Board agrees to Liverpool FC sale – Liverpool fans are cautious

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It has been a crazy 24 hours which an anti Hicks & Gillett video being published to YouTube and then late last night a bunch of statements from the club threw everything in turmoil.

This is what we all know:

The board has agreed to the sale of Liverpool F.C. to New England Sports Ventures who own one of the most prestigious baseball teams in America, The Boston Red Sox.  official statement

The club also issued the following caution:
“The sale is conditional on Premier League approval, resolution of the dispute concerning Board membership and other matters.”

This follows an earlier statement that Hicks and Gillett tried to block the sale by firing Ian Ayre and Christian Purslow from the board. I am sure that the legal challenge might drag this a little further.

There was a rumour earlier that George Gillett has sold his portion to Tom Hicks or another 3rd party but that was dismissed as both Hicks & Gillett released a joint statement.

As regarding the new proposed owner John W Henry (Here is his Wikipedia info on him) has been very good for the Red Sox. On the field they have won the World Series twice (2004,2007) since he took over,  they had a dry spell from 1919 to 2004. There was however a blunder he attempted to make by changing the team colours however he listen to the fans and kept the tradition. Ticket prices since he took over have gone up however. Also good to point out that he made his money on Wall Street and his current net worth of around £800 million might have him seeking loans to fund his purchase.

Of course many fans are not happy that the new owner is American following what happened with Hicks & Gillett and I don’t blame them. We need to be cautious and ensure that what happened to us under H&G doesn’t happen again. So hold off and don’t crack open that bottle of champagne yet.

Keep calm and Carra on.

Y.N.W.A.

-Antoine

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38 Comments

  1. Agree with you mate. I think this is what will make or break the SOS. I hope they get enough access to make sure that we do not have a repeat of H&G. But whatever at least the Yanks are out. This shows what passionate and responsible fans can do.

  2. Antoine,

    Given all your Anti Purslow rants recently do you not think you should offer some sort of an apology from your site.

    Last night proved he was all for the club and Hicks saw him as a blocker.

    I will remain cautious but if the sale does go through we wont be servicing any debt.

    Take it easy
    Mokolpop

    1. No Mokolpop, I am not appologising to Purslow. Remember that he is the one who fired Rafa. Also Purslow is a great PR man, he didn’t do this for the good of LFC but did it for himself.

      Kissing up to the new owners hoping that they will keep him on board.

  3. as far as im concern, i dont want LFC will go to any administration problems which will make us like portsmouth. we are now on relegation zone and it wud be a massive disaster if our points will be deducted.. :(

  4. Has 800 mil, hmm I sense a purchase at fire sale prices calm the debt and sell on for a quick profit.

  5. I am still skeptical about this guy. He has 800mil but I doubt he will dip 300mil from his own pocket to pay for the club. In that sense a loan is inevitable. Then he has to start building a stadium – which again another loan is inevitable. Where on earth can we get the money to spend on players? H&G both are worth more than 800mil each, and they can’t even manage that. They own other clubs and sports franchise. They failed. So what makes this guy so special that he can rebuild Liverpool – with limited funds? Loans again?

  6. America has 310 million people, a lot of them very wealthy. That both Hicks and Henry have owned professional baseball teams and that their performances as heads of each franchise could not be more starkly different gives us a good metric to analyze with. Any rudimentary research will show you that these men are very different and should give us all reason to be cautiously optimistic.

    The best part is that Henry has built the Red Sox not only into perennial contenders (and two-time Champions over the last six years) but the hub for baseball intellectualism – his teams are run by the best minds in the sport (scouts, quants, negotiators).

  7. im glad things r happening but H & G seem to be trying to cause problems with the sale from what i understand, r these people idiots? they r treating us like a business, they want to make profit on the sale, but they should know u cant buy a “business”, make it worse, F things up and then sell it for a profit, this would have been sorted long ago if they realised that, I agree with the article though, im holding off cracking open the bubbly just yet

  8. Antoine, do you not now think that it is quite clear that Broughton, Ayre & Purslow are not infact puppets for H&G but have been fighting tooth and nail to get the American duo out of our club. It is now quite clear the restraints that Purslow on his own was fighting against, I am not saying the sun shines out of his arse but don’t think he is the baddie people portray him as, it was only once he had some extra muscle in Broughton and Ayre that together they could have a chance of beating these two. I agree with caution over the sale as it has not been concluded and could rumble on for some time yet, that would go for anyone taking over – once bitten twice shy is never more apt in our circumstance although surely RBS have to call in the loan ASAP if the two cnuts resist this sale as it is clear now what they want as they have hopefully played their last hand.

