Latest news with #FenwaySportsGroup
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Climate
- Daily Mirror
Liverpool owner's wife delivers Japan tsunami update as Reds make Yokohama friendly decision
Arne Slot's side are due to take on Yokohama F. Marinos on Thursday evening in Japan, despite serious warnings over possible tsunamis following an earthquake in the Pacific Ocean Liverpool are preparing to play a friendly during their pre-season tour of Japan on Thursday amid tsunami warnings in the country. Arne Slot 's side have been in Tokyo during a tour of the Far East and are scheduled to play Yokohama F. Marinos at 11:30 BST, which is 19:30 local time. At the time of writing, the match at the Nissan Stadium in Yokohama – a city just south of the capital, on Tokyo Bay – is still poised to go ahead, despite scary warnings from the Japanese government. Earlier on Thursday, a magnitude 8.8 earthquake hit far-eastern Russia, just off the coast of the Kamchatka peninsula. It has sparked tsunami and flood warnings all across the Pacific Ocean, with Russia, China, Japan, the United States and Ecuador among those bracing for waves. The Japan's Meteorological Agency said in a statement: "Tsunamis are still being observed, and there is a risk of damage from tsunamis. Tsunamis can strike suddenly. Please do not leave safe places until the warning is lifted. "When the tsunami coincides with high tide, there is a possibility that the water level will rise further than it currently is.' Japan's government has warned that waves could reach as high as 3m (9ft) and has urged residents on the east coast to evacuate to higher ground. The warning is in place from the island of Hokkaido in the north to Wakayama prefecture in the south and affects 1.9million people. Yokohama is around halfway down the east coast of the main Japanese island of Honshu, but has not yet been impacted. Liverpool owner and Fenway Sports Group (FSG) chief John W. Henry's wife, Linda Pizzuti, was with the squad in Tokyo earlier on Thursday and posted an update on social media. She took to Instagram to post a picture from her balcony, showing water and the Tokyo Bay, writing: "Tsunami warnings in parts of Japan, but Tokyo Bay is calm." It seems as though the match will go ahead without any interruptions after Liverpool released their line-up against Yokohama. It sees Giorgi Mamardashvili playing in goal, in the absence of Alisson, who has been given permission to fly home to deal with a personal issue. Hugo Ekitike starts up front, alongside fellow new signing Florian Wirtz and Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo. Milos Kerkez, a £40million signing from Bournemouth starts at left-back, with Conor Bradley at right-back after Trent Alexander-Arnold 's departure for Real Madrid.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
The logic behind Liverpool's decision to sell Luis Diaz
Luis Diaz gave up a shirt worn by some of Liverpool 's previous greats two years ago. He swapped from the No 23, donned by a young Robbie Fowler and then Jamie Carragher, for the more iconic No 7. He offered to personally reimburse fans who had bought the old shirt. The probability now is that he won't be making a similar offer. Diaz is giving up the number made prestigious by Kevin Keegan, Kenny Dalglish and Luis Suarez, trading the red shirt of Liverpool for the red of Bayern Munich. He had first asked to leave in 2024. He is getting his wish a year later. Diaz won't go down as one of Liverpool's definitive No 7s; though his departure could allow someone else – Florian Wirtz, maybe – to be one. Nor, though, was he miscast, as Harry Kewell was. After James Milner's eight-season stay as the incongruous No 7, an unflashy odd-job man sometimes filling in at full-back in a flair player's shirt, Diaz at least felt a player in its traditions. Liverpool's owners, Fenway Sports Group, may feel he represents a piece of business in their best traditions. The chances are that they were frustrated to lose too many players on free transfers – often success stories, which made Jurgen Klopp loyal to them, in Roberto Firmino, Gini Wijnaldum, Divock Origi, Adam Lallana, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita, but they are cashing in on Diaz. A £65.5m sale to Bayern would, some might say, fund about half of Alexander Isak's possible cost. It certainly represents a £22.5m profit on his purchase price; Liverpool nipped in ahead of Tottenham to buy Diaz just as, more recently, they pinched Hugo Ekitike after Newcastle had bid for him. They may take satisfaction in that Diaz was not paid superstar wages: indeed, talks about a new deal broke down with the winger wanting more than the club were willing to pay. His next contract always promised to be the biggest of his career. Bayern will pay it to a player who