Fans make Liverpool takeover move

[Anfield Fox]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7217238.stm

 

Liverpool supporters are to launch an ambitious plan to buy the football club from its current American owners.

 

US tycoons George Gillett and Tom Hicks recently finalised a £350m refinancing of the club which they bought in 2007.

 

But the Share Liverpool FC Group is to reveal plans for a buy-out of the club by 100,000 Reds fans around the world.

 

The model proposed will be a Barcelona style, "member-share" scheme, aimed at raising £500m to purchase the club from its US owners and build a new stadium.

 

As well as UK-based fans, a website will be launched to attract interest from Liverpool's supporter base around the world, particularly in East Asia.

 

Club refinancing

 

Those behind the move are football business lecturer and Liverpool fan Rogan Taylor, former director of communications at the Premier League Phil French, and lawyer Kevin Jacquiss - an expert in launching co-operatives.

 

"The time is right to offer a different solution to the rising concerns that football fans have about the patterns of ownership developing at our major football clubs," said Mr Taylor, who is director of the Football Industry Group at the University of Liverpool.

 

Full details of how the fans' group hopes to buy the club will be revealed later on Thursday, although the initial figures seem to suggest an investment per supporter of £5,000 each.

 

 

Thousands of Liverpool fans have already demonstrated their dissatisfaction with the current state of affairs

Rogan Taylor, Share Liverpool FC Group

 

Many Liverpool supporters have been unhappy at the recent uncertainty surrounding the refinancing of the club.

 

After much delay, and reports that either one or both of the owners was willing to sell a stake to Dubai's DIC, a refinancing deal was signed last week with the Royal Bank of Scotland and US bank Wachovia.

 

Tom Hicks confirmed to the BBC last week that of the £350m refinancing package, £105m of that will be debt tied to the club.

 

Of that total, £45m will be used for future player transfers and to meet the club's working capital needs, and the remaining £60m is thought to be free for start-up money for a new Liverpool stadium.

 

However, some supporters are unhappy about debt being placed on to the club, and there is also a perception that the owners' support for manager Rafa Benitez has not been as strong as it might.

 

Debt burden

 

"Thousands of Liverpool fans have already demonstrated their dissatisfaction with the current state of affairs," said Mr Taylor.

 

"Large amounts of debt often devolves onto clubs newly purchased, but the fans know that in the end, it will be they themselves who will have to pay it off through increased ticket prices and other schemes.

 

George Gillett (left) and Tom Hicks after taking over at Anfield

All looked rosy when the US duo took over in early 2007

 

"In such a case, why not simply buy the club yourselves?"

 

He said that many fans were unaware that there were other ways of financing and taking ownership of big clubs.

 

Mr Taylor said that in Germany and Spain most top-level football clubs were not for sale as they were owned by many thousands of "member fans".

 

"The Champions League has been won on six occasions in the last 15 years by clubs owned and run in such a way," he said.

 

Barcelona, which won the Champions League in 2006, is owned by its 100,000 fan-members.

 

Stadium plan

 

Earlier this month a survey carried out by the Liverpool Supporters' network showed that 76% of 2,000 fans questioned said they would "seriously consider reducing their financial commitment to the club" if the current owners stayed in charge.

 

When asked to choose between the owners and the manager as to who had the best interest of the club at heart, 99% backed Benitez.

 

However, Tom Hicks and George Gillett have insisted that they are fully behind manager Rafael Benitez.

 

They also say the club plans to build the 71,000-seat venue close to Anfield in Stanley Park in time for the 2011-12 season.

[Frosty Jack]

 

but with 100k member-fans they could raise a lot more than 500m

Edited January 31, 2008 by Negativland

[Guest xXx]

I would be very interested, specially if forums would be allowed to pitch in for the 5000 pounds.

 

Would love to be co-owner of LFC!

[R A Softlad]

I'm in.

[San Diego Red]

I'll do it.

[New York Red]

Pointless.

 

Dissatisfaction and being 5000 quid dissatisfied are very different.

 

Let's say that by some incredible miracle, that every possible interested person came up with all this money. What happens with the owners? The lead negotiator says we want to buy and Hicks says "OK. 500 million quid please".

 

"But you only paid half that Mr. Hicks!"

 

"Yeah, but y'all have 500 million and I want it"

[Andythered]

New York Red makes a valid point.

 

What price an effort to lobby the Government on sporting anti-trust measures that could force a non-EU business to sell a club at a low price if a co-operative met certain criteria?

[anfield11]

Pointless.

 

Dissatisfaction and being 5000 quid dissatisfied are very different.

 

Let's say that by some incredible miracle, that every possible interested person came up with all this money. What happens with the owners? The lead negotiator says we want to buy and Hicks says "OK. 500 million quid please".

 

"But you only paid half that Mr. Hicks!"