  9. i hope this nightmare is over what kind of power have G & H have someone can tell me can they go to court?? what gonna happens if they have the money in 10 days

  10. While we all welcome the demise of the H&G I am not convinced that this will change the chief problem of getting new owners who can afford to build the new ground, and also have sufficient funds for team rebuilding to be able to sustain a challenge to Chelsea and Man U, without borrowing?? I truly hope I’m wrong!

  11. Antoine

    I agree with Mokolpop, I know of Purslow through a friend and he is a lifelong passionate Red and has the cubs best interest at heart. Rafa had had his time and whilst I didn’t agree with getting rid before we had a suitable manager lined up (RH is not that man) we were going backwards and Purslow did what most reds wanted and thought was right for LFC. You should apologise.

  12. Antoine your of understanding and respect of how business in the real world works is sad. Purslow, Broughton & Ayre are professionals. These guys stepped up into a highly volatile political situation. Trying to sell our club whilst having to cop non stop over to top media and fan bashing and protesting all along having to TRY work business like with the horrid men we ALL want out. I think their personal and business reputation was on the line. They probably could have sold the club months ago BUT they clearly understand they CANNOT make a mistake with this. Their defiance last night against H&G was all about getting making a stand.
    If you and other fans are still up for a fight how bout taking your banner and head to the games and start slagging of the bum players we have who are the ones showing no heart…unlike our 3 board members!!

  13. sorry my grammer was poor…too fired up to proof read before I submitted.
    I think Broughton was the key in all this. He was the RBS man, and H&G killed off any chance they had of getting another extention from RBS when they tried to remove the board.

  14. While John W. Henry is “only” worth $800 million, keep in mind his company might be worth more. Others will own shares in it as well and so it is more important how much cash New England Sports Ventures has, not Henry himself.

    I seriously hope any debt is reasonable and that serious funds are made available for future growth.

    Finally if this goes through I think a tip of the hat is in order to Antoine, SOS, and all the others that have worked tirelessly to send the message that Hicks and Gillette are not welcome and they had to go!

  15. I get the feeling that some folk here think this guy doesn’t have enough money, being valued at only £800m.

    I have some alternatives owners for you, who would you like out of these?

    The Queen?
    Sultan of Brunei?
    God?
    Bruce Wayne?

    This guy seems to have transformed the fortunes of the Red Sox. I’ve been to Fenway Park, it’s pretty impressive.

    Unlike H&G he has a track record of delivering a profit from sports franchises.

    Surely, that should be our short to medium term objective? Get the club to deliver a profit. Other things (transfers, cups, success) will hopefully follow.

    Oh, and you may want to rip up those “Yanks Out” banners :)

  16. Don’t worry about how much John Henry is worth, those are just guesses in Forbes and Wikipedia. The bottom line is that he is a very wealthy and shrewd businessman who does not seek the spotlight. Having lived in both Boston and Liverpool I can tell you that Red Sox fans are just as passionate as those in Liverpool, extremely demanding and not shy to express their views. They even have their own version of Man U, the New York Yankees! Mr Henry delivered two championships within a few years – 2004 and 2007 (the Sox had previously won in 1918). The stadium is permanently sold out and the payroll is always one of the highest in baseball.
    Their regional sports channel, NESN, is one of the most profitable in the US.
    I think Liverpool is in very good hands!

  17. Look on the bright side lads, at least the ‘Red Sox’ are a red team and are familiar with what the colour means to us Reds.
    YNWA
    SL

  18. I agree with Dunworth, NESV is a powerhouse in sports promotion and investment and worth billions. They are nothing like H&G. Also, they are far superior to Kenny Huangs group who look like kids trading baseball cards compared to NESV. These are serious investors who put everything into building successful sports franchises and not on the cheap. I firmly believe there will be no borrowing to build the club, they have never operated that way and frankly have the financial resources to do it right-Yes, I follow the Sox. I also know they will build a new stadium, the board has said repeadedly it is part of any offer to be considered and they also invest heavily in players. I am more than cautiously optimistic, I am estatic!

  19. I think you should all calm down, Antoine has his opinion on Purslow etc and i respect that he is sticking by his opinon, i personally have seen Purslow in a new light the last few weeks, but Antoine has his reasons for that. We are all entitled to our opinions but i dont think forcing someone to apologise for sharing his views is the right way. He like the rest of us is entitled to his own opinion and if we were all of the same opinion message boards like this would be pretty boreing. I dont fully agree with him but thats just my opinion. Lets agree to dosagree!!!

