Iranian businessman prepares billionaire offer to buy Tottenham

O Tottenham, one of the biggest clubs in England, could have a new owner in the coming months. Jahm Najafi, Iranian and one of the shareholders of the Phoenix Suns, NBA franchise, intends to make an offer of US$ 3.75 billion (about R$ 20 billion) to acquire the London team. The businessman is president of MSP Sports Capital, the group that will lead the proposal.

The information was given by Financial Times, which states that an offer is already being prepared by Najafi and shareholders. Currently, Tottenham belongs to Joe Lewis and is chaired by Daniel Levy. The speculated value for the offer takes into account the club’s equity – valued at approximately US$ 3 billion – and another US$ 750 million in debt to Tottenham’s coffers.

A formal proposal should happen in the coming weeks. MSP and its shareholders will contribute 70% of the value, while sponsors from the Middle East region, mainly Abu Dhabi, will contribute the remaining 30%.

In recent years, Tottenham has restructured itself as a brand, in and out of England. Its new stadium, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, built in the space of the former White Hart Lane, cost around R$ 5 billion to its coffers. Its new structure allows the stadium to host, in addition to English Premier League, Champions League and other local competitions, American football matches, more specifically the NFL.

Najafi, who also holds American nationality, would be yet another businessman to take control of a Premier League club. In the last year, Todd Boehly led the consortium that acquired Chelsea after the sanctions imposed on Roman Abrahamovic for the war between Russia and Ukraine – the former representative of the club was a supporter of Vladimir Putin.

Despite the increase in revenues under the current management – Tottenham revealed that, in the last year, it accumulated 444 million pounds (about R$ 2.8 billion), an increase of 23% compared to 2021 -, the club does not conquer titles since 2008. At the time, he was champion of the English League Cup. Since then, the team has been coached by José Mourinho, Mauricio Pochettino and Antônio Conte, but has not won any trophies.

For the fans, the expectation is that a change in command of the team will result in better results on the pitch. In the Premier League, Tottenham occupies the fifth position, behind Arsenal, Manchester City, Newcastle and Manchester United. In the Champions League, lost the first leg of the round of 16 against Milan, 1-0.