World's Richest Man Bezos Invests in EPL's Liverpool: "Growth Potential Expected"
Bezos-Led Investment Consortium Acquires Liverpool Stake
Secures Approximately 30% Ownership in a 1.65 Billion Pound Deal
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has become a major shareholder in Liverpool, the prestigious football club in England's Premier League (EPL). With an investment consortium including Bezos acquiring approximately 30% of the club's shares, Liverpool's enterprise value has surpassed 5 billion pounds (about 9.7 trillion won).
According to international media such as Sky Sports in the UK, Liverpool's largest shareholder—U.S. sports investment firm Fenway Sports Group (FSG)—agreed on August 14 (local time) to sell a strategic minority stake in the club to '1892 Holdings', a consortium joined by Bezos and others. The deal is reported to be worth 1.65 billion pounds (about 3.2 trillion won). However, the transaction is subject to final approval from football authorities before completion.
The consortium is led by Amit Bhatia, the former co-owner of England's second-division club Queens Park Rangers (QPR), and also includes participants such as Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, in addition to Bezos. Bhatia will be appointed as Liverpool's vice chairman and join the board of directors, while Bezos will remain an investor without participating on the board.
Bezos has previously shown interest in acquiring U.S. professional sports teams and, during his time at Amazon, has expanded into sports broadcasting. Amazon Prime Video previously secured EPL broadcasting rights in the UK and currently holds sports content such as the UEFA Champions League in Europe and the National Football League (NFL) in the United States.
This deal is especially noteworthy as it marks Bezos's first substantial investment in the world of football. Analysts point to Liverpool's growth potential as a key factor behind the move. FSG acquired Liverpool for about 300 million pounds in 2010 and has significantly boosted the club's commercial value since then. Under FSG's ownership, Liverpool won the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League and secured a global fanbase as well as substantial commercial influence.
Bezos's participation does not directly signal a change in Liverpool's management rights or the immediate acquisition of high-profile players. FSG will remain the largest shareholder even after this stake sale and continue to operate the club. Especially due to EPL financial regulations, new investors face restrictions and cannot simply inject unlimited funds into the squad.
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Instead, Jeff Bezos's management experience and global network—which helped Amazon grow into a world-leading technology and retail company—could be leveraged to enhance Liverpool's commercial value. As a result, this investment is expected to support Liverpool's long-term expansion of its global business.
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