Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is part of a billionaire-backed consortium closing in on a major investment in Liverpool, with talks advancing over the purchase of around 30% of the Premier League club.
The investor group is led by British-Indian businessman Amit Bhatia and also includes Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin.
The proposed transaction is worth about £1.35 billion for a 30% stake, which would value Liverpool at approximately £4.5 billion. An agreement is understood to have been reached in principle, although completing the transaction could still take several weeks.
Fenway Sports Group (FSG), Liverpool’s owners since 2010, previously confirmed that Bhatia’s consortium had approached them about making what it described as a “strategic minority investment” in the club. With reports from last month that Bezos had held discussions about joining the group, while cautioning at the time that his participation was not guaranteed.
The latest developments suggest those discussions have progressed significantly, with Bezos now reported as part of the consortium pursuing the stake.
Bhatia has considerable experience in English football. The businessman, who is the son-in-law of Indian steel billionaire Lakshmi Mittal, spent 18 years as a director and co-owner of Queens Park Rangers before recently relinquishing his stake in the London club.
Bezos would bring extraordinary financial firepower to the investor group. The 62-year-old founded Amazon and stepped down as its chief executive in 2021, remaining executive chairman. He also owns The Washington Post and founded aerospace company Blue Origin.
His fortune is estimated at more than $250 billion, placing him among the world’s wealthiest people.
Liverpool would not be Bezos’s first flirtation with investing in a major sports franchise. He was previously linked with the Washington Commanders after the NFL team was put up for sale and has also explored the possibility of buying the Seattle Seahawks.
Neither opportunity ultimately resulted in a deal, but an investment in Liverpool would mark his first significant move into ownership of a major sporting organisation.
FSG bought Liverpool for £300 million in October 2010, meaning the valuation attached to the latest negotiations demonstrates the extraordinary growth in the club’s value during the American group’s ownership.
This would also not be the first time FSG has brought an outside investor into Liverpool.
In 2023, global sports investment firm Dynasty Equity acquired a small minority stake for between $100 million and $200 million. Liverpool said at the time that the investment would primarily help reduce debt and meet capital expenditure associated with projects including the redevelopment of Anfield and the AXA Training Centre.
Liverpool’s commercial strength has continued to grow. The club reported record revenues for the 2024-25 financial year, further enhancing its appeal to global investors.
Importantly, the current discussions concern a minority investment rather than a full takeover, meaning FSG would remain Liverpool’s controlling owner if the proposed 30% transaction is completed.
But bringing Bezos, Saverin and Bhatia into the ownership structure would represent one of the most significant financial developments at Anfield since FSG took control of the club 16 years ago.
