JOE takes a look at Kenneth Huang, the man behind the ambitious bid for Liverpool FC, and discovers five things you might not know about him.
By Conor Hogan
Fifteen months ago practically nobody had heard of Kenneth Huang (born 1964). Then he made an ambitious $70 million bid for a stake in an NBA (National Basketball Association) team to put himself soundly on the world’s sporting and business map.
Huang has made the headlines again with his equally ambitious plan to seize Liverpool from the grasp of the terrible twosome of Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr. He has promised to spend big money and build a new stadium if he takes control.
He is being hailed by Liverpool fans as their new messiah. But how much do you know about him? Here are five facts about the new King Kenny.
1. He was a badminton prodigy
Huang excelled at badminton in his formative years and reportedly could have made a career out of it. He abandoned that, however, to attend Zhongshan University to study Business. He continued his studies in the United States with Columbia University, before obtaining a Masters at St. John’s, New York and an MBA at New York University.
2. He was a Wall Street pioneer
Huang was the first Chinese college graduate from mainland China to work at the New York Stock Exchange, when he took up a position as a public relations executive in 1988.
3. He is multi-lingual
Huang is fluent in four languages: English, Mandarin, Cantonese and Japanese. This isn’t quite as many as Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson who can speak eight: English, Norwegian, Swedish, Italian, German, Danish, French and Finnish.
4. He owns a basketball team
After becoming co-chair of both the National Basketball League of China and the Chinese Baseball League, Huang bought a basketball team called the Jilin Northeast Tigers. They have been eliminated in the playoffs in the last three seasons. Huang, along with his business partner Adrian Cheng, also invested in a 15% stake in the America basketball team Cleveland Cavaliers.
Before buying the Cavaliers he introduced the owners to Chinese brewers Tsingtao who subsequently went on to sponsor the team. So you could argue that he got them drunk then took advantage of them. Of course, you wouldn’t say that since it’s not strictly true and he’s a very rich (and nice) man who just might sue you.
5. He is charitable
Good news for Liverpool fans, Huang was voted 2009 Philanthropist of the Year by Sina.com and China’s BQ magazine. In other words he likes giving away money, so if you are a Red, we suggest you start thinking about what to put in that begging letter now.
