Finnish entrepreneur Thomas Zilliacus has stated his desire to purchase Liverpool if his attempted takeover of Manchester United fails
Entrepreneur Thomas Zilliacus has stated his desire to purchase Liverpool Football Club if his attempted takeover of Manchester United fails.
Zilliacus claimed earlier this week that he had made an offer to purchase the Old Trafford club. He’d be competing against British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Qatari entrepreneur Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani.
Now, Zilliacus appears to have stated that if he fails to purchase Manchester United, he would be interested in investing in Liverpool. FSG had previously stated that they would consider a full takeover of Anfield, but John Henry has since clarified that they are only looking for new investors.
Who exactly is Thomas Zilliacus?
Zilliacus was born in Helsinki, Finland, in 1954, and had a brief career in politics before enrolling in university. He would later resign from his position on Helsinki’s city council to relocate to Singapore to lead Nokia’s expansion into Asia.
Zilliacus is now the executive chairman of that group, which has made investments in a variety of companies including OpenMobile. In addition, the 69-year-old has served on several boards and advisory committees, including as an independent director.
He has prior experience in the sports industry, having previously served as the chairman of HJK from 1982 to 1986. He was also the owner of the Finnish ice hockey club Jokerit until it was sold to Russian investors in 2012.
The net worth of Thomas Zilliacus
Zilliacus’ net worth is unknown, but it is believed to be less than that of British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
According to Forbes, FSG CEO John Henry’s net worth is estimated to be $4 billion.
Man United statement by Thomas Zilliacus
Zilliacus has made no secret of his desire to purchase Manchester United. On Thursday, he issued a statement outlining his desire to own the Old Trafford club.
“Ultimately, any sports club should belong to its fans.” The current trend of billionaire sheiks and oligarchs taking over and controlling clubs as their personal playgrounds is not a healthy one.
“The club’s current market value is just under 3.9 billion USD.” That means that if all of the club’s fans contributed to the purchase, the total cost per fan would be less than $6. My campaign is based on fan equality.
“My group will finance half of the money required to take over the club, and will ask fans to contribute the other half through a new company being formed for this purpose.” If every fan joins, the cost per fan is less than $3.
“Each fan who joins will have access to an app through which he or she can participate and vote on football-related issues affecting the club from anywhere in the world.” No decisions will be made unless a majority of the fan base agrees.
“Manchester United should be the world’s best football club, but it should also be the world’s leading club in working to end abuse, racism, and hate speech on social media and on sports grounds.”
“If our bid is successful, we will ensure that Manchester United, the best football club in the world, operates on the principles of respect, equality, dignity, diversity, racial harmony, and democracy.”
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