With Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group looking to sell up, we spoke to a number of supporters to get their views on the possibility of the club being taken over by wealthy associates of foreign states.
How much would you be willing to compromise for a successful Liverpool Football Club?
FSG are inviting offers for the full ownership of LFC, with some supporters excited by the prospect of greater financial backing.
But should we be concerned about where that money is coming from? Man City and Newcastle are often in the spotlight for the origins of their ownership models. Would you be open to the idea of similar investors, or do FSG need to ensure they sell to the right people?
We spoke to the likes of Chris Pajak and Chloe Bloxam from The Redmen TV, Keifer MacDonald from the Liverpool Echo, Jeff Goulding from This Is Anfield and Gareth Roberts to get their views on the matter.
“It would be a real problem for me”
Can you really imagine a Liverpool FC owned by a state? In many ways, it would go against everything LFC stands for. It’s no surprise to see some supporters concerned by this prospect:
“It would be a real problem for me. I don’t think, as a person, I can spend the last few years criticising Man City‘s ownership model, and the politics of that state, also criticising the owners of Newcastle United, and then suddenly do an about-face.”
– Jeff Goulding (@ShanklysBoys1)
“You just can’t ignore how they’ve got their cash together and what they do – killing journalists, not being inclusive with people in communities and things like that, outlawing being gay. To use an old phrase, that’s not ‘the Liverpool way’.”
– Gareth Roberts (@robbohuyton)
“The concern here is ‘what happens next for Liverpool Football Club?’ If we end up in the wrong hands, you’re going to have a huge push back from fans.”
– Chris Pajak (@mrbloodred)
“What’s dirty money?”
The alternative view is that there is no such thing as “dirty money” and no real way to continue competing with the likes of Man City without having the same kind of financial backing:
“People keep saying to me ‘do we want dirty money?’ What’s dirty money? It doesn’t matter where the money’s come from. From the 60s to the 80s, we were most successful. That was our clubs prime. That money came from the Moores legacy throughout Littlewoods Pools. We took it gracefully and we’ve got a history that’s second to none…”
– Dave, Liverpool supporter
“I’d still support the players on the pitch, I’d still support Jurgen Klopp, because I don’t think half of them would agree with it either. Well, I’d hope all of them wouldn’t.”
– Chloe Bloxam, The Redmen TV
“Myself included, everyone would love to see Liverpool win back-to-back-to-back Premier Leagues and Champions Leagues, that comes at a cost.”
– Keifer MacDonald (@@KeiferMacd)
Where do you stand on this debate?
Is there still a way for Liverpool to compete with the likes of Man City and Newcastle without new investment, and if there’s not, could that be why FSG are leaning towards selling up?
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