Co-owners of Liverpool Tom Hicks and George Gillett, who were the subject of a fans’ demonstration yesterday, have hit a brick wall in their attempts to sell the club. Several potential investors think that it makes better sense to wait for the club to be sold at a knockdown price rather than inject money now. There is a strong feeling that Liverpool are heading towards a financial crisis of their own making that will force the owners to sell.
Co-owners of Liverpool Tom Hicks and George Gillett, who were the subject of a fans’ demonstration yesterday, have hit a brick wall in their attempts to sell the club. Several potential investors think that it makes better sense to wait for the club to be sold at a knockdown price rather than inject money now. There is a strong feeling that Liverpool are heading towards a financial crisis of their own making that will force the owners to sell. Even after the rescheduling of Liverpool’s loan with RBS and Wachovia in the summer, and a £60m cash injection, the club remains £245m in the red. It is believed that interest on the loans has become more punitive, making success on the pitch even more crucial. Prince Faisal, the latest potential buyer, has been left unimpressed by a big asking price (£100m plus) for a small stake (20 – 25 per cent) and by Hicks and Gillett’s history of feuding. Meanwhile the new stadium which would make them financially competitive with Manchester United is on indefinite hold.
Both owners are under financial pressure at home. The Hicks Sports Group, which owns the Texas Rangers baseball team and an NHL ice hockey franchise, is trying to reschedule debts of $525m after defaulting on a $10m interest payment in March. The Rangers are for sale. Gillett sold his 80 per cent stake in the Montréal Canadiens ice hockey franchise this summer for $Cdn550m, forced partly by the necessity to raise cash to inject capital into Liverpool as a condition of the debt rescheduling. It is not known whether he has other major debts to repay in America, but he is looking to expand his motor sport interests into the Middle East.
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