  20. This is basic business, spend 300m on a bankrupt club, hang on to it for 12 months then sell it for 500 or 600m to folks just like H&G. Nice, quick little profit for a baseball club!

  21. Not sure if anyone has been using goggle but red socks are in debt like us. With loans against there name and there profits are paying the loan of. I don’t really wona see another yank come waste out club feather away. YNWA

  22. Can’t see how this won’t go through, Broughton was bought in to sort out the situation and I still believe he will, that is unless H&G use their personal wealth or some idiot gives them finance (lets face it both are doubtfull). One thing I want to mention as have others previously is that its not all about the new guys personal wealth, obviously he does need a certain amount but I get the feeling that many people think that the only way forward is for us to have a multi billionaire buy in, truth is, as long as he can get us out of the debt thats costing us millions at the moment and provide cash to pay for new players (at non inflated prices) he could do very well, for us and for himself. Lets face it he’s not a Reds fan he’s doing this to make money, which is fair enough as long as he can provide success. If you look at The Gunners they used finance to pay for the Emirates and now the extra revenue pays for it, we’ll go the same way too which isn’t a bad thing as long as its done properly. I’ve also read an article which said that he likes to spot unknown talent rather than solely rely on big names, if he could that effectivly with us the future maybe bright but only time will tell, would you then cut a bit of slack for Mr Purslow? Not directed solely at you Antoine.

  23. Antoine, you’ve gone a little bit too far. Purslow doesn’t deserve this. I’ll give him my respect.

  24. So he’s worth £540million (estimated before the credit crunch)

    Takeover is worth £300million = £240million left
    New Stadium – £250million? = -£10million
    New Players – £100million at the very least = -£110million
    Wages – £70million = -£180million

    Hmmmmm….

  25. Hey Antoine great work on EOTK,really enjoyable.I have to agree on the Purslow view you have(cuase he did sack Rafa) but what do you think of the efforts put in by Broughton(besides the fact that he is a Chelski supporter)?
    YNWA

  26. badmoveeric, John, and Alex all have this right. Henry and his organization NESV have completely transformed the Red Sox in a short number of years. I live in Boston, and experience first hand every year the passion this city has for its sports. Henry will take the fans seriously, and devote appropriate resources to building a championship caliber team. The LFC supporters base in Boston is massive, and as a businessman, I suspect Henry knows better than to screw around with Reds Supporters, at the very least for fear of the repercussions a failed ownership stint would have for NESV’s other ventures. Furthermore, LFC, like the Red Sox, is a team built upon its solid history, with a globally recognized brand and supporters all over the world. I think that this is a very important fact which the new owners fully understand- the fans and supporters want to see teams winning championships and trophies. The synergies that exist between the Red Sox and LFC are deep and undeniable, and will only serve to help NESV turn things around for the Club. While this is certainly an investment for NESV, it’s a smart one that they will only truly capitalize on years down the road when Liverpool have a new stadium that holds more supporters, drives revenues, and are back to our winning ways. I highly doubt this is a quick buy low sell high ploy.

  27. Antoine,

    I believe I am well qualified to weigh in on this matter given that I am a massive lifetime fan of Liverpool AND the Boston Red Sox. I literally bleed red whenever you cut me and always have.

    Anyway, Liverpool supporters should know that Henry and the NESV group have been OUTSTANDING owners for Sox fans. We love them. The Red Sox are absolutely run from top to bottom with pure class and professionalism. Henry never tried to change the colors of the team either, mate, that was a stupid rumor that wasn’t credible at all. Nobody ever took that seriously. That group has brought in the best minds in baseball and we now have a very strategic plan for operating the club year in and year out in a fiscally responsible manner while developing young talent and striving for a world championship every single year. They do not drunkenly spend like the Yankees or Man City hoping that their blind spending sprees will result in a team in the end. It is impressive spending, but restrained, sound investement and always targeted.

    I have no reason whatsoever to worry about this group. They will be spectacular owners. As has been suggested that they may be in and out like Henry has been with other groups, I don’t believe you can compare owning the Red Sox or Liverpool FC with the Marlins or other team interests as majority ownership. The Red Sox and Liverpool are iconic brands worth investing your life in. I believe that we will see this group act with Liverpool just like they have with Boston.

    Rejoice fellow Reds. If this day does dawn on our club then it is a bright and glorious day ahead.

  28. @Brian the Red “I literally bleed red whenever you cut me and always have”

    Just like every othedr human on earth then…

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