Controlling half of the Premier League is just the starting point? U.S.-funded goal is to fully "North Americanize" the five major leagues

The reporter reported coldly It will be a milestone moment for the Premier League. The Times revealed on Friday that the acquisition of Everton by American billionaire Friedkin has been approved by the Premier League, and the third Premier League club has been acquired by the United States in just two and a half years, starting with Chelsea in the summer of 2022. This season, the United States has controlled 10 Premier League clubs, accounting for half of the Premier League. In recent years, U.S. capital has comprehensively "bought the bottom" to acquire clubs in Europe's five major leagues, and the Premier League has become the main league for U.S. capital to seize the high-quality resources of European football and take the lead in reaching the 50% club control mark.

Everton's Merseyside derby at Liverpool in April next year will be the new American-funded "city derby" in the Premier League after the American-funded "London derby" of Arsenal, Chelsea and Crystal Palace. Everton is one of six clubs to have played all 33 seasons in the Premier League so far, and now these six Premier League "tumbler" clubs, only Tottenham Hotspur is not an American holding.

The six giants of the Premier League have Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea, which are controlled by the United States, and the United States also controls Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Crystal Palace, Fulham, Ipswich and Everton, and is actively operating to acquire or at least take a stake in Tottenham and West Ham United. Even Manchester City, which is controlled by the Abu Dhabi royal family, has an 18% stake in the United States. U.S. investors have also bottomed down in seven Championship clubs, including promotion favourites Leeds United, Burnley, West Bromwich Albion and Swansea City.

The reason why US investors are so keen to invest in Premier League clubs stems from the fact that the Premier League has a precipitous lead in rights revenue and global influence compared to the other four major leagues. The Premier League is arguably the UK's most successful investable "quality asset", and Albert, the head of the UK government's investment arm in the US, meets almost daily with US representatives who want to invest in Premier League clubs. More and more North American investment funds are entering the Premier League market, with holdings in Chelsea, Ipswich Town, Crystal Palace and Manchester City all coming from North America.

The American-owned Fenway Group, which controls Liverpool, even tried to register the geographical name "Liverpool" as a trademark, although it failed, but it reflected the desire of the United States to maximize commercial profits after buying Premier League clubs. The U.S.-controlled Premier League giants have considerable returns, and investing in small and medium-sized clubs is also very profitable. In 2021, Gamechanger 20, a co-investment fund led by the Arizona Pension Fund of the United States, bought Ipswich Town, who was in League One at the time, for less than £30 million. Last year, Ipswich was promoted to the Championship, and the Ohio private equity fund spent 105 million pounds to buy a 40% stake in the club, so that Gamechanger 20 directly received a net profit equivalent to 2.5 times the acquisition cost. Ipswich have been promoted to the Premier League this season, with sales of club shirts surging to 100,000 from 10,000 a year four years ago, and season revenue increasing from £13 million to £155 million. Even if Ipswich, who are currently in the relegation zone, are eventually relegated, American investors will still receive more than £200 million in rights and Premier League bonuses.

Compared with the four major professional league clubs in North America, which are often multi-billion dollars and expensive clubs, the Premier League has a low acquisition cost and is a high-quality "bottom-buying" investment project. The U.S.-owned company, which controls more than half of the clubs in the UK, is already considering turning the Premier League into an "American-style professional league". As early as 2011, the U.S.-controlled Premier League clubs discussed canceling relegation and relegation to ensure that the clubs would make huge profits as consistently as the big four North American leagues. Athletic.com stresses that when the United States controls more than two-thirds (14) of the Premier League's clubs, changing the Premier League format will be possible in a practical sense.

American owners are looking for ways to get more business revenue for Premier League clubs in North America and around the world. In addition to promoting game time to be more favorable to North American audiences, seven U.S.-controlled clubs in the Premier League this summer, including American-owned Manchester City, have all played commercial matches in North America. Werner, chairman of Fenway Group, revealed in a high-profile manner that he will make every effort to promote the Premier League's North American and even global overseas competitions, and spread the regular season around the world like the NBA (American Professional Basketball). The Premier League has been trying to promote overseas competitions in recent years, and behind it is the support of American bosses.

In addition to the Premier League, American capital is also buying the four major leagues on the European continent. The nine clubs of Serie A, including Milan, Roma, Fiorentina, Atalanta, Bologna, Genoa, Parma and Venezia, are all controlled by North American capital. Not surprisingly, soon the US will also control more than half of the clubs in Serie A, and then win Serie A after the Premier League. North American capital controls Marseille, Lyon, Le Havre, Strasbourg and Toulouse in Ligue 1, and like Manchester City, which is controlled by the Abu Dhabi royal family, Grand Paris, which is controlled by the Qatari royal family, has also introduced American capital to hold a small number of shares, and American capital has also invested in Lens and Lorient, and in Ligue 2 and French C, there are also old clubs Saint-Etienne, Nancy and Paris Red Star that have been acquired by American capital. In addition, the United States also controls Mallorca in La Liga, Sevilla and Hertha Berlin in the German Second Division, and extends its tentacles to European small and medium-sized leagues such as the Portuguese Super League, the Eredivisie and the Belgian League.

The full entry of American capital into Europe's top five leagues, especially the Premier League, will inevitably profoundly change the pattern of European football in the future. The "North Americanization" of the Premier League seems to be an irreversible trend, and North American capital is not only acquiring European clubs, but also joining forces to promote the release of the European Super League. The completion of US capital control of 50% of the Premier League clubs is only a milestone starting point for the full "North Americanization" of the Premier League and Europe's top five leagues.