turns 29 in January. If a forward who requires a physical edge to torment defenders declines, it will not be on Liverpool's watch or their wage bill. Sadio Mane joined Bayern from Liverpool soon after his 30th birthday and soon looked a diminished force. If there is a theory Liverpool got the best years of Diaz's career, there may be an asterisk attached to that. His best was superb, and yet his return of 41 goals in 148 games is decent but scarcely comparable with Mohamed Salah's output. Diaz's first few months at Anfield featured two cup finals in which he was arguably the best player on the pitch and yet both finished 0-0: against Chelsea in the 2022 Carabao and FA Cup games at Wembley. There were times when his influence was not reflected on the scoresheet. Arne Slot's surprise decision to reinvent Diaz as a striker last season brought a career-best 17 goals, some of them a centre-forward's tap-ins. They nevertheless came in flurries amid droughts, and the presumption is that Bayern have earmarked him for a role back on the flanks, rather than replacing Harry Kane. Diaz's most devastating display last season came in his more familiar position: he kick-started Slot's reign by eviscerating Manchester United at Old Trafford in August. One of Slot's standout Champions League results came courtesy of Diaz, too, with his hat-trick in the 4-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen. So his quality was apparent, even if Slot's tendency to view Cody Gakpo solely as a left winger invited questions about what happened when other centre-forward options arrived, as Ekitike has done. The question that may remain unanswered is what Diaz might have done in a full, uninterrupted campaign. His 2024-25 was split between time in the centre and the wings. His 2023-24 was affected by the trauma of his parents being kidnapped in Colombia. He scored an emotional late equaliser at Luton while his father was still missing, but only he can say how much of a toll that time took out of him. His 2022-23 season was marred by five months on the sidelines with a knee problem. It came, too, after his auspicious first half-season and then, amid the team's troubles, some fine form in the autumn of 2022. Even in the 4-1 demolition suffered at the hands of Napoli, one of the lowest points of Klopp's reign, Diaz was outstanding. At that stage, it seemed possible to envisage him becoming a Liverpool great. He won't leave as one, though interest from Barcelona and a status as Bayern's third most expensive signing ever indicate that he can be one of the game's finest wingers. Liverpool may feel Diaz could be scintillating, but his brilliance was sporadic. Maybe that is in part the nature of his position. But he wasn't consistent across campaigns and, as his willingness to leave and the interest in him indicated, he wouldn't be a constant presence for years.
New York Times
3 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
What I'm hearing about Mario Lemieux's Penguins ownership comeback attempt
PITTSBURGH — And now, we wait. The secret's out that a group led by Mario Lemieux is considering making an offer to Fenway Sports Group. We know that Lemieux, Ron Burkle and David Morehouse are involved and that their group believes Fenway will sell for the right price. Fenway purchased the Penguins from Lemieux and Burkle for $900 million in 2021. Though the Penguins have fallen on difficult times on the ice, Fenway's price will be higher than that. Advertisement We also know that Fenway has stated it isn't interested in selling the team and that it is looking only for a minority investor to join in its ownership of the Penguins. The team's attendance has dropped nearly 10 percent in the past three seasons, so a new minority owner would help offset financial losses. However, sources close to Lemieux have made it clear that Lemieux and Burkle are not interested in becoming minority owners with FSG. It's all or nothing for the two men who owned the Penguins from 1999 through 2021. FSG ultimately has the power here. Still, the sources say the living legend is eager to return to the NHL and have indicated that league commissioner Gary Bettman, who long enjoyed a strong relationship with Lemieux, Burkle and Morehouse while they ran the Penguins, is aware of the trio's interest in reclaiming primary ownership. Lemieux, the Hall of Famer who led the Penguins to two championships as a player and three more as an owner, still owns his home in the Pittsburgh suburb of Sewickley, Pa. He also owns property near Boca Raton, Fla., and spends some of his time in the Sunshine State. However, he's long described himself as a Pittsburgher and spends most of his time in Western Pennsylvania. He also retains a close relationship with Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, who turns 28 on Aug. 7 