Featured Image Credit: Getty Images
Topics: Premier League, England
Jack Kenmare
Bill Gates, the man who held Forbes' title of the world's richest person between 1995 and 2010, was once offered the chance to buy an English club.
In the not-so-distant past, Microsoft co-founder Gates has openly praised the impact of football, calling himself a "casual" fan of the sport.
"I understand why soccer has earned the nickname 'the beautiful game'," he said in a 2022 blog post. "What makes soccer even more beautiful is the positive impact it can have off the field."
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Even though he named tennis and pickleball as his favourite sports, Gates clearly appreciates how football – or soccer as he calls it – can help young people live healthier, more productive lives.
But more than a decade ago, the American businessman decided against buying Premier League side Liverpool.
Back in April 2010, then-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett agreed to sell Liverpool when they were unable to keep up with repayments of the money borrowed to purchase the club.
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Barclays Capital were appointed to find potential buyers and eventually, New England Sports Ventures, now known as Fenway Sports Group, purchased the club for £300 million in October 2010.
But more than six years later, documents from the commercial division of the New York County Supreme Court revealed that Gates was approached in a worldwide search for interested parties.
In fact, New England Patriots owner Bob Kraft, who also owns MLS side New England Revolution, was also approached in the search for new ownership.
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Sir Martin Broughton, the then-Liverpool chairman, was asked whether he was aware that "there was at least an attempt to contact Bill Gates and Bob Kraft in the U.S." He replied: "Correct."
Broughton also declared that the search for new owners "covered every continent" and involved "contacts with people around the world".
Gates, who was worth $53bn at the time, did not respond to the approach. Kraft is said to have turned down the request.
As mentioned earlier, Fenway Sports Group bought Liverpool for £300 million in 2010. According to Forbes' 2024 list of the most valuable football teams, Liverpool are ranked fourth globally with a valuation of $5.37bn [£4.3bn].