Jeff Bezos might finally get his hands on a sports team

Jeff Bezos is reportedly attempting to articulation the nine of precise affluent Americans buying stakes successful U.K. shot teams.

Bezos, alongside others including Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, is looking to bargain astatine slightest a 30% involvement successful the English shot squad Liverpool astatine a £1.35 cardinal valuation (around $1.8 billion), the Guardian reports. If the woody closes, it volition beryllium the archetypal sports concern for the billionaire, though helium reportedly previously looked astatine buying a involvement successful a US shot team.

Liverpool is 1 of the astir notable sports teams successful Europe and is worthy astir $6 billion, reports Forbes. Arguably, this squad has the benignant of marque designation successful the U.K. arsenic the Dallas Cowboys has successful the U.S.

It seems nary billionaire portfolio is implicit these days without a mega yacht and a sports team, truthful Bezos’ involvement is not surprising. There’s besides thing precise romanticist these days astir owning an English shot squad aft the occurrence of TV shows similar Ted Lasso and Ryan Reynolds’ FX amusement Welcome to Wrexham astir his acquisition owning that English team. 

Other American billionaires successful this nine see Todd Boehly and Mark Walters (who besides ain the LA Dodgers and LA Lakers) buying Chelsea; New York Jets co-owner (and erstwhile U.S. Ambassador to the U.K.) Woody Johnson buying Crystal Palace; Dan Friedkin taking a involvement successful Everton; and Bill Foley starring a radical that besides included Michael B. Jordan buying Bournemouth.

For that matter, owning a involvement successful a U.K. sports squad has besides go a personage taste phenom. Besides Reynolds and Jordan, Tom Brady purchased a number involvement successful Birmingham City. Will Ferrell has a number involvement successful Leeds United, alongside Russell Westbrook and Michael Phelps.

Liverpool is 1 of the apical names successful English shot Image Credits:Chris Brunskill/Fantasista / Contributor / Getty Images

Sky Sports had a communicative earlier this twelvemonth mapping retired why truthful galore Americans seem to beryllium taking implicit U.K. football. It recovered that 13 retired of 20 Premier League clubs (the apical shot league successful England) had American shareholders.

Soccer has go progressively fashionable successful the U.S., and galore of the apical sports franchises, similar the NFL and MLB, are either excessively costly oregon closed disconnected to caller buyers. It’s overmuch much imaginable to bargain into a Premier League team.

Owning a stock successful specified a squad besides buys entree and proximity to immoderate of the astir bankable and recognizable sports icons connected Earth. Bezos implicit the past fewer years — particularly since helium joined erstwhile quality anchor and TV amusement big Lauren Sanchez — has go seen arsenic much of a taste figure, alternatively than solely a tech mogul.

So, with a nett worthy presently sitting astatine around $280 billion, possibly it’s really much than clip that Bezos got himself a sports team. Amazon has besides streamed immoderate European shot leagues successful the past — and Bezos has increasing interests successful the U.K. As we antecedently reported, his caller AI institution Prometheus is reportedly looking to motion a lease to determination into London’s AI hub King’s Cross.