Fenway Sports Group are reportedly open to selling Liverpool having been at the helm for the last 12 years.
According to the Athletic, FSG have engaged major US banks Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to assist them in the process of finding a buyer for the club, although a statement released to the ECHO from the Reds owners maintains their commitment to Liverpool.
FSG acquired the Reds in 2010 for £300m from the deeply unpopular ownership of George Gillett and Tom Hicks and have presided over a return to English football's summit for the club, with a Champions League and Premier League crown among the achievements during their time at the helm.
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They have, though, often faced criticism for a perceived lack of spend in the transfer market when compared to their rivals, something that has come to the fore once again in recent weeks after a difficult start to the Premier League season.
Liverpool net worth
But how much could the Reds be worth on the market now?
Football clubs, and sports teams in general, have seen their values soar in recent years thanks to media rights growth and the resilience of the industry, with European football in particular having been an enormous draw to US investors and ownership groups from the Middle East.
FSG have an overall value of around £10bn, with Liverpool joined by the Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Penguins and NASCAR team RFK Racing in the portfolio, as well as business interests such as Fenway Sports Management and FSG Real Estate.
According to Forbes magazine's most recent estimations, Liverpool are worth around £3.6bn, a valuation that means that should FSG sell at that price it would represent a 1,100 per cent increase in value on their investment. A remarkable return.
But with Chelsea sold for a total of £4.75bn, with £1.75bn of that earmarked for infrastructure development, Liverpool will feel that they are worth beyond the £4bn mark as one of the most coveted assets in world football.
There will be potential bidders, some who entered into the Chelsea bidding war, that would come back to the table while the Reds owners were reported to have turned down a £3bn offer from the club from a consortium in the Middle East last year.
Are Liverpool FC up for sale?
The feeling in the US last month, and the vibes being given off by one of FSG's most prominent figures, Sam Kennedy, was that the Reds remained a key part of FSG's business moving forward, especially with the rise in team valuations expected to continue for some time yet while European football tries to find ways to deliver the kind of revenues that the NFL does through a smaller global fan base.
The value of the pound against the dollar means that a lucrative deal could be there to be struck if the pound rallies, meaning that there may be more willing participants that come to the table.
The FSG statement read: "There have been a number of recent changes of ownership and rumours of changes in ownership at EPL clubs and inevitably we are asked regularly about Fenway Sports Group’s ownership in Liverpool.
"FSG has frequently received expressions of interest from third parties seeking to become shareholders in Liverpool. FSG has said before that under the right terms and conditions we would consider new shareholders if it was in the best interests of Liverpool as a club.
"FSG remains fully committed to the success of Liverpool, both on and off the pitch."
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