Harlequins, Northampton and Gloucester draw overseas investor interest

Harlequins, Northampton and Gloucester are attracting serious interest from overseas investors as Prem Rugby heads into its first season as a closed league, which starts on Friday, according to the Guardian.

The paper cites a source with knowledge of the discussions, who described approaches from several high net worth individuals in the United States and the Middle East. Consumer brands have also made contact, their interest raised by Red Bull's takeover at Newcastle last year.

Prem Rugby chief executive Simon Massie-Taylor told the Guardian earlier this week that he expects "two or three more" deals at clubs to be completed in the next two years. He was referring to the backing already in place at Exeter, where Bill Foley's Black Knight Group has invested, and at Bath, where James Dyson has done the same. Both deals were done earlier this year.

The US private equity company RedBird Capital Partners has also held initial talks about buying a stake in the league itself. Its sporting portfolio includes a controlling interest in Serie A's Milan and a minority stake in Fenway Sports Group, owners of Liverpool and the Boston Red Sox. Those informal discussions began in July and have not advanced. Prem Rugby is concentrating on deepening its collaboration with existing private equity partners CVC Capital. Talks with several clubs are understood to be continuing apace.

Harlequins' appeal is one of location. The Stoop is within 15 minutes of Heathrow, making Quins the Prem club closest to central London. Their turnover, at almost £30m, is the highest in the league. On the field it has been harder: they finished second-bottom last season and have not reached the playoffs since 2022.

If the approaches turn into deals, the pattern set at Exeter and Bath would extend to a third and fourth club in the first years of the closed league. The RedBird talks, for now, remain at the exploratory stage.