Iranian billionaire said launching takeover bid for UK’s Tottenham soccer club

Tottenham Hotspur fans wave flags ahead of the English Premier League soccer match against Manchester United at White Hart Lane stadium in London, on May 14, 2017. (Frank Augstein/AP)
Tottenham Hotspur fans wave flags ahead of the English Premier League soccer match against Manchester United at White Hart Lane stadium in London, on May 14, 2017. (Frank Augstein/AP)

Iranian-American billionaire Jahm Najafiis is set to launch a $3.75 billion takeover bid for the UK Premier League soccer club Tottenham Hotspur, Reuters reports.

Citing sources familiar with the plans, Reuters says Najafiis’s MSP Sports Capital will put forward 70% of the purchase price, while backers from the Gulf, mainly from Abu Dhabi, will contribute the other 30%.

Tottenham is a north London club that has traditionally drawn a large fan base from Jewish communities, with supporters long describing themselves as the “Yid Army” although the club has more recently sought to distance itself from the term, saying it is now seen as offensive.

Both the club’s current owner Joe Lewis and its chair Daniel Levy are Jewish.

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