PROFITABLE SPURS RIPE FOR INVESTORS

Experts say EPL side attractive due to good cost control, revenue potential

- Dilenjit Singh

LONDON - Manchester United and Liverpool may have more trophies and a larger fan presence worldwide compared to Tottenham Hotspur, but amid widespread reports last week that Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) is interested in investing in a major English Premier League club, football finance experts say Spurs could prove a more attractive proposition.

In October 2022, QSI - owners of Paris Saint-Germain - bought a 22 per cent stake in Portuguese Primeira Liga team Braga. Bloomberg revealed that it has since turned its attention to the English game, with United, Liverpool and Tottenham among the teams identified "due to the EPL's continued growth and global profile". The Guardian reported that "Spurs are QSI's first priority".

Both parties were reportedly in discussion - which the club denied - over the sale of a minority stake in Tottenham, who in May 2022 Forbes valued at US$2.35 billion (S$3.1 billion).

Kieran Maguire, football finance guru from the University of Liverpool and author of the book The Price Of Football, told The Straits Times: "Spurs are attractive because they are the most profitable club in the history of the Premier League.

"A lot of those profits were generated prior to the move to the new stadium. So it does show that they've had good cost control. So that's attractive from an investment point of view. The stadium is in London, which tends to be a greater attraction for many overseas investors than the outside cities...