Beckham team bids ‘top $6bn’

AMERICAN private equity firms including Liberty Media and Guggenheim Partners could pay more than $6 billion (£4bn) to buy AEG, the sports and entertainment business that owns the Los Angeles Galaxy football team for which David Beckham plays, according to sources.

AEG’s current owner, billionaire Phil Anschutz, launched an auction on Tuesday as he looks for a buyer to take on the company that owns some 100 entertainment venues globally and sports assets that include a stake in basketball’s Los Angeles Lakers.

Others possible suitors include Thomas H Lee Partners, Bain Capital and Colony Capital. One of the sources said AEG has asked for at least $7bn and, although AEG chief executive Tim Leiweke declined to confirm the price tag, he said a deal will be in the multibillion-dollar range.