August 5 – The Chinese Government has been revealed as the mystery backer behind a bid to buy Premier League Liverpool.
The communist state’s overseas investment arm China Investment Corporation (CIC) is financing sports tycoon Kenny Huang’s attempt to take over the five-time European champions.
It means China could effectively have control over Liverpool if the bid, which values the club at between £300 million ($478 million) and £350 million ($557 million), is successful.
Its unpopular American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, were forced to put the club up for sale in April after coming under pressure for owing its lender, Royal Bank of Scotland, £237 million ($378 million).
The CIC-backed bid puts the Chinese in competition with at least two other suitors - American private equity firm Rhone Capital and a wealthy Kuwaiti family.
The winning bid will have to be approved by the Premier League, which is believed to have been in discussions with all three bidders.
However, CIC, which already owns a stake in Canary Wharf, was reported to be in pole position to take over at Anfield.
It would mean a second Premier League team being under foreign state control after Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi bought Manchester City.
Premier League clubs already in foreign hands include Arsenal, Aston Villa, Birmingham, Chelsea, Manchester United, Sunderland and Chelsea, which was bought by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.
CIC was set up in 2007 to invest billions of dollars overseas on behalf of the communist state.
A statement released by Mr Huang said: “Mr Huang would like to emphasise that he has registered interest in investing in Liverpool FC but has made no formal bid.
“There has been much speculation from a wide array of people, many of whom have little knowledge of the facts.”
The Premier League has to clear any buyer – but the test is financial so it is thought unlikely the China-backed bid would be blocked.
If successful, Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson would be given a transfer fund of around £150 million ($239 million) to spend on a clutch of high-profile players.
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