Tottenham could launch new NFL team after Jerry Jones link and £1bn investment - Kieran Maguire

While the Premier League’s international success in recent years has been extraordinary and delivered huge revenues for Tottenham and their peers, the league’s value is utterly dwarfed by the NFL.

The National Football League generates almost three times as much annual revenue as the Premier League. And, unlike the biggest and best association football league in the world, is profitable.

Tottenham have lost £220m over the last four financial years, although those losses are almost entirely attributable to the depreciation on their new stadium, which is not a cash expense.

Last night’s opponents Chelsea, who triumphed 4-3 despite Spurs having gone two goals up, are perhaps a better example of the excess that has gripped the Premier League.

They have lost approximately £367m since the Boehly-Clearlake takeover. More broadly, Premier League teams lost £836m in 2022-23, the last published financial year, alone.

The NFL by contrast is so profitable because there are concrete spending limits, a closed-shop franchise system, and a collaborative approach among owners in place.

Meanwhile Daniel Levy, Tottenham’s chairman and co-owner, wants the club to be self-sufficient and has supercharged revenue since the move to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2019.

The NFL contributed around £10m to the construction of the new stadium and have since established a close relationship with Spurs, staging the annual London Games in N17 in a lucrative setup for the club.

Levy has gone on record as saying it would be a dream for Tottenham to one day host the Super Bowl.

Even the club’s liaison with Amanda Staveley, who wants to invest in Spurs, has taken place against the backdrop of the NFL.

The former Newcastle United supremo was a guest of the club when they hosted the Jacksonville Jaguars’ meeting with the Chicago Bears earlier this year.

The bond between the two institutions is tight and growing tighter.

Controversial Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was linked with buying Tottenham last week and, although those reports were denied by sources, the story was emblematic of the Spurs-NFL relationship.

Some have suggested that Spurs could even launch their own NFL franchise.

With the European League of Football, an off-shoot of the NFL, in a major growth phrase, could the club become the first English side in the competition?

• READ MORE: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium naming rights update as brand new company linked with deal

NFL would be open to Tottenham franchise, says football finance expert

As part of the search for minority investment, Levy is believed to value Spurs at £3.75bn. A full takeover at that price would be a world-record in football.

For context, however, Jones’ Dallas Cowboys are valued at around three times that.

But investors, particularly from the private equity sector, are increasingly interested in football as an asset class because of the value of clubs’ IP.

In other words, their potential as a vehicle to sell products and services.

Spinning out an NFL or equivalent franchise from an elite club like Spurs would therefore likely be a tantalising prospect for investors.

The NFL are clearly interested in ‘soccer’ too. They are currently part of a consortium alongside private equity giants Apollo looking to invest £1bn in Liga MX, the top division of Mexican football.

And speaking exclusively to TBR Football, Liverpool University football finance expert and industry insider Kieran Maguire suggested that both Spurs and the NFL would be interested in launching a new franchise.

“Yes, I think there is scope,” he said.

“There would be complications but the NFL is always open to any relationship that will boost the overall value of NFL.

“The matches that have taken place at Spurs have proven A) that it is a sell-out product and B) there is not resistance to high prices.

“To have some form of expansion franchise or to shift an existing franchise to London to play at Spurs, also taking into consideration that Spurs now have approval to host 30 events per year, there is a lot of business alignment there.

“How that will ultimately be funded given that the NFL part would likely be as valuable if not more valuable than Spurs itself is the intriguing part of the relationship.

“Whether Spurs would be happy to be a minority partner in the franchise… I’m not sure Daniel Levy and ENIC have the resources or the desire to take over an existing or transfer franchise.

“But from an investment point of view, there is certainly scope. That could be beneficial for Spurs because, ultimately, you will get a return on your investment.

“That return is likely to be captured in the umbrella of commercial activities for Spurs, especially if it is more to do with promoting and housing an NFL team.

“That can help Spurs with financial and sustainability rules going forwards.”

• READ MORE: Daniel Levy ready to pull plug on ‘historic’ agreement amid Tottenham stance on £6.7bn deal

Spurs using NFL and F1 partnerships to supersize revenue

As Maguire mentions, Spurs have recently acquired a license from Haringey council to almost double the number of non-football events they hold per season, from 16 to 30.

As well as the NFL, Tottenham are also now the home of a Formula One karting track as part of a 15-year deal. Levy is known to enjoy a good relationship with the motorsport’s executives.

They’ve also hosted rugby league and union matches and applied to stage the Hockey World Cup final a few years back, although that bid ultimately failed.

These facts paint a picture of a club who is making tentative steps into the multi-sport market.

That is not an alien concept in European football. Many clubs on the continent have basketball or hockey teams which, in some cases, are as passionately supported as the football outfit.

Spurs have already signalled their intent to become more of a ‘lifestyle’ brand in order to expand their market and potential customer base.

They are in the race with Chelsea to secure a partnership with Nike’s Air Jordan brand, which has propelled Paris Saint-Germain to new heights as a business in recent years.

The concern from supporters – and one that is entirely justified and valid – is that the owners value success in the commercial department above results on the pitch.

Spurs haven’t won a trophy since 2008 and, on current form, are not likely to end that drought this term.

Levy has said that increasing commercial income will lead to greater investment in the team, and that is true. To an extent.

But while spending has increased with revenue in recent years, investment in the playing squad is rising slower than turnover.

For bedrock supporters, the prospect of launching an NFL franchise would be perceived as a symptom of Levy and ENIC’s relentlessly commercial focus.

Whether that sort of reception would be enough to stop the owners from doing it is another matter.