and has two years remaining on his contract. Lemieux also remains close with the two other members of the Big Three, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang. Burkle is the money man in the Lemieux ownership group and would be forking over the majority of the capital if a deal is struck. According to Forbes, Burkle's net worth is approximately $3.3 billion. So, why would Lemieux, Burkle and Morehouse want to buy back the team for more than they sold it for, and so soon after selling it? Advertisement Expansion, for one. The NHL is expected to grow within the next couple of years — it's widely believed that it will expand by two teams, with Houston and Atlanta as commonly cited destinations. Expansion teams, a recent report from Sportico indicated, would likely pay around $2 billion each for the right to enter the league. That money gets spread around to the teams. Do the math. That's $125 million for each of the 32 existing NHL teams' owners if they expand by two franchises. FSG is very aware of that. So, too, are Lemieux, Burkle and Morehouse. When it comes to the Penguins, Lemieux historically gets what he wants. Many people I've spoken to within the organization are stunned that he would want back in, as Lemieux has been enjoying playing golf and spending time with his wife, Nathalie, and their children and grandchildren. And yet, the sources close to Lemieux insist he's very interested in making this happen — the king of the comeback pulling off one more. The Lemieux group has not made an offer or even discussed one with FSG. It's expected that such a conversation will take place soon. The Penguins' forward unit, as currently constituted, is pretty darn good. Consider the top nine they could deploy if the season started today: Rickard Rakell-Sidney Crosby-Bryan Rust Anthony Mantha-Evgeni Malkin-Ville Koivunen Rutger McGroarty-Tommy Novak-Phil Tomasino I wouldn't exactly call it a Stanley Cup-caliber group of forwards, but it's not that kind of group that would give the Penguins the best opportunity to land Gavin McKenna, the top 2026 NHL Draft prospect who will play next season at Penn State. That top line, as we know, is outstanding. Malkin is excited about playing with Novak, who has real talent. Koivunen and McGroarty also have talent, as we saw late last season. Tomasino does, too. Advertisement So, is this really the top nine the Penguins will take into next season? I haven't a clue at this point. Time will tell. Penguins president/general manager Kyle Dubas isn't selling Rakell and Rust for peanuts, nor is he married to the idea of keeping them for the long term. Still, I keep going back to what several team sources have told me: Dubas wants to go young next year. Really young. As July turns into August and training camp is less than seven weeks away, I'd remember those words. Things are quiet at the moment. But as we all know, that can change. A big trade or two feels likely before training camp. Dubas clearly hasn't received offers that are to his liking just yet, but he is fully committed to a rebuild. That means that having 30-somethings such as Rust, Rakell and Mantha in your lineup doesn't make much sense. Again, the goal is to get younger. Rust and Rakell are good enough that they'll not only hurt the Penguins' chances of earning a top-five pick, but they should also fetch a significant return. They could both be on the opening night roster, of course, but I'd be surprised if that happens. There is interest in Erik Karlsson from opposing teams, but the Penguins don't want to give him away for nothing. For the right price, I believe he will be traded. The Penguins are willing to retain some of his salary. They realize he's not part of the future in Pittsburgh and that the experiment hasn't worked. But trading him remains complicated. I don't see him playing out the final two years of his contract in Pittsburgh. Dubas would like to get a good return for the future Hall of Famer, whose value around the NHL varies widely based on whom you ask. (Photo of Mario Lemieux: Minas Panagiotakis / Getty Images)
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
England stars, Liverpool owners and Man United's Glazers ready to join rugby breakaway league as bombshell plans reveal TV deal, million-dollar salaries and six venues
Liverpool and Manchester United 's owners are ready to go head-to-head by buying teams in the new rugby rebel league threatening to rip up the sport and create a brand new global structure by ploughing in millions of pounds of fresh investment. Fenway Sports Group - who own Liverpool, the Boston Red Sox and various other sports franchises - the Glazer family - who own more than 70 per cent of United - and Red Bull are among the parties interested in becoming franchise owners in R360, the proposed new breakaway league.
