British-Indian businessman Amit Bhatia, along with Jeff Bezos and other investors, is bidding for about Rs 17 thousand crore to buy about 30% stake in Liverpool Football Club. Upon completion of the deal, FSG’s stake may come down to around 67%.
Sports News: British-Indian businessman Amit Bhatia is preparing to buy a major stake in the English Premier League’s legendary football club Liverpool. According to the report, Bhatia, along with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and other investors, has made a bid of about Rs 17 thousand crore for about 30% stake in the club. If this deal is completed, Liverpool’s ownership structure could see a major change.
Eye on 30% stake in Liverpool
The current control of Liverpool Football Club is with Fenway Sports Group i.e. FSG. FSG reportedly owns approximately 97% of the club, while the remaining approximately 3% is held by Dynasty Equity. After the proposed deal, FSG’s stake may come down to around 67%. At the same time, the consortium of Amit Bhatia and his associates may have about 30% stake.
This proposed investment will not lead to any immediate change of control in Liverpool’s ownership, but will definitely allow the entry of new big investors into the club. This possible deal is being seen as an important deal in the football world amid the ever-increasing business value of Premier League clubs.
Who is Amit Bhatia?
Amit Bhatia has been associated with the British-Indian business and investment banking sector. He is the son-in-law of India’s leading steel baron Lakshmi Mittal. Bhatia married Lakshmi Mittal’s daughter Vanisha Mittal in 2004.
His association with football is not new. He has been associated with club football in England for a long time and especially has an important relationship with Queens Park Rangers i.e. QPR. The Mittal family bought a stake in London-based QPR in 2007 and Amit Bhatia then took an active role in the management of the club.
Has played an important role in QPR
Amit Bhatia became the vice chairman of QPR in 2007. After this, he also took the responsibility as the chairman of the club from 2018 to 2023. During this period, he remained active in the club’s administration, business strategy and football- decisions.
Bhatia resigned as a director in 2026 after 19 years with QPR to focus on a potential investment in Liverpool. It is reported that he transferred his stake in QPR to current owner Ruben Gnanalingam. This indicates that their focus is now on a larger and global football investment.
Jeff Bezos also joins the consortium
The biggest feature of the proposed Liverpool investment is the big names involved. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is said to be part of this consortium. Investing in sports is not a new idea for Bezos, one of the world’s biggest businessmen and technology entrepreneurs.
The name of Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin is also said to be included in the consortium. Apart from this, Lakshmi Mittal is among the prominent business faces who provided financial support to this deal.
In this way, very influential names to the fields of technology, investment, industry and football are seen together in the proposed group. However, any major acquisition or stake deal will require approval from relevant parties and regulatory processes before finalizing it.
Liverpool’s price increased manifold in 16 years
Liverpool’s business value has increased tremendously over the last decade and a half. FSG bought Liverpool from Tom Hicks and George Gillett in October 2010 for around £300 million. Compared to that time in Indian currency, today’s amount is around Rs 3,800 crore.
Liverpool also achieved great success on the field under FSG ownership. The club won the Premier League title and also achieved success in the UEFA Champions League. These achievements have led to a significant increase in the club’s global popularity, commercial earnings and brand value.
For this reason, today Liverpool’s value is considered many times higher than in 2010. The proposed stake sale could also be an opportunity for FSG to achieve higher returns from its investment.
External investment has come to Liverpool before
Despite FSG’s continued dominance at Liverpool, the past few years have seen the entry of outside investors into the club’s ownership structure. In 2023, Dynasty Equity purchased a minority stake in Liverpool.
At that time the value of the club was said to be around 3.3 billion pounds. The proposed new deal suggests a much larger valuation than this. If a deal worth around Rs 17 thousand crore is finalized for 30% stake, it will reflect the growing global business importance of the club.
Sharp jump in the prices of Premier League clubs
The English Premier League has seen a rise in club valuations over the past few years. The sale of Chelsea in 2022 was for around 4.25 billion pounds. After this, in 2024, British businessman Jim Ratcliffe bought 25% stake in Manchester United. That deal valued the club at around £4.3 billion.
The global popularity of the Premier League, income from TV rights, sponsorships, digital audiences and the clubs’ strong hold in international markets have played a significant role in increasing their value. This is why the world’s biggest businessmen and investors are now looking at football clubs not just as sporting institutions but as global entertainment and business brands.
What does this investment mean for Liverpool?
If the proposed deal by Amit Bhatia, Jeff Bezos and their partners goes through, Liverpool could benefit from new capital investment and a global business network. Bezos’s technology and business background and Bhatia’s football administration experience make this partnership special.
However, purchasing a minority stake would not mean a change of control of the club. In case FSG retains majority stake, strategic control will remain in its hands. Yet the involvement of such large investors could impact the club’s future business expansion, global partnerships and investment strategy.
The most important thing at the moment is whether the proposed deal gets finalized or not. If the deal of around Rs 17 thousand crore for 30% stake is completed, it could be included in the most talked about investment deals in the history of Liverpool. It will also show what level the business value of one of the world’s most popular football clubs has reached in the last decade and a half.
