Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group are looking to add to their sports empire in a deal that makes use of their connection with NBA superstar LeBron James.
LA Lakers power forward James has had a minority stake in Liverpool dating back to 2011, shortly after FSG bought the club for £230m from the previous Hicks-Gillette regime.
The club could potentially be worth 20 times that figure now, thanks to skyrocketing TV revenue, commercial growth and thelucrative redevelopment of Anfield.
James has helped with commercial growth, co-signing a branded range of merchandise with Liverpool that has proved a streetwear hit.
And the links between Liverpool, FSG and James could be about to become even closer according to the latest news coming from the US.
FSG want to buy Las Vegas NBA franchise
FSG have long been desperate to acquire or establish an NBA team to add to their football, NFL and ice hockey sides.
James has also spoken of his aspirations to become involved in the ownership side of the game once he has retired, with a Las Vegas-based franchise a specific target.
And the perfect opportunity may have arisen in, with the NBA expected to expand from 30 to 32 teams in the coming years.
Speaking to NBC Sports (via Liverpool World), NBA commissioner Adam Silver has now said: “Las Vegas, no doubt, is very interested in a team.”
“I don’t think there’s any doubt that over time, this league can sustain two more teams. And there’s interest in the market, so once we finish our media deals, we’ll turn our attention to that,” he continued.
The price of an expansion franchise is likely to have, by Liverpool co-investor Gerry Cardinale’s own admission, risen from £2.4bn to £4.7bn in recent times.
But with LeBron’s influence, star power and marketing potential as well as FSG’s unparalleled expertise in acquisitions and sports monetisation, this could be the chance to tie all of the threads together.
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What are FSG’s plans for Liverpool in the context of their multi-sport empire?
FSG’s moves signal that they want to bring an American franchise model to their ownership of Liverpool and within European football more broadly.
However, there does appear to be some conflict within FSG about exactly how far they want to go.
John Henry, for instance, has said he is not keen on the idea of competitive matches played outside of Europe, while FSG chairman Tom Werner is at the other end of the spectrum.
But ultimately, FSG are the third-most valuable sports empire in the world and they will consider an NBA franchise the final frontier.
They have already guaranteed a huge return on the £230m sum they bought Liverpool for over a decade ago, and they will want to cash out at maximum value.
The acquisition of another NBA team could diversify the risk enough for them to do exactly that at some point in the future – although there is no indication that is in their immediate plans.