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1-1 to the UAE
There were no celebratory wheel-spins, horns beeping or road stunts outside the offices of Dubai International Capital last night.
Just 24 hours after the UAE had claimed its victory over Oman in the Arabian Gulf Cup, it was announced that Dubai had been defeated in its bid to buy Liverpool Football Club. The final score looked more like 1-1.
And – despite the obvious lack of jubilance – passions were running just as high at the DIC as those of the UAE football supporters the night before.
Sameer Al Ansari, chief executive of DIC, issued a surprisingly personal and emotionally charged statement announcing his disappointment at being forced to withdraw due to a higher bid by George Gillett. He played up his support of Liverpool – primarily, as a fan.
“Liverpool […] exists to win things for its supporters. It deserves to be in the hands of people who support it, who understand its history and legend and who share the enthusiasm and passion of its fans. As businessmen, we move on. As fans, we hope that the new owners would share the same vision as we had for LFC,” he said.
“I am sure I will be back at Anfield with my family soon to support my team, as I have done so in the last thirty-plus years […] and will make sure that I am there the day they lift the Premiership trophy.”
Unless this is a very cynical way of putting the boot into Gillett, which I do not think is the case, then there is little reason to doubt Al Ansari’s dedication to the team.
But while Al Ansari may be a fan of the club, he is primarily a businessman. And, as he says, “we will not overpay for assets”.
This is the message that the world needs to hear. Dubai is not the source of unlimited resources that can snap up such investments on a whim. And the fact that DIC remained levelheaded over the Liverpool deal – in the sense of its business decisions, rather than its press statements – is commendable.
This reminds me of a statement often attributed to Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid al Maktoum: "I would like to tell capitalists that Dubai does not need investors; investors need Dubai. And I tell you that the risk lies not in using your money, but in letting it pile up."
But – in terms of this particular overseas investment – the DIC is right to let its money pile up, rather than pay a price that it considers to be too high.
Likewise, it may turn out that Dubai didn’t really need Liverpool, but Liverpool needed Dubai.
The DIC’s commitment to the club extended to building a much-need new stadium. This was, for the fans, much preferable to a previous suggestion made by George Gillett, which was for Liverpool to share a ground with arch-rivals Everton.
And the apparent reason that the bid was withdrawn was nothing to do with football – it was the greed of Liverpool’s majority shareholder David Moores in seeking a highest possible offer, regardless of the bidder.
So, maybe, the final score is actually 2-0, and not 1-1 after all. The emirate of Dubai has proved that it is not a whimsical overseas investor with unlimited funds; it is deeply rational – even when it comes to ‘the beautiful game’.
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