Liverpool

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Liverpool and Newcastle United are in discussions over a tribute to Kevin Keegan before their Premier League season opener at St James' Park on Sunday, 23 August (16:30 BST).

Keegan, who won three league titles, the European Cup, two Uefa Cups and the FA Cup during a trophy-laden six years at Anfield, died at the age of 75 this week.

In a club statement, external, Newcastle United confirmed they are in communication with Liverpool "to ensure his memory is marked fittingly before the game".

If you could pick an appropriate tribute to Keegan, what would it be?

Get in touch with your views here

Aadam Patel
Liverpool reporter

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Goalkeeper Freddie Woodman has signed a new three-year deal with Liverpool.

The 29-year-old is currently with the squad in the USA for the pre-season tour and made four appearances last season - he came on off the bench during Liverpool's Merseyside derby win over Everton at Hill Dickinson Stadium in April and started the next two Premier League games.

"I'm absolutely delighted," said Woodman, whose new deal will take him through to 2029.

"Last season was amazing for me. To come back in pre-season and there be an offer for me from the club to stay here longer, I was made up. I'm just so happy that I could re-sign here and be a part of this amazing club.

"[I feel] pride and so many emotions. Last season, I came in and did the role I was doing - then when I got the opportunity to play, especially the Crystal Palace game, it just felt like a real connection to the fans.

"Now I get the chance to stay here for longer and to be a part of it again is unbelievable."

The news means that Liverpool are likely to go into Andoni Iraola's first season as head coach with Alisson, Giorgi Mamardashvili and Woodman as the three first-team goalkeepers.

"I'm very happy with the situation we have right now in the goalkeeping area," Iraola told reporters in Chicago. "We have Alisson, we have Giorgi. Freddie played some games [in the] past season. I think it's a guarantee for us."

Football finance expert Kieran Maguire has been speaking to BBC Radio Merseyside about Liverpool's potential investment from a consortium lead by British-Indian millionaire businessman Amit Bhatia: "You have only got to go abroad to see the interest in the club.

"It means you have potential investment which will get your name noticed - not just at Anfield on matchday, but all over the world when those matches are broadcast to 109 different countries.

"You associate the success of a football club with an individual and the two can benefit from each other."

Why would FSG sell a stake in Liverpool?

"FSG bought Liverpool football club for £300m when it had been under a distressed time under Tom Hicks and George Gillett. FSG felt it had the skills to turn the club around, and it can be strongly argued that was the case.

"John Henry is not red and white if you cut him through, and that is not a criticism, it is an acknowledgement. If the stories are true that this is a sale of about 30% of LFC for about £1.3bn, he will have got his money back four or five times.

"He will still own over 60% of LFC and it is a fantastic deal. To a certain extent, it is a no-brainer."

Why would Jeff Bezos be part of the consortium?

"Can you imagine how the LFC global brand - highly successful, highly regarded - could work in conjunction with Amazon?

"Is this an opportunity to have some crossover in terms of product and services? Is this an opportunity for Amazon to get its name on the front or side of the shirt of LFC?

"And Amazon Prime is also a broadcaster. Are there broadcasting synergies and benefits here? There's potential of a win-win deal for all parties."

Would this increase Liverpool's transfer budget?

"Fans who are getting excited will have to dampen down that enthusiasm.

"We will have to remember the ability of a club to spend in the market is dictated by the Uefa FSR rules and the incoming Premier League FSR rules, which limit the amount of money that an owner can put into a club which goes into the players' budget."

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Aadam Patel
Liverpool reporter

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Liverpool's Rio Ngumoha has said he is looking forward to showcasing his versatility this season, including operating on the right wing.

Ngumoha, 17, primarily plays off the left but made his England debut in June on the right flank.

Following the departure of Mohamed Salah, Liverpool are in the market for another winger, with new boss Andoni Iraola confirming that when he spoke on Tuesday. And in the meantime, Ngumoha has been working on improving his game down the right.

"Being unpredictable off both sides is key," he said. "Obviously, everyone knows I can play on the left, but on the right I feel like I'm improving and I'm getting better.

"So, yeah, definitely off the left and the right this season."

The teenager enjoyed a breakthrough campaign at Anfield last season, making 29 appearances under Arne Slot and became the Reds' youngest goalscorer when he netted a last-gasp winner at Newcastle United in August.

Asked what he wanted to improve, Ngumoha said: "Definitely help the team out with goals and assists, but also my defensive actions as well.

"I've got to improve in both of them, but also just try to implement myself as a starter sometimes. Coming off the bench as well, because obviously we have so many players - so many top players - and we're all competing for places.

"But it's healthy competition. Just try to help the team as much as I can really."

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Liverpool goalkeeper Armin Pecsi has joined Austrian Bundesliga side TSV Hartberg on a season-long loan deal.

