Jeff Bezos in talks to join £1.35bn Liverpool bid — 432 lifetime bans in ticket tout crackdown

23 July 2026 | Liverpool, London — Updated 16:30 GMT

The Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has held talks about joining the consortium that is seeking to buy around 30% of Liverpool.

The group led by the former Queens Park Rangers co-owner Amit Bhatia has made a provisional offer of £1.35bn to buy a stake from Fenway Sports Group (FSG), and is talking to other potential investors over supplying funding.

Bezos has a personal fortune of around $257bn, according to Forbes, making him the fourth-richest person in the world. The 62-year-old has previously explored bids for the NFL franchises Seattle Seahawks and Washington Commanders without completing a deal, but has never before looked at investing in the Premier League.

Sources with knowledge of the talks have indicated that any deal with Bhatia's consortium would see Bezos receive equity in Liverpool.

The Bhatia bid for Liverpool is understood to value the club at around £4.5bn, higher than the valuation of Manchester United when Sir Jim Ratcliffe bought 25% of the club two years ago.

Welcome to the latest sports news — where big money and big names collide at Anfield.

Jeff Bezos in Talks to Join £1.35bn Liverpool Bid

The Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has held talks about joining the consortium that is seeking to buy around 30% of Liverpool.

The group led by the former Queens Park Rangers co-owner Amit Bhatia has made a provisional offer of £1.35bn to buy a stake from Fenway Sports Group (FSG), and is talking to other potential investors over supplying funding.

Bezos has a personal fortune of around $257bn, according to Forbes, making him the fourth-richest person in the world. The 62-year-old has previously explored bids for the NFL franchises Seattle Seahawks and Washington Commanders without completing a deal, but has never before looked at investing in the Premier League.

Sources with knowledge of the talks have indicated that any deal with Bhatia's consortium would see Bezos receive equity in Liverpool.

Liverpool Issue 432 Life Bans and Seize £1.2m in Ticket Tout Investigation

More than £1.2m in assets have been seized and 432 lifetime bans issued as part of a clampdown by Liverpool FC and Merseyside police on ticket touting. In the first operation of its kind between a Premier League club and their local police authority, Liverpool's investigations team worked with the force's economic crime team to analyse almost 700,000 ticket registrations last season and to focus on the laundering of criminal proceeds from illicit ticket sales.

The joint investigation has led to £1.2m in assets related to organised ticket touts being detained with several cases taking place under the Proceeds of Crime Act. Two people have been convicted and another is due in court next month. The assets seized will be split between Merseyside police and the Home Office.

Liverpool Primed for Business: What the Deal Means for Anfield

A consortium led by Amit Bhatia, the former co-owner of Queens Park Rangers and son-in-law of the Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, has opened talks with Liverpool's owner, Fenway Sports Group, over buying a significant stake in the club.

Neither party has commented on the size of the stake or the investment amount being offered but it is believed to be a provisional offer of £1.35bn for about 30%. Discussions began three months ago but FSG insists the talks remain at a preliminary stage.

The reported offer values Liverpool at about £4.5bn. Manchester United were valued at slightly less when Sir Jim Ratcliffe bought an initial 25% stake in February 2024, increased to 27.7%, although the latest valuation of United by Forbes was $7.2bn (£5.38bn). Forbes, again, had Real Madrid as the most valuable club in the world at $9.5bn, with Barcelona in second place at $7.5bn. Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital acquired Chelsea for £4.25bn in May 2022 as a distressed asset sale.

Why FSG Would Sell a Minority Stake

First of all, £1.35bn for 30% of Liverpool would represent a healthy profit on a club it bought for £300m in 2010 and whose value has soared since. And the principal owner, John W Henry, is a venture capitalist, after all.

But it is also true that FSG remains fiercely competitive and to continue challenging among an elite that includes oil-rich states necessitates ever more investment. That is why FSG has sought, and occasionally found, new investors before. The current talks are not considered part of an exit strategy by Liverpool's owners but a potential opportunity to attract considerable funds while remaining in overall control.

The company has parked plans to buy a second club – a decision that led to Michael Edwards's recent departure as FSG's chief executive of football – and last summer funded the biggest transfer outlay in Liverpool's history of almost £450m. To maintain and improve those levels, having made only a modest profit of £8m when winning the Premier League title under Arne Slot in 2024-25, requires injecting fresh capital into the club.

Have We Been Here Before?

Several times. In March 2021, FSG sold 10% of the company to RedBird Capital Partners for £543m. In 2022, FSG hired the investment banks Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to seek out potential buyers for a 10% stake in Liverpool. No deal was done and Henry confirmed the following year that FSG was always open to new investment but not looking to sell the club. In 2023, FSG sold a reported 4% stake in Liverpool to Dynasty Equity, an American sports investment company, for £164m. That money was largely used to pay off debts incurred during the pandemic.

What Happens Next

Talks continue until a deal is done or collapses. FSG's willingness to confirm Bhatia's bid in a statement to the Financial Times on Tuesday, and Bhatia's departure from QPR that very same day, indicates negotiations are heading towards a successful conclusion.

Bhatia, who stepped down as co-owner and director of QPR on Tuesday after 18 years, is believed to have secured financial backing from Mittal. The Mittal family wealth is estimated to be £23bn.

Those riches pale in comparison, however, with another potential investor – Amazon's founder, Jeff Bezos. The fourth-richest person in the world could afford to buy Liverpool outright and still have $250bn left in his back pocket. Bezos has been approached about joining the consortium but is reportedly undecided on whether to invest in a Premier League club for the first time.

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