Microsoft founder Bill Gates was offered the chance to buy Liverpool in a bid to rid the club of its former owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.
New documents have revealed that an approach had been made to the billionaire in the months leading up to the Reds’ eventual sale in October 2010.
This week marked a decade since Hicks and Gillett completed their takeover before they were later succeeded by current Anfield hierarchy Fenway Sports Group.
But legal files relating to the £300 million sale highlight that Barclays Capital (Barcap), who had been instructed to sell the club, reached out to Gates.
New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who had previously expressed interest in a takeover of Liverpool, was also the subject of an approach by Barcap.
The documents have been disclosed in a legal battle between Gillett, the Royal Bank of Scotland and Mill Financial, who failed to win the battle to buy the club.
Liverpool’s erstwhile board, which included outgoing CEO Ian Ayre, struck a £300 million deal with FSG following Hicks and Gillett’s debt-ridden regime.
Sir Martin Broughton was appointed the club’s chairman to complete the sale of the club and confirmed the unsolicited approaches to Gates, Kraft and others.
The case at the New York County Supreme Court also heard that FSG, then known as New England Sports Ventures (NESV), emerged as a potential buyer.
Barcap also uncovered bids from Meriton and Mill Financial, who have brought the case against Gillett over an unpaid $70 million (£55.9m) loan.
Valencia owner Peter Lim was behind Meriton’s bid but both he and Mill failed to beat NESV’s £300m offer despite being higher in value than the Boston-based vehicle.
Hicks and Gillett went on to claim that the group’s takeover was ‘illegal’, with the former claiming FSG’s takeover was ‘an epic swindle’.