New York Times
24-07-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Liverpool CEO Billy Hogan: ‘This is one of the biggest clubs in the world – we want to behave like one'
It has been a summer of unprecedented spending at Anfield, but Liverpool chief executive Billy Hogan insists the club's business model remains unchanged. The £79million ($107m) deal with Eintracht Frankfurt for striker Hugo Ekitike means the Premier League champions' total outlay, including performance-related add-ons, in the transfer window stands just shy of £300m. They have raised up to £64m from sales, and the plan is for that figure to grow considerably in the coming weeks. Hogan believes the show of ambition underlines the desire of American owners Fenway Sports Group to ensure Liverpool build on last season's title triumph in Arne Slot's debut season. However, they have not suddenly ditched being thrifty for a more reckless approach. Their commitment to ensuring the club is self-sustainable financially remains unwavering. The 'virtuous circle' has enabled Liverpool to splash the cash in such a manner, with success on the field yielding record revenues that have been reinvested back into the squad. 'It doesn't just happen; it's been years in the making,' Hogan tells The Athletic during an exclusive interview in Hong Kong. 'One of the things we're constantly focused on is that 'virtuous circle'. Trying to run the club in the right way to ensure that we can generate as much revenue as we possibly can. That obviously helps in terms of being able to put more back into the team, which is incredibly important from our perspective. 'We have been successful in doing that. It's a huge credit to everyone on the football side and the business side, working together every single day to ensure we got to that point. We also recognise, having won the English league title for the 20th time, that this is one of the biggest clubs in the world. We want to make sure that we are behaving like one. 'Having massive global stars come and play at Anfield, filling out stadiums in Hong Kong and Japan, those are things we expect and want to do. We have a huge fanbase around the world who crave success and we're working as hard as we can to win more trophies.' Last season saw Liverpool collect £175m in prize money for winning the Premier League, and their return to the Champions League was worth around £84m. Matchday income was boosted by it being the first full season with the redeveloped Anfield Road Stand, which lifted capacity to 61,000. The last set of accounts for 2023-24 showed record total revenue of £614m, but the figure for 2024-25 will be considerably higher. They have overtaken Manchester United in terms of commercial revenue for the first time in the Premier League era. Anfield hosted five music concerts last month, while the new kit deal with Adidas starts on August 1. Federico Chiesa, who only cost an initial fee of £10m from Juventus, had been the only senior addition to the squad across three transfer windows before this one. That gave them more room to manoeuvre in the market this time around and the payments for big-money signings such as Florian Wirtz and Ekitike will be spread out in instalments over several years. With Giorgi Mamardashvili and Jeremie Frimpong both 24, Ekitike 23, Wirtz 22, and Milos Kerkez 21, it is an investment for the long term. There is no plan for £300m spending sprees to become the norm. 'The difficulty is if you just look at one individual summer,' Hogan says. 'That probably skews the data. There were a lot of comments made last summer that we didn't spend enough. That was a very public topic over the final weeks of the window a year ago. 'What history has shown during FSG's stewardship of this club is that we will invest when we think it is reasonable and when we think it's right. The strategy hasn't changed. If you looked at just this one summer, it would maybe stick out in terms of the overall investment. 'But when you look across all the years, you'll see that from time to time we have spent significantly and other times we haven't. 'Credit to (FSG CEO of football) Michael Edwards, (sporting director) Richard Hughes, and their team for ensuring that we're going out there, finding the right players and getting deals done.' As Premier League champions and with the financial muscle to match, the pulling power of Liverpool has arguably never been greater. The title celebrations at Anfield and on the parade, when more than a million people lined the streets of the city, showcased the club to the world. 'Yeah, I'd say that's right. It's a sign of where the club is at. There's a lot of pressure on all of us to keep that going, but the opportunity to bring in world-class talent this summer has been something that everyone has enjoyed. We're looking forward to seeing them play.' Hogan was watching on as more than 100 local children were put through their paces during a training session with LFC Foundation coaches at Hong Kong's Tseung Kwan O Football Training Centre. Saturday's opening game of the Asia tour against Milan is a 50,000 sell-out, and more than 70,000 tickets have been sold for next Wednesday's match against Yokohama F Marinos in Japan. 