Huge goal: Liverpool sought by The9 boss
By Ni Yinbin |
May 12, 2010, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THE owner of a Shanghai soccer club is in talks to buy England's famous Liverpool Football Club, part of the prestigious Premier League and affectionately known by its legions of fans as the Reds.
If the mega deal comes off, it is believed the club may cost as much as 800 million British pounds (US$1.18 billion).
Negotiations are still underway and no bottom-line offer has yet been made by Zhu Jun, the 44-year-old founder of The9 Ltd, one of China's top online gaming firms that is listed on the United States' Nasdaq stock market.
He is also owner of the Shanghai Shenhua Football Club that competes in the China Super League.
Zhu is "sincerely interested" in the club and has already had two "exploratory meetings" about buying Liverpool with global investment bank Barclays Capital (BarCap), according to yesterday's edition of London newspaper The Independent.
Wide speculation
The value of the Liverpool club has been subject to wide speculation, from as high as 800 million pounds to as low as 300 million pounds.
Forbes.com last year valued the club at 704 million pounds, sina.com yesterday cited analysts as putting a 300-million-pound price tag on it and the owners are seeking 800 million pounds.
Zhu confirmed with Shanghai Daily yesterday that talks about the purchase of Liverpool were ongoing but would make no further comment.
If Zhu clinches the deal, he will become the first Chinese entrepreneur to own clubs in both the PL and CSL.
Hong Kong businessman Yeung Ka Sing is the first Chinese to own a PL club.
He bought Birmingham City Football Club last year for 57 million pounds.
BarCap was hired by Martin Broughton, Liverpool's new chairman, to find a buyer after the club's American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, formally put it on the market last month with the sky-high price tag.
Internet buzz
One of Zhu's meetings with BarCap took place in Hong Kong at the end of April and a second was in Shanghai in the past week, according to a business source in China, The Independent reported.
The news caused a flurry on the Internet yesterday among Chinese football fans.
Many of them questioned Zhu's financial capabilities to carry off the deal as his assets have been shrinking since The9 last year lost China's dealership of World of Warcraft (WOW), one of the most popular online games.
WOW contributed to 93 percent of company income.
Zhu has been steeped in controversy over his management methods at Shanghai Shenhua since he bought the club three years ago.
He has sold many top-line players - including Li Weifeng, Du Wei, Gao Lin and Mao Jianqing - and has been criticized by fans for being too interventionist in club matters.
"I'm not optimistic about the deal and I would not support Zhu as the boss of Liverpool," said Ni Yimin, a Chinese fan of the club.
If the mega deal comes off, it is believed the club may cost as much as 800 million British pounds (US$1.18 billion).
Negotiations are still underway and no bottom-line offer has yet been made by Zhu Jun, the 44-year-old founder of The9 Ltd, one of China's top online gaming firms that is listed on the United States' Nasdaq stock market.
He is also owner of the Shanghai Shenhua Football Club that competes in the China Super League.
Zhu is "sincerely interested" in the club and has already had two "exploratory meetings" about buying Liverpool with global investment bank Barclays Capital (BarCap), according to yesterday's edition of London newspaper The Independent.
Wide speculation
The value of the Liverpool club has been subject to wide speculation, from as high as 800 million pounds to as low as 300 million pounds.
Forbes.com last year valued the club at 704 million pounds, sina.com yesterday cited analysts as putting a 300-million-pound price tag on it and the owners are seeking 800 million pounds.
Zhu confirmed with Shanghai Daily yesterday that talks about the purchase of Liverpool were ongoing but would make no further comment.
If Zhu clinches the deal, he will become the first Chinese entrepreneur to own clubs in both the PL and CSL.
Hong Kong businessman Yeung Ka Sing is the first Chinese to own a PL club.
He bought Birmingham City Football Club last year for 57 million pounds.
BarCap was hired by Martin Broughton, Liverpool's new chairman, to find a buyer after the club's American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, formally put it on the market last month with the sky-high price tag.
Internet buzz
One of Zhu's meetings with BarCap took place in Hong Kong at the end of April and a second was in Shanghai in the past week, according to a business source in China, The Independent reported.
The news caused a flurry on the Internet yesterday among Chinese football fans.
Many of them questioned Zhu's financial capabilities to carry off the deal as his assets have been shrinking since The9 last year lost China's dealership of World of Warcraft (WOW), one of the most popular online games.
WOW contributed to 93 percent of company income.
Zhu has been steeped in controversy over his management methods at Shanghai Shenhua since he bought the club three years ago.
He has sold many top-line players - including Li Weifeng, Du Wei, Gao Lin and Mao Jianqing - and has been criticized by fans for being too interventionist in club matters.
"I'm not optimistic about the deal and I would not support Zhu as the boss of Liverpool," said Ni Yimin, a Chinese fan of the club.
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