The 21-year-old, who joined the Reds in June 2025, was a regular in the club's under-21s side last season. He made 17 appearances and kept four clean sheets in all competitions.

He also featured in Arne Slot's matchday squads on five occasions throughout 2025-26.

TSV Hartberg are set to start their league season against Red Bull Salzburg on Saturday, 1 August.

Aadam Patel
Liverpool reporter

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When Fenway Sports Group sold a minority, single-figure percentage stake to global sports investment firm Dynasty Equity in 2023, that deal allowed it to make up on revenue lost during the pandemic and pay down debt for projects such as investment in the club's training centre in Kirkby and the Anfield Road stand expansion.

This time around, that is not the case - the club are in a strong position financially.

In February, Liverpool confirmed record revenues of more than £700m and was the highest-placed Premier League club in the Deloitte Football Money League.

So this development certainly raises questions about the long-term future of FSG. From an FSG perspective, it has seen Liverpool win everything there is to win since buying the club in 2010 for £300m, while upgrading the training ground and developing the stadium.

According to the Financial Times, a deal with the Bhatia consortium would value the club at about £4.5bn. So, perhaps FSG believes the club is peaking and it may be time to start stepping away.

This is an uncertain time for Liverpool. They have a new head coach in Andoni Iraola and there have been big changes at senior level, with Michael Edwards stepping down as FSG's CEO of football, primarily because the ownership had moved away from the idea of investing in other football clubs.

Meanwhile, sporting director Richard Hughes has been strongly linked with a move to Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia.

Read more about the potential investment in Liverpool

Liverpool are confident they can beat Arsenal and Bayern Munich to the signature of Paris St-Germain forward Bradley Barcola, after the 23-year-old impressed with four goal contributions at the World Cup with France this summer. (Sun), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

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Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson says every game on the club's pre-season tour of the US will have its own significance as his side prepare to face Premier League opposition.

Parkinson's men face Leeds United in Tampa on Sunday, 26 July before facing Liverpool at the iconic Yankee Stadium in New York four days later.

Their final pre-season game is against Parkinson's former club Sunderland on Sunday, 2 August in Philadelphia, hometown of Wrexham co-owner Rob Mac.

Wrexham have never met Leeds United in a competitive game, with the clubs meeting only twice in pre-season matches in 1964.

"I think they've all got a special feel to it really," Parkinson said.

"It's quite amazing, really, when you think we've never met Leeds United in a competitive game. It's a brilliant club.

"Obviously going to New York to play Liverpool, an iconic stage and it's going to be something special.

"Then going to Philadelphia, a stadium we've been to before and a really good arena for football and playing against Sunderland.

"Obviously, me and Steve [Parkin] were there for a short period, but that's kind of irrelevant really.

"It's going to Rob's hometown and putting on a show for him and his family as well."

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We asked you to tell us one player you would like to move on this summer and one realistic target you want Liverpool to bring in before the transfer window shuts.

Here are some of your suggestions:

Kev: I think we should bring in Alex Scott and ship out Alexis Mac Allister.

Zaid: I think Cody Gakpo should leave because he won't play as much since we have Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike, but he will still go for a good £75m. I think Bradley Barcola on the left wing would be a good signing and we should try and get him for about £90m.

James: I believe we should move on and let Cody Gakpo go and we should go for Bradley Barcola after his amazing performances at the World Cup.

David: Whilst there is no doubt he is a very good player, Harvey Elliot has not fulfilled the expectations that Liverpool had for him when he signed for them. He should find a club where he can become a regular starter. Whilst young talent is great, in order to replace Mo Salah we require a tried and tested winger, and we should go all out for Bradley Barcola, and if necessary break the bank for him.

Finlay: Sell Jeremie Frimpong. He's not a proper right back and especially if Conor Bradley's not always going to be fit, Frimpong can't be our only other option. Sign Daniel Munoz from Crystal Palace, he's much better defensively but can still bomb forward and score goals. Low budget as well.

Jim: For me, although I hate to say it, I think we should let Joe Gomez go. His injury record is appalling, and I truly hoped he would establish himself in the team but it still doesn't look likely. For who should be bought, we obviously need a proven right winger but so many clubs are aware of that and using it to their advantage. Yan Diomande and Bradley Barcola are the obvious shouts but I suspect neither will happen in the immediate future.

Muhammad: Yan Diomande seems like the perfect option for Liverpool at the moment, and Cody Gakpo wasn't great for us last season, so I feel he has to go.

Dave: Mac Allister has to go, his legs went last year. Try and sign Bradley Barcola.

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Liverpool have teamed up with Merseyside Police to strengthen its ongoing mass ticket touting crackdown.

The club says the move comes "as more and more sophisticated and organised ways to defraud or extort fans continue to be discovered".