 

"Yeah, but y'all have 500 million and I want it"

 

 

"Well, f*ck off Mr. H" "We'll give you 350 and keep the extra working capital in the club" NO!!!?? Okay, we won't renew season tickets nor turn up until you agree.....see ya!!

[New York Red]

"Well, f*ck off Mr. H" "We'll give you 350 and keep the extra working capital in the club" NO!!!?? Okay, we won't renew season tickets nor turn up until you agree.....see ya!!

 

"Look here boy. Y'all are full of sh*t. They'll still keep coming, and paying, and I want that cash that y'all have".

[John am Rhein]

If this doesn't work (and I don't think it will) then what will they end up doing with any money they DO raise?

[New York Red]

If this doesn't work (and I don't think it will) then what will they end up doing with any money they DO raise?

 

Set up shop with that fat b*stard in Allicante...

[Guest Si]

Say we did own the club - were does the money come from for the new stadium, transfers etc?

 

Would members have to pay a yearly amount to keep things ticking over or would the club be running purely on profits?

[Falconhoof]

I'd like to be involved, not sure I could afford the sort of money being talked about but if they allow people to club together and buy a share that might help.

[McBain]

It makes me sad that we've come to this

 

Things are so f***ed at the club that we turn to pie in the sky desperation

[RP]

This is a non-starter anyway but even if it did somehow get off the ground, I don't think I've ever felt LESS like investing money in Liverpool Football Club.

[Gomez]

This is a non-starter anyway but even if it did somehow get off the ground, I don't think I've ever felt LESS like investing money in Liverpool Football Club.

 

I don't think you could look at it as in investment. That is if you put your money in, don't expect a return on it. The idea is that all profits would be ploughed back into the club rather than as a return for some tycoon.

 

I think they will struggle to find 100000 people willing to put 5k in though. They'd be better off looking for more people to put up less. I'd happily go in for 1 or 2k, but 5k? I'm not sure I could talk the wife into that.

[Hassony]

This is a non-starter anyway but even if it did somehow get off the ground, I don't think I've ever felt LESS like investing money in Liverpool Football Club.

 

its not really investing, as you are unlikley to see any kind of profit from your investment

[RP]

I don't think you could look at it as in investment. That is if you put your money in, don't expect a return on it. The idea is that all profits would be ploughed back into the club rather than as a return for some tycoon.

 

I think they will struggle to find 100000 people willing to put 5k in though. They'd be better off looking for more people to put up less. I'd happily go in for 1 or 2k, but 5k? I'm not sure I could talk the wife into that.

 

 

I bet I could.

[RP]

its not really investing, as you are unlikley to see any kind of profit from your investment

 

 

It is investing - the proposition is to put money in and get something tangible back, i.e. ownership of the Club. In theory that ownership would always be worth something.

 

It's a sh** investment, but still an investment IMO - not that it really matters.

[Guest tonyman]

I don't think you could look at it as in investment. That is if you put your money in, don't expect a return on it. The idea is that all profits would be ploughed back into the club rather than as a return for some tycoon.

 

I think they will struggle to find 100000 people willing to put 5k in though. They'd be better off looking for more people to put up less. I'd happily go in for 1 or 2k, but 5k? I'm not sure I could talk the wife into that.

you wouldnt need a hundred thousand some of our supporters would put millions in the pot

[RP]

you wouldnt need a hundred thousand some of our supporters would put millions in the pot

 

 

How many?

[Spike]

Colin Murray, Ewan Blair, and some people off of Hollyoaks

[Hassony]

Colin Murray, Ewan Blair, and some people off of Hollyoaks

Chris de Burgh can heal the club with his hand

[MFletcher]

Complete pie in the sky.

 

This will take vast numbers of people to invest vast sums of money. It won't happen. It's a nice idea and all, but it smacks of desperation.

 

Would I like to be involved? Certainly. Do I have ANY money, let £5,000, to buy a share? Not a chance.

 

They wouldn't even get a return on their investment. As the club would have to be run on profits - meaning little to no chance of a dividend being paid at any time. So you're giving them 5K with a view to having a 0.001% vote at the AGM.

 

The ONLY conceivable way this could happen would be if you had a major investment company prepared to invest their own wealth without having to be met halfway by fans. For example, if DIC came in and bought the club then called a share issue, releasing 49% of shares to give them majority control whilst bringing equity into the club - then you could probably find some way of organising it. But then you'd see bigger companies swooping and buying them in bulk.

 

It isn't feasible and it never will be. Say there's a miracle, and we get it together and own the club. How will we elect the directors? Will it become like the Real Madrid freakshow where we're electing people based on which players they'd bring to the club?

 

This is going to be an embarrassing failure. A nice idea, but completely and utterly unrealistic in every way.

Edited January 31, 2008 by MFletcher

[beejay]

Would be a good move for DIC to offer a slice of the club to fan-investors say 10% as part of their bid. Rogan Taylor's consortium might stand a chance of raising that sort of money but never £500m