Why rich Americans are betting big on EFL clubs

For all the debate about the FA Cup’s modern appeal, this weekend’s fourth round will attract invested viewers from as lucrative an audience as you can get: America’s one percent.

- MIGUEL DELANEY

They will be keenly watching some of the lower-league clubs, and part of that is romance. A much larger part, however, is how that romance can be monetised.

The wider English pyramid is currently seeing an explosion of interest from American billionaires and “institutional money”. This weekend’s fourth round has four EFL clubs under such ownership, and they make up a total of 19 out of 72, with stakes even extending into the National League.

It is now such a prominent trend that there’s an entirely separate industry of consultants, specifically advising on investments. Those who work in the area talk of how high-wealth and highprofile individuals ask questions about buying clubs you would never expect, with some even stating “the lower down the pyramid” or “the quirkier the name” the better. “You could do great things on TikTok,” was one line.

Some of that is directly influenced by the most obvious examples at Wrexham and Birmingham City, the latter of whom face Newcastle United on Saturday. That tie could feasibly but absurdly be billed as Tom Brady against Mohammed bin Salman, which reflects how there is something bigger going on.

It is connected to the wider forces shaping modern football, and how it is being pulled between the twin poles of New York and the Gulf. States largely desire the political capital of the sport, while US business wants the financial capital. You only have to look at how much of football is going to be centred in the US over the next few years, from the Premier League’s Summer Series to the 2026 World Cup.