In the Dallas Morning News, Gary Jacobson and Brandon Case describe the next unfolding chapter in the business life of one of sports’ most controversial owners. It’s a very interesting story.
Here are a couple of snips. First, the bruises from the Liverpool fans’ “Yanks Out” attitude have apparently taken their toll.
Hicks said he once didn’t mind the high-profile glare that comes with team ownership. But now he is tired of it, especially the abuse. “I’ve had all the publicity I want to have,” he said. “I want some privacy for my family.”
Can’t say I blame him, but if I were Hicks, or Glazer for that matter, I wouldn’t take a penny less for the club than I thought it was worth. I find the behavior among the fans at Liverpool and Man United a modern, mob-like reflection of my time in England in the 1970s, when it wasn’t safe to go to a soccer match. This time the target is not the other clubs’ hooligans, but American owners.
Hicks is returning his focus to his private equity financing, of which he’s had a pretty good (if uneven) record: ‘ “With Hicks & Haas, that’s one of the all-time best-performing buyout funds ever,” said Steven Kaplan, a University of Chicago professor who follows the private-equity business.’
For the sake of my retirement portfolio, I hope that Hicks is right this time about equity valuation:
Now, he’s on the prowl for more deals, he said.
“You want to invest in times when good prices can be obtained,” he said. “This is one of the better times we’ve seen right now. Our motto around the firm is, ‘We want to shoot fish in a barrel.’ We think this environment is good.”
Comments are closed.