When U.S. investors George Gillett and Tom Hicks took over England's Liverpool soccer team last year, they knew they were inheriting a squad with some of the game's most gifted players in the home town of the Beatles and a brand name nearly as world-famous as that of Manchester United. What they didn’t count on, however, is the hostility of its diehard fans, who might be willing to pay them to get lost.

When U.S. investors George Gillett and Tom Hicks took over England's Liverpool soccer team last year, they knew they were inheriting a squad with some of the game's most gifted players in the home town of the Beatles and a brand name nearly as world-famous as that of Manchester United. What they didn’t count on, however, is the hostility of its diehard fans, who might be willing to pay them to get lost.

A group called Share Liverpool FC launched plans for a £500 million ($994.9 million) plan to buy the team from Gillett and Hicks and build a new stadium, on Thursday. The specific details have not yet been revealed but it is understood that 100,000 supporters will be asked to invest £5,000 ($9,949) a piece. One possible flaw: the price is not far higher than the £470 million ($925 million) the American tycoons are thought to have paid.

So far, there has been no official comment from Liverpool Football Club regarding the plans. A spokesman for the team told Forbes.com that Share Liverpool had not yet made an approach.

Hostility to the club's new owners, which has been brewing since last year, reached new heights this month after they signed a £350 million ($696.6 million) re-inancing plan that will encumber the team with £30 million ($59.7 million) in debt. Fans fear that ultimately the price for repaying the debt will be borne by them, pointing to Manchester United, owned by American billionaire Malcolm Glazer, which has seen a 50.0% rise in season ticket prices.

The Liverpool supporters' plan is the brain child of Rogan Taylor, a lecturer at the Football Industry Group at Liverpool University. "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," he told the BBC on Thursday.

Unlike the case on the Continent, where many of the top teams including Real Madrid and Barcelona are owned by fans, only 12 English clubs and one in Scotland follow that pattern of ownership. (See: " Another Russian Tycoon May Be Seeking Kicks In U.K.")

Many of England's leading teams have been snapped up by foreign billionaires, eager to get their hands on the cash cows, as advertising revenues have soared, not to mention the prestige and international media headlines that ownership brings. Russian oil billionaire Roman Abramovich controversially took over Premier - or top - league team Chelsea, while Russian steel billionaire Alisher Usmanov, and Denver sports billionaire E. Stanley Kroenke have build up stakes in Arsenal. Last summer Manchester City was taken over by ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

While the cash injection has helped clubs rise from virtual obscurity to, in Manchester City's case, fourth position in the Premier League by bringing in top players, they have massively inflated salaries and transfer costs for players, leaving the clubs with huge levels of debt that could jeopardize their futures.

Though shared ownership isn't a miracle cure it can offer something very positive if done the right way, says Kevin Rye, a spokesman for Supporters Direct, which has been advising Share Liverpool FC on its plans. "Fans can deliver consistency. If you ask fans what the most important thing is they will say, yes, we do want it to do well in the short-term, but we don’t want to gamble everything away on a one-season wonder."

Shared ownership also ensures that all the profits of the team are reinvested in it, said Duncan Drasdo, spokesman for the Manchester United Supporters Trust, which has set up the Phoenix Fund to wrest control of the club from Glazer. The trust's approach is less dramatic - it has opted for a more gradual build up, and is currently in talks to secure the backing of some investment banks. He welcomed the move by supporters of the club's arch rivals. "It will certaintly trigger fierce rivalry among fans. Manchester United supporters certaintly won't want Liverpool to steal a march on them."

A group called Share Liverpool FC launched plans for a £500 million ($994.9 million) plan to buy the team from Gillett and Hicks and build a new stadium, on Thursday. The specific details have not yet been revealed but it is understood that 100,000 supporters will be asked to invest £5,000 ($9,949) a piece. One possible flaw: the price is not far higher than the £470 million ($925 million) the American tycoons are thought to have paid.

So far, there has been no official comment from Liverpool Football Club regarding the plans. A spokesman for the team told Forbes.com that Share Liverpool had not yet made an approach.

Hostility to the club's new owners, which has been brewing since last year, reached new heights this month after they signed a £350 million ($696.6 million) re-inancing plan that will encumber the team with £30 million ($59.7 million) in debt. Fans fear that ultimately the price for repaying the debt will be borne by them, pointing to Manchester United, owned by American billionaire Malcolm Glazer, which has seen a 50.0% rise in season ticket prices.

The Liverpool supporters' plan is the brain child of Rogan Taylor, a lecturer at the Football Industry Group at Liverpool University. "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," he told the BBC on Thursday.

Unlike the case on the Continent, where many of the top teams including Real Madrid and Barcelona are owned by fans, only 12 English clubs and one in Scotland follow that pattern of ownership. (See: " Another Russian Tycoon May Be Seeking Kicks In U.K.")

Many of England's leading teams have been snapped up by foreign billionaires, eager to get their hands on the cash cows, as advertising revenues have soared, not to mention the prestige and international media headlines that ownership brings. Russian oil billionaire Roman Abramovich controversially took over Premier - or top - league team Chelsea, while Russian steel billionaire Alisher Usmanov, and Denver sports billionaire E. Stanley Kroenke have build up stakes in Arsenal. Last summer Manchester City was taken over by ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

While the cash injection has helped clubs rise from virtual obscurity to, in Manchester City's case, fourth position in the Premier League by bringing in top players, they have massively inflated salaries and transfer costs for players, leaving the clubs with huge levels of debt that could jeopardize their futures.

Though shared ownership isn't a miracle cure it can offer something very positive if done the right way, says Kevin Rye, a spokesman for Supporters Direct, which has been advising Share Liverpool FC on its plans. "Fans can deliver consistency. If you ask fans what the most important thing is they will say, yes, we do want it to do well in the short-term, but we don’t want to gamble everything away on a one-season wonder."

Shared ownership also ensures that all the profits of the team are reinvested in it, said Duncan Drasdo, spokesman for the Manchester United Supporters Trust, which has set up the Phoenix Fund to wrest control of the club from Glazer. The trust's approach is less dramatic - it has opted for a more gradual build up, and is currently in talks to secure the backing of some investment banks. He welcomed the move by supporters of the club's arch rivals. "It will certaintly trigger fierce rivalry among fans. Manchester United supporters certaintly won't want Liverpool to steal a march on them."

source: http://www.forbes.com/2008/02/04/liverpool-soccer-fans-face-cx_vr_0131autofacescan01.html?partner=faces_newsletter

www.worldsoccerconnection.net

Tags: Fans Liverpool Soccer George Gillett Tom Hicks Malcolm Glazer

Bookmark: