A wave of wealthy Americans are turning to a new way of expanding their wealth and influence beyond buying up start-ups and multimillion-dollar mansions: European soccer clubs. Now, billionaire Jeff Bezos may be joining the cohort of rich investors looking to live out their sports-owner fantasies.
The Amazon founder is in talks to join the consortium looking to buy around 30% of Liverpool FC. The group, led by British-Indian investor Amit Bhatia, has made a provisional offer of £1.35 billion (nearly $1.8 billion) to buy a minority stake from Fenway Sports Groups (FSG)—valuing the Premier League club at around £4.5 billion (around $6 billion).
Bhatia, who also formerly co-owned the English Championship team Queens Park Rangers for 18 years, is also looking to other potential investors in ramping up funding. And Bezos—the fourth richest person in the world, with $267 billion to his name—could throw his hat in the ring.
According to multiple outlets, sources who are clued in on the talks suggested that the Amazon entrepreneur would receive equity in Liverpool if a deal is struck with Bhatia’s group.
It wouldn’t be the first time Bezos has eyed up investments in sports. The 62-year-old has also looked into snapping up NFL teams, including the Seattle Seahawks and Washington Commanders, but never went through with an offer. This is the first time Bezos has been reported to be in talks to buy a stake in a European soccer club.
And he’s joining a growing trend of wealthy Americans spending their money on sports teams across the pond. As European leagues have gained popularity through hit Apple TV+ show Ted Lasso and Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s high-profile ownership of Welsh club Wrexham, even more billionaires are hoping to get in on the action.
Fortune reached out to FSG and Bezos for comment.
Wealthy Americans are purchasing European soccer teams
Well-off Americans have long parked their fortunes through strategic investments and vanity projects, from Warren Buffett‘s sprawling stock portfolio to Elon Musk‘s $44 billion acquisition of X (formerly Twitter). Now, more are looking overseas, pouring money into European soccer teams as valuations soar and more international fans tune in for matches.
If the rumors are true and the consortium succeeds in buying a minority stake in Liverpool FC, Bezos will be just one of the team’s growing list of U.S. investors. In 2010, investing mogul John W. Henry took over the club after purchasing it from fellow Americans Tom Hicks and George Gillett for £300 million (nearly $400 million), with the team’s current valuation sitting at $6.2 billion.
One of the most publicized purchases that put American ownership of European soccer clubs on the map was Reynolds and McElhenney’s purchase of Wrexham A.F.C. in 2020. The two Hollywood stars—the former Canadian, and the latter American—shelled out £2 million (around $2.5 million) for the lower-league Welsh Club. Wrexham has since earned three consecutive promotions to reach England’s Championship for the first time in more than four decades, while the club’s valuation and global fanbase exploded thanks to their hit documentary Welcome to Wrexham.
“I’m now so much in love with this sport that I actually hate it,” Reynolds told BBC in 2023. “Each match I’m pacing around like a caged lion.”
Other household-name teams have major American backers. In 2022, the CEO of holding company Eldridge Industries Todd Boehly led a consortium that bought Chelsea F.C. for £4.25 billion—about $5.2 billion at the time. The American businessman, worth around $8.5 billion, snapped up the team from Russian business oligarch Roman Abramovich, who was forced to sell.
Stanley Kroenke, an American property magnate worth $26.8 billion, also bought up popular Premier League team Arsenal over the span of a decade. Starting back in 2007, Kroenke started off by acquiring a 9.9% stake in Arsenal holdings, becoming a majority owner in 2011 with 62% of shares under his name, eventually taking on full ownership in 2018. In total, it’s estimated he shelled out roughly $1 billion to buy the franchise.
“Arsenal are a fantastic club with a special history and tradition,” Kroenke said in 2011. “We intend to build on this rich heritage and take the club to new success.”
Arsenal has since become one of the world’s most valuable soccer clubs—worth an estimated $5,4 billion, according to Forbes—and has finished as the league’s runner-up in three straight seasons.
