3 Football Takeovers Pending Approval in 2026
A dated snapshot of three announced football takeovers still awaiting approval, covering Liverpool, Valencia and Gateshead as of 12 November 2026.
Fenway Sports Group has agreed to sell a minority stake in Liverpool to 1892 Holdings, subject to regulatory approvals, while Valencia's planned Pitchwise stake sale and the Flacks Group's Gateshead takeover are also still awaiting clearance. This is a dated snapshot of three announced deals that have not yet completed, as of 12 November 2026.
Key facts
- Scope: announced football club transactions that, as of 12 November 2026, had not completed because regulatory or other stated closing conditions were still outstanding.
- This is not a second list of takeovers that collapsed, and it is not a rerun of the biggest completed takeovers.
- Deals that have already completed, including Shrewsbury Town's sale, are kept off the table. Open sale processes without an announced buyer, including Everton's asking-price process and the formal sale of CF Montréal, are described only as context.
- The last official club wording is used where later secondary reports conflict, notably at Gateshead.
3 deals Announced transactions still awaiting stated regulatory or closing approvals as of 12 November 2026, based on official club notices.42% The stake Pitchwise Holdings has agreed to take in Valencia CF, with Meriton remaining the majority shareholder, subject to approvals.6 Nov The date Gateshead said the Flacks Group takeover had reached completion subject to Independent Football Regulator approval.
A snapshot, not a completed-sales ranking
Each entry below is a deal that has been announced by the club or the seller and has been expressly left subject to approvals or customary closing conditions. The list will date quickly, which is the point of it. A process that later completes should move to the completed-takeovers file. A process that is abandoned belongs with the deals that collapsed.
| # | Club | Buyer or investor | What has been announced | What is still outstanding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 1892 Holdings, a consortium led by Amit Bhatia | FSG has entered into a definitive agreement to sell a minority equity stake. FSG said it will retain majority ownership and operational control. | Closing is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, according to the 14 August 2026 club statement. The official notice did not state a percentage. |
| 2 | Valencia CF | Pitchwise Holdings | Pitchwise will acquire a 42% stake from Meriton Holdings, at a €1.25bn enterprise value, and will provide €100m of new capital. Meriton remains the majority shareholder. | The 23 October 2026 club announcement said the investment is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. Spanish reporting later described a Consejo Superior de Deportes review, because the stake is above 25%. |
| 3 | Gateshead | Flacks Group | The club said on 6 November 2026 that completion of the takeover had been reached, subject to Independent Football Regulator approval. | IFR approval, on the club's last official wording. Some later secondary reports described the deal as approved while still referring to remaining formal steps. No subsequent official club or IFR notice confirming approval was found for this page. |
1. Liverpool: FSG's minority sale to 1892 Holdings
On 14 August 2026, Liverpool published an FSG statement saying Fenway Sports Group had "entered into a definitive agreement for the sale of a minority equity stake in Liverpool FC to 1892 Holdings", a consortium led and managed by Amit Bhatia, with investments from Bhatia and the Mittal Family Trusts, K5 Sports (a K5 Global Fund, with Jeff Bezos as lead investor in that fund), and EE Capital, the family office of Elaine and Eduardo Saverin. FSG said it "continues to retain majority ownership and operational control." Closing, the statement said, "is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions." The official notice did not state the size of the minority stake. Later reporting has put the holding near 38% or 40%; that figure is not used as a club-stated fact here.
2. Valencia CF: Pitchwise's agreed 42% stake
Valencia announced on 23 October 2026 that Pitchwise Holdings, led by Ann Rodriguez and Corey Woolfolk, would acquire a 42% stake from Meriton Holdings. The club put a €1.25bn enterprise value on the transaction and said Pitchwise would provide €100m of new capital. Meriton, it said, would remain the majority shareholder, and Kiat Lim would remain president. "The investment by Pitchwise is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals." Mundo Deportivo later reported that the club had notified Spain's Consejo Superior de Deportes, the step required under the sports law when a buyer would reach 25% or more of the voting rights. Until that clearance, and any other stated conditions, the deal stays on this pending list rather than on the completed-sales ranking.
3. Gateshead: Flacks Group, still subject to IFR approval
Gateshead's own club statement of 6 November 2026 said "the completion of Flacks Group's takeover, subject to Independent Football Regulator approval, has been met with both relief and delight." Interim chairman Graham Wood said wages had been paid and that funds were in place to satisfy HMRC and other creditors. That is the last official club wording used here. Our earlier report on the deal still needing IFR approval sits alongside that update. Some later secondary reports described the takeover as approved, while still referring to remaining formal steps. In the absence of a later official club or IFR notice, Gateshead remains on this pending list as of 12 November 2026.
What has left the list, and what was never on it
Shrewsbury Town's sale is not pending. The club's takeover completed earlier in November, and that completed transaction stays off this table. Harrogate Town's change of ownership was completed in October 2026 after IFR approval, and Northampton Town's takeover also completed earlier in the autumn. Those are closed deals. FC Nantes is not pending either: on 22 October 2026 the club said Waldemar Kita had ended talks on a sale to Phenix Capital after the prospective buyer, in the club's account, failed to provide the financial guarantees and the complete file needed for DNCG validation.
Two other processes are important context but are not signed deals awaiting approval. The Friedkin Group's Everton sale process has been framed around an asking price, not around an announced buyer waiting for a regulator's stamp. The Saputo family's formal sale of CF Montréal is likewise a sale process, not a pending clearance of a named purchaser, unless and until a buyer is announced and left subject to approval.
Methodology and update
This page is a dated snapshot of announced football takeovers or stake sales that have not completed because stated regulatory or closing conditions remain outstanding. Official club wording is preferred where later secondary reports conflict. Completed sales, abandoned talks and open processes without a named buyer are excluded from the main table. Last updated 12 November 2026. The page should be revised as soon as one of these three deals completes, collapses or is formally cleared.
Sources
Liverpool's 14 August 2026 FSG statement; Valencia CF's 23 October 2026 Pitchwise announcement, with subsequent Mundo Deportivo reporting on the CSD filing; Gateshead's 6 November 2026 club statement; FC Nantes's 22 October 2026 communiqué ending the Phenix Capital talks. Related reading: takeovers that collapsed, and why, the Gateshead deal still needs IFR approval, Everton's £800m asking price and the biggest completed takeovers.