US duo set for Liverpool takeover

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Liverpool have agreed a deal with American tycoons George Gillett and Tom Hicks, who are set to complete their takeover of the club early next week.

Gillett and Hicks flew to England earlier this week for a secret meeting with senior Liverpool officials.

They persuaded the club to stall talks with Dubai International Capital, which had been expected to buy out the club.

Hicks and Gillett will split the £470m takeover on a 50-50 basis with £215m of that earmarked for a new stadium.

Gillett owns National Hockey League side Montreal Canadiens while Hicks owns rival NHL franchise Dallas Stars as well as the Texas Rangers baseball team.

Hicks has built up a reputation for developing state-of-the-art new stadia for his teams and his participation was a key factor in Liverpool deciding to go with the US bid.

The other issue which clinched the deal is the Americans guaranteed that Liverpool's new stadium on Stanley Park would not be on a groundshare basis, which had been Gillett's original plan when he was considering a solo takeover.

Gillett has impressed Liverpool with his proposals and the speed at which he completed due diligence - the process of investigation by potential investors - in three days.

The 68-year-old American has also stressed his experience in running successful sporting operations.

However, the Independent has claimed that Gillett's business empire collapsed in 1992, leading to a £33.7m personal bankruptcy.

Gillett and Hicks have worked together in the past on the board of a major US meat-processing firm.

Their idea to take over Liverpool gathered force when they met at the NHL All-Star Game last week.

It would be the first time that two owners of rival sports clubs in one league have combined to purchase a club in another.

Source: BBC