Tottenham’s relationship with the NFL is both lucrative of a match-by-match basis and transformative from a brand exposure perspective.
That business-orientated language is the kind that Spurs fans who are deeply concerned about what they see as the increasing commercial focus of their club justifiably can’t stand.
And in terms of the optics at the extraordinarily profitable Hotspur Stadium, it is hard to argue that those supporters don’t have a point.
The recent decision to effectively phase out – or, as the club puts, it ‘pause’ – concessionary ticket prices has been used as evidence that Daniel Levy and ENIC are leaving bedrock fans behind.
As football finance expert Kieran Maguire has repeatedly told TBR Football, the “so-called ‘legacy fan’ has outlived their usefulness” to owners in North London and beyond.
Some Tottenham supporters have also highlighted that their world-class stadium is now used more for non-football events than it is as the home of Ange Postecoglou’s side.
The club’s riposte has been to point out that hosting blockbuster acts like Beyonce and events like the NFL is a huge earner, allowing them to funnel that cash back into the recruitment and retention budget.
The data shows that, while expenditure on new signings and wages has increased with revenue, the gap between income and spending is widening.
In terms of their independent wealth, Levy and ENIC are mid-table in the context of Premier League owners.
They are certainly much further down than the financial backers of the rest of the so-called ‘Big Six’.
This appears to be at least partly why Levy is looking for a new minority investor at Spurs, with ex-Newcastle United director and shareholder Amanda Staveley exploring the club as an option.
In his own words, the extra cash would help Spurs “capitalise on our long-term potential, to continue to invest in the teams and undertake future capital projects.”
That statement, taken from the club’s accounts for the last recorded financial year, was accompanies about lots of rhetoric around diversifying away from football revenue.
That is one of the reasons that the NFL partnership, which sees the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium host matches annually as part of the London Games, is so valued by the owners.
The NFL paid several million pounds towards the construction of the stadium as part of the deal, and there has even been suggestion that Spurs could one day host the Super Bowl.
But could the NFL, the richest sports league on the planet by some margin, ever invest directly in Tottenham themselves?
Developments this week suggest that is not beyond the realms of possibility.
While many clubs are going down the multi-club route, Spurs appear more to be targeting a multi-sport setup wherein they become a hub for a number of different leagues, brands and competitions.
As well as the NFL, they have a commercial partnership with Formula One which has seen a one-of-a-kind karting ring installed at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Rugby league and rugby union events have also been staged at Spurs’ home ground, while a failed bid would otherwise have seen the 2026 Hockey World Cup final played in North London too.
It seems the NFL themselves are also interested in a multi-sport model.
As reported by Sportico, Liga MX – the first division in Mexican football – will soon vote on an investment proposal engineered by the NFL and private equity firm Apollo.
The £1bn package, which would see commercial rights pooled in Liga MX, has the potential to reorganise the structure of Mexican football and could see closer ties with football north of the border in the US.
With Spurs seeking minority investment, could they be next in line for an NFL-orchestrated buy-in?
Significantly, Spurs investment suitor Amanda Staveley is said to have met with NFL officials independently of her interest in the club earlier this year.
She was also spotted in the stands as a guest of Levy’s when the Chicago Bears faced the Jacksonville Jaguars at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in October.
The identities of the members of her consortium she has assembled to potentially invest in Spurs are not yet known, but it is understood that the group includes backers from the United States.