Who Are The Six Liverpool Bidders?

THE BUYING GAME: ANFIELD'S MANY SUITORS SO FAR

Since Tom Hicks and George Gillett took over in February 2007, the club has attracted a succession of uber-wealthy – and exotic – parties from around the globe reported to be interested in buying out the unpopular American duo. There are six bids on the Anfield table now, but among those who have been said to be keen on a takeover in the past are:

The Indian billionaires

It was in February that Mukesh Ambani, the seventh richest man in the world, and Subrata Roy, chairman of the Sahara group, a huge Indian conglomerate, were said to be mounting a joint bid to takeover 51 per cent of the club. A day later a spokesperson for Ambani's Reliance Industries said: "There is no truth to the report. We deny it completely."

The IPL owner

Grandhi Mallikarjuna Rao was already the owner of a cricket team – the Delhi Daredevils of the Indian Premier League – and was said to be interested in getting involved in football. As a Liverpool fan, Anfield was flagged up as the object of his investment. His representatives watched the 4-4 draw with Arsenal in April amid speculation of a £500m takeover that came to nothing at the time.

The Chinese gaming tycoon

In May Zhu Jun held at least two meetings with Barclays Capital, the company charged with finding a buyer. Zhu already owns the Chinese club, Shanghai Shenhua. The 44-year-old made his fortune through online gaming although he is not in the same financial league as most of the other reported buyers and would have needed to conduct a leveraged buyout.

The Syrian footballer

Over the weekend it was claimed that Yahya Kirdi, a former Syrian international, was heading a consortium of Arab businessmen looking to buy out the Americans. Gillett informed Royal Bank of Scotland of Kirdi's interest – he is a friend of Gillett's son, Foster – in a move that has widely been dismissed as a stalling tactic against Huang's approach to RBS.

The Arabs

Dubai International Capital have long held an interest in taking control at Anfield. Even before Hicks and Gillett's ill-fated tenure began three years ago, DIC, the investment arm of Dubai's ruling family led by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, were linked with the club. They have maintained their interest on and off ever since and there have been reports this summer that they are back in the game. In 2008 Sheikh Mohammed had even considered making his own bid for the club.