Liverpool’s New Investors Secure Control Option

Liverpool’s new investors 1892 Holdings have secured first refusal on taking control of the club within the next year if Fenway Sports Group decide to sell.

The consortium, fronted by Amit Bhatia and featuring Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, was initially thought to have taken a 30% to one-third stake when the deal was unveiled on Friday. The numbers are bigger. The agreement covers 38% of the club, with 1892 paying just over £2bn for a minority shareholding and Liverpool still valued at around £5.5bn.

FSG moved quickly to insist this is not the start of a managed exit. The Americans, who bought Liverpool for £300m in 2010, stressed that they are under no obligation to sell any further shares to 1892 and that they retain full operational control of the club. The option is one-way: if FSG choose to sell or dilute their holding in the next 12 months, 1892 have the right to step in and buy a controlling stake.

From Liverpool’s point of view, that clause changes the landscape without changing the day-to-day reality. FSG remain in charge. Yet the door is now clearly marked: if the owners opt to walk through it within a year, Bezos, Bhatia and Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin could emerge as the club’s new majority shareholders.

For now, Bezos is classed as a passive investor. His money comes into Liverpool via the K5 Sports fund, where he is lead investor, rather than through a personal, hands-on role. The influence will sit elsewhere. Bryan Baum, co-founder and managing partner of K5 Global, will take a place on an expanded Liverpool board, joining Bhatia, who becomes vice-chair, and Elaine Saverin, wife of Eduardo Saverin.

Bhatia’s move into Anfield has been underpinned by backing from the Mittal Family Trust. His father-in-law is Lakshmi Mittal, the Indian steel tycoon and long-time fixture on global rich lists. The Mittal family are worth around $17bn, with Saverin’s fortune estimated at about $33bn.

Anfield has lived through leveraged buyouts, courtroom battles and a decade-plus of American stewardship. It now finds itself with a new power bloc at the table, armed with vast wealth and a 12‑month option that could redraw Liverpool’s ownership map in one decisive stroke.