- Liverpool owners FSG make second club decision
- Reasons given behind U-turn
- Doubts over Michael Edwards’ future
Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) have reportedly abandoned their plan to buy a second football club. They were linked with several clubs around Europe, including Bordeaux, Malaga, and Getafe.
According to a report in The Athletic, FSG’s decision to shelve its plan to expand its football division has cast doubt on the future of CEO Michael Edwards. He returned to Anfield in 2024 with an agreement to help the owners purchase a second club and create the multi-club ownership group.
Edwards previously left his role as sporting director in 2022. He returned under FSG president Mike Gordon, who announced that FSG were looking to buy a second club, and the appointment was a key step towards that goal.
“To remain competitive, we must identify every avenue available to us to gain an edge. To this end, Michael will use every tool at his disposal and has already identified the acquisition of another club as one channel that will help fortify our overall operation and drive our competitive ambitions.”
Edwards led the ownership group’s analysis of around 25 clubs, mainly in Europe, over the last two years. The Liverpool owners explored deals for Bordeaux, Malaga, and Getafe, but did not go ahead with their plans.
FSG’s Second Club Decision
It is also reported that AS Monaco were of interest to FSG, with the group holding talks to become minority owners of the Ligue 1 side. The 30% ownership was explored in early 2025, before they pulled out once again.
Chelsea showed interest in Edwards after he left Liverpool in 2022, but he opted against the move while taking a break. He later founded Michael Edwards Consultants Ltd, before making the switch back to the Anfield side.
City Football Group’s former consultant, Simon Van Kerckhoven, spoke to The Athletic about the possible reasons FSG may have dropped their multi-club plans, saying the financial commitments involved could have discouraged them.
He believes that the potential revenue or the cost of building the foundation for the second club’s success might be the key reason they opted out. Van Kerckhoven added that another possible reason might be the time it took for the ownership group to make the final call.
‘Take a Long Time to Make a Decision’
Van Kerckhoven claimed that the second club’s relegation or failure to make it to European competition next season could have also played a role, and said:
“The best time to buy a club is January to May, as that is when you should know if you are going up or down, or into Europe or not, and you have the summer to make changes. But this means you don’t have as much time as you might think. You have to be ready to move and I get the impression that FSG takes a long time to make a decision.”
Van Kerckhoven added that the buzz around multi-club ownership has faded in recent years, which could also have influenced their decision to shelve the plans. However, he believes the key reason is their failure to develop a proper plan for the second club.
FSG Silence Over Second Club Plan
The Liverpool owners have not publicly disclosed the ideology for the second club – whether it is to develop players like the Red Bull group or use it as a second club to loan out players like Chelsea’s BlueCo use RC Strasbourg.
“But the final reason is that FSG has never explained what its MCO plan is. Is it to create a development hub? Is it, like Red Bull, to give them access to a new market? It is somewhere to park loan players? Or is it just to diversify the investment portfolio? I have no idea.”
FSG have also shelved other plans in recent months, including their decision not to back LeBron James with his bid to get an NBA franchise in Las Vegas.