More than £1.2m worth of assets have been seized and over 400 lifetime bans have been issued so far, as the club's Investigations Team works with the police force's Economic Crime Team to "protect genuine fans from being exploited, ripped off or scammed".

The club also confirmed that two convictions have been made for ticket touting linked to Liverpool Football Club in the past 12 months, with several cases still active under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

A club statement read: "The police operation focuses on the laundering of criminal proceeds from illicit ticket sales and sits alongside the club's continuing crackdown on all forms of ticket touting, both online and on the ground."

Liverpool said it analysed nearly 700,000 ticket registrations last season alone, with 67,663 suspected fake accounts blocked or cancelled and a further 121,379 accounts currently under investigation.

The club also issued 432 lifetime bans and 115 indefinite suspensions across the 2025-26 season. A lifetime ban is a permanent ban, while an indefinite suspension has a minimum timeframe attached to it, which is typically three years, after which the account holder must apply for reinstatement.

"The vast majority of lifetime bans and indefinite suspensions were handed down for unauthorised selling of season ticket, membership tickets or hospitality tickets in breach of the club's terms and conditions," the statement continued.

"This reflects the club's zero-tolerance approach to all forms of the illegal sale of match tickets."

Liverpool also reminded supporters that the "only authorised way" to share general admission tickets is through the club's ticket forwarding service, and urged fans to not buy tickets from "unofficial online channels or sellers".

Supporters can also report unofficial ticket sales or fraudulent tickets directly to the club or to Crimestoppers.

Read more on the story

Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola has been speaking to the media in Chicago as the Reds begin their pre-season tour of the USA.

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• On the importance of pre-season, Iraola said: "Pe-season is always the foundation of what's going to be a long season. When you arrive to a new club it's even more important because you don't have a lot of training sessions, you don't have a lot of even friendlies. It's massive because sometimes we lack days of training properly, of training with all the group of players, so everything that we can get from every friendly we play, we have to use it properly."

• Asked about his wishes for the remainder of the transfer window, he said: "I think it's difficult to say a number when the market is open, and you have to be always open to new options to improve the squad. A winger, for example – we definitely need to sign a winger. But there are other situations that we will have to analyse what the market gives you, what's the cost, how we also see the players we have. So, it will depend on a lot of things."

• Iraola was asked about goalkeeper Alisson's uncertain future: "I'm very happy with the situation we have right now in the goalkeeping area. We have Alisson, we have Giorgi [Mamardashvili]. We are going to send on loan, for example, Armin [Pecsi]. Alisson is someone also in a changing room that has lost some references in terms of experience, I think he's someone that definitely will help us in this process of adaptation of the new signings, of the new players, the young players."

• Is right-back an area to address?: "I think it depends on Conor's [Bradley] situation. At the end if you have a fully fit, healthy Conor Bradley, we are very happy, ready to go and we would not be asking ourselves these questions. I think it's a situation that is tricky, because we trust Conor in the long term, we know we want him to be our right-back but right now he is still, I would say, a little bit far from returning."

• On Dominik Szoboszlai's new contract: "I think this is one of the probably greatest news since I arrived, his commitment to this club, his contract renewal. Also, he has come in a great shape. He has been leading by example in training, he's pushing a lot. I think young players should be looking at him, the way he is training and he competes."

• Iraola said he will address the club's vice-captaincy later in pre-season, with the role vacant after the departure of Andy Robertson: "I still haven't met almost half of the squad, I still haven't seen them face-to-face. But I always say, you don't need to wear an armband to be a leader, to be a captain."

Got a question about Liverpool? Get in touch here and we'll seek answers from our experts

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A consortium led by British-Indian millionaire businessman Amit Bhatia has expressed an interest in buying a minority stake in Liverpool.

The move prompted Wednesday's statement from Liverpool's owners Fenway Sports Group.

Bhatia is a former investment banker who worked for Morgan Stanley on Wall Street before becoming an entrepreneur.

He operates businesses in construction, real estate, and private equity.

The construction company he founded at 32 is now the largest independent building materials business in the UK with more than 5,000 employees, and his real estate firm builds homes, student housing and offices across the country.

Londoner Bhatia, 46, was awarded the young entrepreneur of the year award in 2013, and sits on the advisory board of the Saudi Arabian government's cultural affairs and international relations unit.

He was a director and co-owner of QPR before his unexpected departure on Tuesday, and a stand at Loftus Road bears his surname.

He married Vanisha Mittal Bhatia in 2004, in a six-day ceremony in France costing more than $55m (£41m), which at the time was recognised by Guinness World Records as the most expensive of all-time.

Vanisha is the daughter of Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, whose net worth has been estimated at more $30bn (£22bn).

Read more on Liverpool's potential investors

With the 2026 World Cup done and dusted, the return of club football is back on everyone's minds.

