As a consortium that includes Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), closes in on a deal to buy a roughly 30% stake in Liverpool Football Club (LFC), LeBron James, a decorated American professional basketball player, stands to make over $100 million.
Assuming LeBron’s share at Liverpool FC has not been diluted, he could get $113 million if the transaction goes through this week, according to Darren Rovell, founder of cllct media, in an X post analyzed by Finbold on August 11. After Fenway Sports Group (FSG) acquired a majority position in LFC in 2011, LeBron received a 2% stake as part of a marketing and representation agreement.
This equity was valued at approximately $6.5 million at the time, since the club was valued at about $325 million. With the Bezos-linked consortium advancing towards investing around $1.824 billion in LFC, LeBron’s 2% stake could climb to over $113 million, assuming no dilution.
Consequently, LeBron’s stake in the fourth most valuable football club in the world could surge by 1,638.46%, representing a profit of $106.5 million.
What LeBron stands to get from Liverpool’s deal
In 2021, LeBron converted the stake into roughly a 1% ownership position in the broader FSG parent company, thus gaining exposure to other related assets. As a result, he no longer holds the original 2% in this football club.
Instead, the 4-time NBA champion, currently playing for the Philadelphia 76ers, has exposure to Liverpool and FSG’s other assets, thus a diluted stake in LFC. With FSG recently valued at nearly $15 billion, LeBron’s 1% stake could be valued at more than $150 million.
If the purchase happens as scheduled, Liverpool could see its value rise to more than $6 billion. Consequently, LeBron may see his initial $6.5 million rise by over $143.5 million, representing a 2,207.69% uptick.
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