What's going on?

According to various media reports, a state-owned Chinese company is negotiating to buy a big stake in Liverpool Football Club, one of the largest soccer (�football�) clubs in the world.

What does this mean?

Fenway Sports Group (FSG), Liverpool FC�s current owners, bought the club for �300 million in 2010 (FSG also owns baseball�s Boston Red Sox). Reportedly, the bid from China Everbright is for a stake in Liverpool FC, rather than for 100% ownership, and would value it at �800 million.

Why should I care?

The bigger picture: Chinese companies, many of whom are state-owned, have bought a ton of foreign companies this year.
By June, Chinese companies had already spent more on foreign takeovers than they did in all of 2015, which itself was a record year. There�s no clear-cut explanation for the increased foreign investment, but China�s growth is slowing and, perhaps, Chinese companies are keen to diversify internationally. Also, the Chinese currency is declining in value versus other currencies (especially the dollar) � if China thought this were to continue and/or accelerate, it would probably make sense for them to have more investments outside of China (there are various other possible explanations for China’s foreign takeovers).


For you personally: Liverpool FC�s financial clout could get a big boost under wealthier owners.
In football, individual players are typically purchased in order to bolster the overall squad. Liverpool has struggled somewhat under FSG�s ownership as it failed to match the spending of rivals such as Manchester City and Manchester United. Under more affluent owners, Liverpool could be expected to spend more and, perhaps, improve their performance on the field.