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Leeds United and Qatar Sports Investments: What We Know

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When a story seemingly just won’t go away, it’s correct to presume that there must be some legs to it. The latest twist on the developing story of Leeds potentially receiving investment from the group who own PSG came this morning, with the New York Times’ Tariq Panja reporting that further talks between Nasser al-Kehlaifi and Andrea Radrizzani were set to take place today.

Previously, it was understood that Radrizzani was adamant he would not sell a stake in Leeds this summer. His position has firmly been that he feels he can get the most value for his part in Leeds should the club be promoted to the Premier League. This raised an eyebrow or two from Leeds fans, asking whether he was at the club because he wanted to build something positive, or just to make a quick buck?

Adam Pope, BBC’s man on the ground at Leeds, then signalled a change in stance from Leeds. Posting on Twitter that “the club’s stance is that Radrizzani is not wanting to sell a majority stake but won’t stand in way of investors who can make the club stronger”.

What are the consequences of this? QSI obviously have untold riches and on the face of it, seem to have far more financial capability than Radrizzani, but at what cost? It’s expected that in the event a deal does happen, it will be a minority stake in Leeds. But due to the EFL’s profit and sustainability rules, they would be unable to pump Leeds with cash for transfer purposes. So what benefit they can bring exactly, remains to be seen…

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