[Denver]

Amanda Staveley, the financial entrepreneur who has done deals worth billions of dollars in the Arabian Gulf, is considering deals involving two English Premier League football clubs, Arab News can reveal.
In an exclusive interview in London, Staveley — who runs the $28 billion private equity fund PCP Capital Partners — said that she thought the multibillion-dollar English football business was “an attractive investment.” PCP is an investment vehicle for sovereign investors in the Arabian Gulf and Asia.

Staveley has extensive experience of the world of football. She was involved in an ultimately aborted 2007 deal that saw Dubai investors attempting to buy Liverpool football club; and in 2008 she advised the vendors of Manchester City in the £210 million purchase of the club by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al-Nahyan of Abu Dhabi.

Staveley declined to identify the clubs she is interested in, but they are believed to be Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur.

A potential deal for Liverpool is believed to be the more advanced. Last year, a £1 billion bid was halted after news of an approach by Chinese investors leaked prematurely. The current owner, the US-based Fenway Sports Group, insisted the club is not for sale. But a new higher offer might succeed, according to people familiar with the situation.

www.arabnews.com/node/1133806/business-economy