Jeff Bezos consortium in advanced talks to buy 30% of Liverpool, fans cautious
Jeff Bezos is reported to be part of a consortium in advanced talks to buy a 30% stake in Liverpool Football Club, the news said on 11 August 2026. Supporters, still affected by the Tom Hicks and George Gillett era, have reacted with caution to the potential high-profile investment.
When Fenway Sports Group (FSG) bought Liverpool in 2010 for £300m, CEO Billy Hogan said the club was "literally on the brink of bankruptcy"; FSG have since provided about £218m in intra-group loans, taking their total outlay to roughly £518m. The proposed sale of 30% would value the club at £4.5bn and would see FSG receive £1.35bn, a rise to 13 times the 2010 valuation. Football finance expert Kieran Maguire said: "It's a great deal for FSG," and added: "They generate more than £1bn from the deal and still keep control - this represents the best of both worlds."
Off-field investment and sporting success have driven Liverpool's value increase, including a new training ground, stadium redevelopment, ending a 30-year title drought in 2019-20, a Premier League title in 2024-25 and a sixth Champions League in 2018-19. FSG previously accepted outside investment when Dynasty Equity bought 3% in 2023, a move Maguire compared to the approach used by City Football Group of letting minority investors in to recoup purchase costs. Maguire warned that Premier League Squad Cost Ratio rules link transfer spending to commercial income, and said: "The deal could be a straight share sale by FSG to the new group, in which case there would be no financial implications for the club itself."
Forbes values Bezos's personal fortune at about $257bn (£190bn), which the article notes is "270 times" Liverpool's record revenues of £703m announced last year. Bezos stepped down as Amazon CEO five years ago but remains one of the company's biggest shareholders and owns Blue Origin, Nash Holdings and the Washington Post; he created AI company Prometheus, which last month invested £330m in a British AI start-up. Last week he filed to sell 15 million Amazon shares with a market value of about £3.1bn, a sum described as double the value of the consortium's offer for the Liverpool stake.
The potential deal would give Bezos a minority share in a global sports brand with a large U.S. following: research company GWI reports Liverpool have 26 million supporters in the United States and the fastest-growing fan base, and the club toured the U.S. in pre-season. The article places the move in the context of extensive U.S. investment in English football, noting 11 of the 20 Premier League clubs have majority American control and citing ownership examples such as Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney at Wrexham and Tom Brady at Birmingham. Eduardo Saverin, reported to be worth $32bn (£23.7bn), is also named as part of the consortium, and Amit Bhatia relinquished his Queens Park Rangers ownership stake on 21 July; the timing is noted alongside FA rules on substantial interests in more than one club.
Supporters' groups and some fans have voiced specific concerns about the composition and intentions of the buying group. Spirit of Shankly said: "We would like to know what the buying consortium will get in return for their 30% stake," adding: "Specifically, what would be the level of involvement in the control of the club and will they take a seat or seats on the board?" and "And of huge importance, what due diligence is being done on the potential consortium of investors?" The article also cites criticism of Amazon's labour record, referencing a Trades Union Congress report from 2020 and strike action at an Amazon site in Birmingham in 2024; Amazon responded that it "regularly reviews its pay to ensure it offers competitive wages." The Washington Post's February decision to lay off one-third of its workforce and scale back coverage is also mentioned.
Season ticket holder Gareth Roberts told BBC Sport: "How Amazon have treated unions and workers isn't particularly palatable," and asked: "Is he simply going to ramp up the name of Liverpool in order to make as much money as possible?" Roberts added: "People wonder why Liverpool fans do scrutinise things like this so much," and said: "They put Liverpool in dire straits, in a financially unsustainable position. "We want the club to be run well, we want the club to be run sustainably and we want people to care about it and to care about the fans. It's as simple as that."
FSG's Hogan has indicated there is no prospect of a full sale, saying there is "a huge opportunity still" to invest in the sport, while Maguire suggested a larger change could follow a successful minority investment: "If Bezos et al like the kudos and attention that part owning as big a brand as Liverpool brings," he said. "Then a full acquisition becomes a possibility, if the price is right."
