It’s near impossible to exist in football’s financial ecosystem without some sort of link – formal or informal – to the state of Qatar and Tottenham chairman and co-owner Daniel Levy is no exception.
After plunging around £200bn into staging the 2022 World Cup, many commentators forecasted that the Gulf state would lose interest in football as a vehicle to embed themselves culturally on the world stage.
However, Qatar has done anything but, instead continuing to invest heavily in almost every corner of the sport from advertising to media rights.
The nation’s flag carrier airline Qatar Airways secured the principle sponsorship rights for last summer’s Euros in Germany and will continue as UEFA’s biggest commercial partner through to 2030.
In the event that Tottenham return to the Champions League any time soon – which looks unlikely on current form – they’ll see Qatar Airways signage everywhere they look as part of that deal.
The company has also had sponsorship deals with Barcelona, Roma and has been linked with deals with Spurs’ Premier League rivals in Chelsea and Everton.
Qatar have more links to the Premier League too through BeIN Sports, who paid £550m for the right to broadcast the competition in the Middle East and North Africa two years ago.
Sovereign wealth fund Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) meanwhile continues to fund Paris Saint-Germain and owns a stake in Portuguese side Braga.
QSI’s president, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, is also the president of the European Club Association and a member of UEFA’s top board and is widely considered one of the most powerful people in football finance.
Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani failed in his takeover bid for Man United in 2023 but, although the Qatari royal has been linked with Spurs, he still only has eyes for the Red Devils.
The tiny country is also competing with a regional rival in Saudi Arabia, who are pumping billions into the Saudi Pro League, Newcastle United, sponsorship, media rights, and the international game.
Now, with Daniel Levy looking for fresh investment in Spurs, could a Qatari state-backed bid create a new battleground between the two Gulf nations in the Premier League?
Qatar Emirati Sheikh Tamin open to PSG sale, opening door for Spurs deal
In April last year, Daniel Levy confirmed that Spurs were seeking new capital, although he stopped short of confirming whether that is in the form of a full or partial takeover.
The chairman has since hinted that the latter is the more likely of the two options, but TBR Football that ENIC have always been open to offers for a controlling stake if the price is right right, with the owners valuing the club at around £3.5bn.
Back in 2023, it was widely reported that the state of Qatar was considering investing in a Premier League team and that Spurs were on their radar.
Around the same time, Levy met for talks with Al-Khelaifi, although the club denied that those discussions had anything to do with investment.
The rumours persisted, however, and the fact that Qatar Sports Investment were said to be losing faith in their investment in Paris Saint-Germain only added fuel to the fire.
Under UEFA’s conflict of interest rules, two clubs under the same ownership umbrella are unable to compete in the same European competition.
That means that, if QSI were to buy a stake in Spurs, they would not be able to play in the Champions or Europa League simultaneously.
However, respected French outlet L’Equippe reported in late December that the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamin bin Hamad Al Thani, would consider offers for PSG at the right price.
A full sale would theoretically open the door for investment in Spurs.
But there have been somewhat mixed signals coming from Paris in this regard.
Earlier this week, PSG renewed their £60m-a-year front-of-shirt sponsorship deal with Qatar Airways until 2028.
That is being perceived as a continued show of faith in the football project at Parc de Princes.
Amanda Staveley, who is reportedly interested in investing in Spurs, has an almost peerless reputation as a broker in the Middle East and Qatar particularly.
The former Newcastle supremo is said to have courted investment from private individuals in Qatar as part of her efforts to raise £500m for a new football project.
She also helped engineer a landmark bailout deal between Barclays bank and Qatar during the 2008 financial crisis.