Basketball megastar LeBron James now owns a minority stake in Liverpool FC after a deal between Fenway Sports Group (FSG) and James' marketing firm LRMR Branding & Marketing. FSG, run by John Henry and Tom Werner, own two world-famous teams in the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool, and now subsidiary group Fenway Sports Management (FSM) is branching out into athlete representation for the first time.
LeBron James Becomes Partial Owner Of Liverpool FC
Although FSM were apparently never planning to represent the commercial interests of invididual players, LeBron James has enough international reach that an exception was made. James, 26, currently plays for the Miami Heat and is widely considered to be the top basketball player active in the National Basketball Association.
FSM will work to ‘open doors’ for James in terms of new commercial opportunities, apparently earning a commission in return, and James has also received a stake in various FSG properties as part of the deal, including Liverpool. According to Werner, the move to acquire James’ rights is part of a strategy to make the group a global force - the same strategy which saw Henry and Werner acquire Liverpool in late 2010. So, what does this mean for the Reds?
To be honest, I can't imagine that it's that much. Presumably, James' stake in the club is very small. It's almost certainly less than 5%, which means he has about as much relevance to the team as Michael Jackson had to Fulham. Look for him to make a couple of appearances at Anfield and don a Liverpool jersey a couple of times - but don't expect much more. That all could change after his playing career is over, but right now, this is a cool association for the club, and that's about it.
We are very excited that LeBron will be part of the Liverpool FC family. LeBron and Liverpool each has a powerful presence internationally, with particular strength in Asia, but we feel the business opportunities for both working and being identified together in emerging international markets will result in unforeseen opportunities that neither would have been able to realize alone.
So, don't expect a Chad Ochocinco style sports crossover or NBA games in Liverpool anytime soon - although the idea of James trying to teach Luis Suarez how to dunk sounds like it would be one of the best things in the world.
