English second-tier football team Queens Park Rangers is pitching investors in a bid to capitalize on strong demand for investment in the world’s most popular sport.
The West London team, which recently opened new facilities at its training center close to Heathrow Airport, has been showing potential investors around its sites, according to a person close to the situation, who asked not to be identified because the information is not public.
“The board is open to new investment,” QPR’s Chief Executive Officer Lee Hoos said by text message. “There are two key parts to it: one is the investment itself but the second is whether the person can add to the strategic process at board level.”
He declined to elaborate on any talks.
US investors are increasingly targeting lower league English teams in order to attempt to get them promoted to the more lucrative top tier. Most teams in the second tier, known as the Championship, are loss-making, with player wage costs exceeding revenues in the league as a whole for the fifth consecutive year.
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This year, US hedge fund manager Tom Wagner bought a 46% stake in Birmingham City Football Club and a group of US businessmen invested in Welsh football club Swansea City, both in the Championship. Lower-tier teams that have received investments recently include Ipswich Town, Lincoln City and Wrexham AFC, which Hollywood celebrities Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought a stake in in 2021.
QPR last played in the Premier League in the 2014-2015 season. Last season, it only narrowly survived relegation to the third tier after its coach Michael Beale left the club unexpectedly to join Glasgow Rangers.
The club’s controlling shareholder is Ruben Gnanalingam, son of recently deceased Malaysian billionaire G. Gnanalingam. Other shareholders include steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal’s son-in-law Amit Bhatia and US investor Richard Reilly.
The club posted an operating loss of £24 million ($31 million) on revenue of £22.1 million for the 2021-2022 season, which is the latest available. Hoos said the financial results were impacted by a decision to retain players.