'Our foundation coaches are the hardest working people on tour, running coaching clinics from morning until night,' Hogan says. 'This is our international academy we're here with now, and earlier we were with the Special Olympics. Next week in Japan, we'll be linking up with the Make-A-Wish Foundation and some young children will get the chance to meet the first team. 'The great thing about coming to Hong Kong and Japan is just the size and scale of the fanbase. It's extraordinary. We don't just want to come in, play the games and fly home. It's important that we leave a legacy by engaging with the local community. 'The legends we've got with us — Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush, Jerzy Dudek, Lucas Leiva, Sami Hyypia and Niamh Fahey — are a big part of that.' Hogan believes this 10-day trip strikes the right balance in terms of helping Slot's squad prepare for the season, while enabling Liverpool to make further strides commercially. 'We sit down every year and look at what the opportunities are in terms of the markets that are important to the club,' he says. 'Most importantly, there have to be the right facilities for training. The team needs to get up to a certain level fitness-wise and they need minutes. 'Coming to Hong Kong works for everyone. There are great facilities and we're playing the first European friendly in the new Kai Tak Stadium against Milan. Then we go to Japan and play in front of another sell-out crowd.' It has been a difficult period for everyone following the deaths of Diogo Jota and his brother, Andre Silva, in a car crash in Spain this month. Liverpool have ensured that counselling is available to all players and staff grieving the loss of a much-loved colleague and friend. 'The news of Diogo and Andre's passing was devastating and obviously even more so for Diogo's wife and the whole family,' Hogan says. Advertisement 'Initially, that was the main concern: making sure that as a club we were supporting them. We are continuing to work with them. We've all seen the incredible outpouring of emotion and support at Anfield. We've seen it across the world of sport and beyond. Diogo had such an impact on people. Forget about being a great footballer; he was a terrific person. 'Certainly, from a mental health perspective, it's something that as a club we talk about a lot internally. We want to provide support for the players and everyone across the club. Immediately afterwards, we ensured we had the right support there for anyone who needed it at whatever stage. Grieving isn't a simple and straightforward process. Everybody handles it differently.' Liverpool permanently retired the No 20 shirt in Jota's honour and are in contact with his family about further tributes. There is likely to be a dedicated space at Anfield this season where fans can go to pay their respects. 'A longer-term tribute at Anfield is one of the subjects we're working through now with the family. We will be guided by them to ensure we're doing that in the right way,' Hogan says. The opening friendly of the summer away to Preston North End was emotionally charged, but strength and comfort were taken from the show of togetherness between supporters, players and staff when Jota's song was chanted repeatedly after the final whistle. 'It's been very challenging, but the Preston match was a helpful step in terms of the opportunity to show that outpouring of support,' he says. 'I'd like to pay huge credit to Preston, Peter Ridsdale and everyone there who couldn't have been more gracious. The way they worked with us in the run up to the match, and in terms of what they did: the recognition, having the two anthems sung, their captain laying the wreath in front of the away end, and giving us that time at the end for our supporters and the team to be together to have that moment. Advertisement 'There's been so much support we've received as a club and that was another example of it.' Slot talked about the difficulty of trying to find the right words to say to his players at a time when 'nothing seemed important' and made it clear that no one should start training until they were ready. Now preparations for the new campaign are being stepped up with double sessions in the heat of Hong Kong, but Jota and a desire to honour his memory remain at the forefront of their thoughts. Hogan adds: 'This was someone who people genuinely loved — a terrific and important part of the team. To lose someone like that…we're all human beings. 'I had a couple of conversations with Arne. He's the leader of the squad. Arne captured it so well with what he said about Diogo being such an authentic person. 'He talked about doing what you think is right for you because that's how Diogo lived his life. Arne has shown great leadership during this process.'
