debts and provide transfer spending, Liverpool have chosen a firm ultimately owned by the billionaire rulers of Dubai, the Al Maktoum family, best known in sport for their ownership of the Godolphin racing stable.

DIC already own British assets, including Madame Tussauds, the London Eye and the Travelodge chain.

It remains unclear whether the company would take over the club lock, stock and barrel, as Gillett would have attempted, or buy a smaller stake for an injection of cash.

It has been suggested that, under a Dubai-run regime, chief executive Rick Parry might keep his job and even chairman David Moores might retain a role, extending his family’s 50-year association with the club.

The bottom line, however, is that another of the greatest names in world football would be controlled from abroad and reports that DIC’s chief executive, Samaeer al-Ansari, is a keen Liverpool fan will not dispel concerns.

If the deal is done, it would raise two new issues on top of the concern expressed by FIFA president Sepp Blatter and others about Chelsea, Manchester United, Portsmouth, Aston Villa and West Ham all falling into foreign ownership in the past four years.

Later this month, FIFA will announce new rules which aim to increase the transparency surrounding club ownership. Although they insist they have no desire or power to stop rich foreigners investing in clubs, involvement of governments in football, even at arm’s length, will ring alarm bells with the ruling body.

Also, the involvement of Dubai investors raises a potential conflict of interest within the Premiership because of Arsenal’s relationship with Emirates, the Dubai-based airline.

Emirates, like DIC, enjoy the status of an independent company but are ultimately an offshoot of the same government.

Rival clubs could argue that such an arrangement would compromise the Premiership’s integrity as a competition.

Both the Premier League and Liverpool Football Club declined last night to comment.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/liv...n_page_id=1779

If the deal does go ahead, which I seriously doubt it will, I don't see what Fifa or The Premier League could do about it. If teams are sponsored by the same people I don't see how it would be a conflict of interests.

I still doubt that the deal will happen though.

[kurtangle01]

Just for the record the mail is the only paper running with this story tomorrow from what I saw on SSN a few minutes ago so I'd say it's no more than speculation. If it was happening it would have been all over the back of every paper.

[AFII]

If this is true then the takeover panel will go to 2.10 first thing on Monday.

[Kopite_Colin]

If true - I'm torn between wanting the cash to make LFC competitve again, and losing the club to a bunch of non-Scousers. They're obviously loaded with great business know-how, but I don't want LFC just to be a commodity to them. Having said that Godolphin is a major, major sporting success.

[AFII]

I want us to get a Chairman who knows his business and can build us a new stadium and pay off our debts and give Rafa the chance to win the title.

It's a bonus if he loves the club.

[kurtangle01]

If true - I'm torn between wanting the cash to make LFC competitve again, and losing the club to a bunch of non-Scousers. They're obviously loaded with great business know-how, but I don't want LFC just to be a commodity to them. Having said that Godolphin is a major, major sporting success.

I'm not overly concerned about who owns the club because at the end of the day we'll still be liverpool football club the fans, the manager the history and the traditions would all remain the same. I don't think that it would be right to discriminate against the new owners simply because they're not from the local area. What would concern me most would be if we flashed the cash the way the chavs have. Obviously I'd like to see Rafa getting quite a bit of cash to spend without having to recoup it almost immediately but it would have to be spent sensibly on the right players and not simply thrown about.

The stadium is still to be finished and if that is completed as part of the deal then I think it would be a huge bonus for LFC as a whole.

I still don't believe that the deal will happen though.