Echo

FSG Liverpool impact clear after £300m agreement as four-word promise made in statement

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Liverpool were on the brink of administration when FSG bought the club in a £300m deal on this day in 2010As Fenway Sports Group celebrate 15 years to the day since they completed their takeover of Liverpool Football Club, they do so with Arne Slot’s side the reigning Premier League champions and sitting second in the table. It’s a far cry from when they first walked through the door back in October 2010.Roy Hodgson’s men had fallen to an embarrassing 2-1 defeat to newly-promoted - and subsequently relegated come May - Blackpool at Anfield in what would prove to be the Reds’ last match under the ownership of hated owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.The loss left Liverpool 18th in the Premier League table, but a potential relegation battle was not the worst of their concerns at such a time.READ MORE: Liverpool striker faces months on sidelines after fresh injury setback confirmedREAD MORE: Liverpool striker faces months on sidelines after fresh injury setback confirmedThe American pair had takeon over the club in 2007, saddled Liverpool in hefty debt and left the Reds on the brink of administration.In the end, Hicks and Gillett’s efforts to block a takeover ultimately failed - as did their attempts to sue for £1bn in damages.They slammed the proposed £300m sale to FSG, then still going as New England Sports Ventures, with such a price said to be “hundreds of millions of dollars below true market value."If Hicks and Gillett were bemoaning such a figure back in 2010, a penny for their thoughts now, 15 years on, having seen Liverpool’s market value continue to soar.The latest valuation by Forbes, calculated in May 2025, now values the Reds at a whopping £4.2bn.But such a rise would never have been possible under the previous ownership."We have a lot of work to do and I can't tell you how happy I am that we've finally got to this point," principal owner John W.



"It's too early to say what we're going to do, but obviously we're here to win and we'll do whatever is necessary."While the FSG ownership has not been perfect and they have made mistakes over the past 15 years, they have certainly delivered on Henry’s initial address also.They are reaping the benefits of their 2010 investment, but such growth is a result of everything they have put into the club.They have strengthened the playing squad year after year - most recently with a £450m summer spending spree that was countered by roughly £200m in player sales - that has enabled Liverpool to reclaim their place as one of the leading sides in European football.They appointed Jurgen Klopp as manager, with the German overseeing a remarkable transformation on the pitch in a trophy-laden nine years before passing on the baton to Slot to continue such success.Since FSG’s takeover of the club, the Reds have won two Premier League titles, the Champions League, the FIFA Club World Cup, the FA Cup, three League Cups, the European Super Cup and the Community Shield.They have also finished as Premier League runners-up on three occasions, narrowly missing out on the title to Man City on each occasion, and suffered defeat in two further Champions League finals, a Europa League final, an FA Cup final, two League Cup finals and two Community Shields.Since the start of their first full season, only once in their entire stewardship, back in 2012/13, has the club not won a trophy, reached a final/finished runners-up or at least progressed to the semi-finals of a competition.The work off the pitch is just as eye-catching too, namely the major redevelopments of Anfield Stadium as well the building of the AXA Training Centre in Kirkby.“From the outset, our primary aims were simple: to bring success back to Anfield and to ensure the long-term health and stability of this great club,” Henry, Tom Werner and Mike Gordon declared in a special message to supporters to celebrate the anniversary of FSG becoming Liverpool FC owners.“All our decisions are made with the best, long-term interests of the club at the centre of our thinking.“We are proud today of how the club has grown in every sense. Such investment, which is by no means the limit over the past 15 years, comes close to matching their initial £300m purchase of the club back in 2010.Yet at one point it looked like FSG might not reach their 15-year anniversary.

The club’s American owners explored the possibility of selling the club in November 2022, before instead selling a minority stake to Dynasty Equity in September 2023.In truth, they have not looked back since, with it being non-stop for FSG in the weeks that followed.Come November 2023, they learned of Klopp’s decision to step down as manager, and started to plot a reshuffle behind-the-scenes, which eventually culminated with the appointment of Slot as the club’s first head coach.First Michael Edwards returned to FSG as its first CEO of Football, with the former Reds sporting director essentially taking on Gordon’s responsibilities for the day-to-day running of the club.But he was also tasked with leading FSG’s search for a secondary club to invest in as they looked to expand its football club portfolio by creating a multi-club ownership model.They held early-stage dialogue with Bordeaux, and have also been linked with the likes of Malaga and Getafe.While FSG are yet to purchase a second club, one of Edwards’ first acts in his new role was to hire Richard Hughes as the club’s new sporting director, with a move for Slot following afterwards.Meanwhile, the likes of Julian Ward also returned to FSG as technical director, David Woodfine rejoined Liverpool as assistant sporting director, and Pedro Marques was hired as Director of Football Development in further changes to the football operations leadership.The future of Liverpool is in good hands. They are fully aware there is plenty more left to achieve.Liverpool were a fallen giant when FSG first bought the club, fighting just to survive.