Amanda Staveley has just filed official paperwork as £500m Tottenham takeover plot evolves
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Amanda Staveley may be set to break Newcastle United fans’ hearts by buying into Tottenham – and the latest developments suggest the financier’s plans are accelerating.
Staveley was the public face of the takeover of Newcastle United by a Saudi Public Investment Fund-led consortium in October 2021, as part of which she took a minority stake in the club.
But Staveley was effectively ousted from her position on the board earlier this year and has subsequently sold her stake to fellow minority partners the Reuben Brothers.
Staveley’s departure shocked Newcastle players and fans, for whom she has become something of a cult hero and the subject of banners and tifos in the Gallowgate End.
Now, it appears that she wants to get back into football and has been heavily linked with a £500m investment in Tottenham.
Daniel Levy, Spurs’ divisive chairman and co-owner, confirmed in April that ENIC were seeking additional capital investment and it later emerged this would likely come in the form of a part-takeover.
Levy is believed to value Spurs at £3.75bn, although that appraisal has been greeted with some scepticism among some analysts.
But the price tag appears not to have dissuaded the Staveley and there has now been an official update from her camp.
Staveley takeover vehicle issues formal update
When Staveley raised £500m for a new football investment earlier this year, it was reported that she did so through PCP Capital Partners, the company she runs with her husband, Mehrdad Ghodoussi.
The capital is believed to be sourced predominantly from investors in the Middle East, where Staveley has a peerless book of contacts.
However, PCP Capital Partners – which was actually renamed Apollo Belvedere Services in 2023 – has now gone into liquidation following a legal dispute with a former client, Greek shipping company Restis.
Staveley used another one of her companies, Cantervale Limited, to complete her investment in Newcastle in 2021.
In an interesting twist that could indicate that further investment, potentially in Spurs, is in the works, a Companies House filing on Tuesday shows the firm has changed its name to Redstar Leisure Limited.
The accounts for the company suggest that her stake in Newcastle, valued at £39m, was the only investment that Redstar had on the books.
If the company is a special purpose firm purely for football investment, the fact that it is now changing its name would indicate that another deal is coming.
Tottenham investment: Timeline, other interested parties, and Levy’s role post-deal
Given Daniel Levy’s infamous negotiating style, it is unlikely that any minority investment deal will be completed any time soon.
Regulatory hurdles usually take around 12 weeks to complete in any case, and the fact Spurs have privately been seeking investment for several years suggests that a part-takeover is not imminent.
Speaking to TBR Football earlier this year, football finance expert Kieran Maguire projected that Levy will remain in charge at Spurs after the investment has gone through.
It has been suggested that a minority investment could see ENIC sell between 10 and 25 per cent of their equity in the club, which would give an incoming investor significant clout in the boardroom.
The likes of MSP Sports Capital and Qatar Sports Investment have previously been linked with full takeovers of the club, although that kind of deal appears a remote possibility at present.
