Todd Boehly gets £845m boost from the US as Chelsea takeover civil war continues

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Tottenham are searching for fresh investment, Daniel Levy confirmed in April. Former Newcastle United and Man City takeover broker Amanda Staveley has emerged as the surprised frontrunner.

Staveley left Newcastle after just shy of three years as a director and minority shareholder in the summer alongside husband and business partner Mehrdad Ghodoussi.

The 51-year-old financier has since been linked with investing in Spurs via her PCP Capital Partners vehicle, having raised a reported £500m for a new football project.

Staveley has also explored AS Monaco as a possible alternative to Tottenham, whose enterprise value is among the biggest in world football.

But she is not the only high-profile name to have been linked with Spurs in recent years – and it has been known in the football finance industry for some time that Daniel Levy is courting investment.

Former Man United takeover suitor Sheikh Jassim has reportedly expressed interest in Tottenham, as has Jay-Z’s Roc Nation agency, while Todd Boehly explored the club before landing on Chelsea.

Levy has engaged the Rothschild Bank and is believed to value his prize asset at £3.75bn, so the pool of groups or individuals capable of pulling of a deal – in the form of a full or partial takeover – is limited.

But in many ways, Spurs are the perfect, readymade investment project.

Their cost control might be a source of frustration for fans and perhaps Ange Postecoglou, whose side are now the same number as points from the bottom of the league as they are from the top.

But their modest wage bill means a new investor would have the PSR headroom to turn on the afterburners.

Equally, the club’s commercial department is hailed as one of the best in football. And yes, that praise extends to the somewhat controversial ‘remastered brand identity’ revealed this week.

TBR Football understands that a number of groups have conducted due diligence on Spurs besides Staveley, with the club’s brand, sponsorship, merchandise and events strategy the biggest draw.

Previously, sports and entertainment empire Liberty Media were reported to have been interested in the North London club.

And the Colorado-headquartered company have now mapped out a central aspect in their sports investment strategy going forward.

• READ MORE: The signing Ange Postecoglou would 'love' Tottenham to make in January

Liberty Media’s plans revealed as Amanda Staveley still Tottenham frontrunner

Liberty Media have an existing relationship with Spurs through the club’s 15-year commercial deal with Formula One, which has seen a karting track installed at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Liberty were later linked with an equity investment in the club, with CEO Greg Maffei later saying there wasn’t a Premier League club the group hadn’t considered.

That landmark commercial partnership with Spurs was one of dozens that Liberty have struck in their role as 100 per cent owners of F1, which they bought for less than £3bn in 2017.

Now, the motorsport franchise is worth closer to £16bn, according to most appraisals.

There had been reports that Liberty were ready to cash in on F1, with Newcastle United owners and Amanda Staveley allies the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) the frontrunners to take over.

However, Maffei, who it was announced this week will step down as Liberty CEO, has, as quoted by Motorsport Week, said: "Look, I don't think there's any plan to sell it.

"It's got a great future, but, you know, I suspect the Board of Liberty will be appropriate stewards of the shareholder capital.

"The business is very well positioned, right? [We have] grown the global partnership since 2019.

"We've compounded sponsorship at 16%. We've compounded all the revenue streams at something like 12%.

"It's really been a hallmark of what sports wants to be, growing fan interest through things like 'Drive to Survive,' growing sponsorship, growing high-end experiences.

"[It is] sort of a model everyone else is a little bit trying to follow."

Their continued stewardship of F1 makes it less likely that they will develop their interest in Spurs, whether as part of a standalone bid or potentially as part of Amanda Staveley’s consortium.

• READ MORE: Daniel Levy may be set to make board room change at Tottenham amid Amanda Staveley latest

Full or minority Spurs takeover? What Daniel Levy has said so far

At this stage, it seems overwhelmingly unlikely that Levy and ENIC are ready to up sticks in N17 entirely.

Speaking to TBR Football earlier this year, Liverpool University football finance lecturer Kieran Maguire said that it is probably the case that Levy will only leave Spurs after they win a trophy.

And even then, the current regime likely think there is more upside to be achieved given that commercial and matchday income is soaring every year and there is still milage in TV revenue.

Spurs have just been given license by the council to double the number of non-football events they hold at the stadium, which represents an enormous revenue opportunity.

Then the NFL are increasing the number of games in their International Series, and there is a possibility that Spurs could even host the Super Bowl. It is a long-held ambition of Levy’s, after all.

Staveley’s investment therefore – more accurately the investment she is brokering on behalf of a consortium – would almost certainly be on a minority basis.

That way, the current owners get to realise some of the value of their investment at an enormous return while still maintaining majority control.

The motivations behind minority investment are not entirely clear, especially if the deal does not guarantee you sufficient voting rights to be involved in operation decisions.

That is what Crystal Palace’s John Textor, who is the club’s largest individual shareholder and yet essentially subordinate to Steve Paris at Selhurst Park, has found to his frustration.

There is a saying within certain football investment circles – minority investment in a club is basically a very expensive season ticket.