Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group are open to offers for the Reds.
In charge since 2010, FSG have been searching for minority investment in Liverpool for more than a year and have now, as first reported by the Athletic, tasked the two banks that were seeking those investors, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, to entertain bids from anyone wanting to make an offer.
Liverpool won't come cheap, of course. According to Forbes magazine's most recent valuation for the football club it stands at around £3.6bn, with suggestions that FSG would seek a fee of above £3bn and above not likely wide of the mark given the trends surrounding sports team valuations across the globe at present.
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It is understood that FSG's position at the moment is exploratory and that opening themselves up to a full takeover gives them the chance to properly assess their position in the market before deciding to cash out in part or all together.
Their change in stance will have piqued interest from investors in the US, where the scarcity value that exists around top six Premier League clubs makes them extremely attractive pieces of intellectual property that many American investors believe are under monetised and behind the NFL considerably in terms of sophistication and revenue growth when comparing their respective global audiences.
There will also undoubtedly be interest from the MENA region, with links already being made Middle Eastern consortiums and wealth funds.
But even if FSG do receive a bid for the club that they find acceptable, one that would be enough to convince them to sell up and leave the club that they acquired for £300m 12 years ago with more than 1,000 per cent profit, how quickly do these things happen and what might be the overriding intention from what they are doing right now be?
Sports lawyer and author of the book 'Done Deal', Daniel Geey has been involved in a number of high profile takeovers and explained the process when speaking to the ECHO.
"The first port of call is engaging banks and tasking them with looking for new shareholders, filtering through expressions of interests from consortia or individuals," said Geey.
"What will then happen is that they will then need proof of funds to demonstrate liquidity. Someone like FSG would undoubtedly want a strategic plan presented to them to make sure that, from legacy perspective, if a full takeover happens then the right people would come in.
"I think part of that strategy for FSG would probably be someone arriving who had similar ideals around running a football club, so emphasis on it being self-sustaining, competing consistently at the very top level and the ability to keep growing the revenue streams in the way that they have done.
"They will then see who are the bona fide options that are left on the table after that whittling down process, similar to what the banking team behind the Chelsea sale had to do.
"The speed of any sale would depend on what the strategy would be, what type of sale is it? A 10 per cent minority shareholding sale is a different beast to full sale. When you take minority stake you will do due diligence over all assets and costs, although you aren't likely to have a real say. It is a speedier process.
"If you are buying a club, spending whatever valuation is placed upon it, because you are buying club at high value you will want to know far more detail about the nuances of what is going on and more extensive due diligence will be conducted into every facet of the club and there will be a significantly negotiated legal document that accompanies the sale."
One issue that can arise during takeovers is one around transfer business. Owners looking to sell can be more conservative in the transfer market if they were looking towards a swifter exit, not wanting to add further risk to a sale.
How Liverpool approach the January and summer windows under FSG ownership may be telling to their longer term commitment to being custodians of the football club.
Geey explained: "When a takeover goes on, until a deal is done there are rules around new owners materially influencing decisions.
"What tends to happen is that owners will be more cautious about big signings or deals because ultimately things are paused or put on hold if new owners want to view a deal. Generally, buyers and sellers would have to be on same page over big spending."
While a major rise in the valuation of Liverpool since FSG acquired them may be seen by some as enough to convince the owners to part company with the club, the Reds remain the most valuable asset in FSG's £10bn portfolio, and for an ownership that is currently in a growth phase by their own admission, looking for more teams, shedding their most valuable may seem to go against that.
Valuations of the Premier League's biggest clubs are predicted to continue to rise for some time yet, and exiting now may mean that there is money left on the table by FSG by selling at a value lower than they might have been able to get in four or five years time. But the same reasons FSG might want to stay are the same reasons that other investors will see Liverpool as a rare opportunity.
"There is stability in knowing media deals, and who knows what will happen with European Super League," said Geey.
"My own view is that the broadcasting landscape may change, and what happens if there is a collective deal and clubs can sell a few games on their own streaming platforms? That would be extremely lucrative for a club like Liverpool with such a global appeal.
"The point generally is that FSG bought Liverpool in a distressed state and they have done a very good job commercially in growing revenues, the question is does someone meet the valuation they have on the club or will a shareholder come in and be willing to provide capital to allow them to spend, or potentially partially cash out instead of taking all their money out right now."
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