Pre-season preparations are under way and we want you to have a think about Liverpool's squad.

Tell us one player you would like to move on this summer and one realistic target you want the Reds to bring in before the transfer window shuts.

Get in touch with your views here

Now the dust has settled on the 2026 World Cup, you can officially review your Predictor results for the tournament.

If you played more than four rounds, BBC Sport has done a deep dive into your predictions, tournament performance and compared you to other players.

Don't worry, though, Predictor isn't stopping at international tournaments! Pre-season has kicked off and there are plenty of friendlies and European qualifiers to keep us occupied before the new season gets under way.

So how do you fancy your chances of correctly predicting the scores for our six selected matches every week?

BBC Sport has launched a new weekly Predictor game to cover the 2026-27 season, allowing users to pick what they think will be the result from six fixtures from across the leagues.

There will usually be a Friday deadline and the game will also feature streaks, so make sure to build it into your weekly football habits.

Lock in your first round of predictions before Friday, 24 July here

If you're wondering how to play, here are a few easy steps:

• Click on the link above to take you to the selections page.

• For every match, you either choose a winning team or select a draw - once your prediction has been submitted you won't be able to change it, so be sure to pick carefully.

• Then wait for the results to roll in to see how you have done.

• Share your results with your friends and family.

• Every consecutive round you play adds one to your streak, but if you miss a round then your streak will reset to zero.

Mohamed Moallim
BBC Sport Journalist

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The Premier League's financial landscape has changed dramatically over the past decade. Since 2016 total summer transfer spending has risen from £1.16bn to a record £3.19bn in 2025 – an increase of almost 175%.

On the surface, that suggests transfer figures are continuing to accelerate. Headline fees, though, tell only part of the story.

Research by Kieran Maguire and colleagues at the University of Liverpool suggests some of the Premier League's earlier record signings represented even greater investments when measured against clubs' buying power at the time.

Using Premier League broadcasting revenues as an index, Alan Shearer's £15m move from Blackburn Rovers to Newcastle United in 1996 remains the league's biggest transfer relative to clubs' spending power. Rio Ferdinand's £29.1m move to Manchester United in 2002 and Juan Sebastian Veron's £28.1m arrival at Old Trafford in 2001 also rank above any of this summer's blockbuster deals.

The same model suggests Trevor Francis' £1m move from Birmingham City to Forest in 1979 – English football's first £1m transfer – would equate to about £173m in today's market.

That does not mean the fees paid for Morgan Rogers, Elliot Anderson and Sandro Tonali were modest. Rather, it reflects how dramatically Premier League revenues have grown, allowing clubs to spend sums that would once have been unimaginable.

When Jack Grealish became Britain's first £100m footballer when joining City from Villa in 2021, the transfer marked another turning point in the evolution of the market.

Only five years later, nine-figure deals are no longer viewed as extraordinary. They have become a familiar feature of Premier League transfer windows.

The next milestone may not be far away.

While no Premier League club has yet paid £200m for a player, football's financial ceiling continues to rise and the first transfer of that magnitude no longer feels beyond the realms of possibility.

• Read more on transfer fee evolution

Daniel Austin
BBC Sport senior journalist

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FSG originally made clear in 2022 that it would be open to new investment in Liverpool, either from minority shareholders or a potential full sale.

It said at the time: "FSG has frequently received expressions of interest from third parties seeking to become shareholders in Liverpool.

"FSG has said before that under the right terms and conditions, we would consider new shareholders if it was in the best interests of Liverpool as a club."

The full sale never materialised but the agreement with Dynasty in 2023 was valued at between £82m and £164m, and was hailed by FSG as helping offset bank debt accrued from infrastructure projects, including the redevelopments of the Main Stand, Anfield Road End and the club's Kirkby training ground.

At the time of that deal, FSG president Mike Gordon said: "Our long-term commitment to Liverpool remains as strong as ever. [We want] to further strengthen the club's financial position and sustain our ambitions for continued success on and off the pitch."

Since then, FSG has explored the possibility of purchasing a second club in continental Europe to add to its portfolio.

The multi-club model would have followed the examples of Chelsea and Manchester City, whose owners also operate clubs in other territories.

But after examining potential purchases, including Spanish sides Malaga and Getafe ,and French club Bordeaux, FSG did not proceed with any of the deals and is now understood to have moved away from the model.

That decision to eschew the approach led to the departure of Michael Edwards last month - the former Liverpool sporting director had been rehired by FSG in order to lead the multi-club project.

Current sporting director Richard Hughes is managing the club's transfer strategy this summer and has a contract lasting until summer 2027, but is believed to be open to a move to Saudi Arabia in the near future.

Liverpool principal owner John W Henry has taken a back seat on matters relating to the club in public since acknowledging and apologising for his role in the widely derided European Super League project in 2021.

Read more here