Last October, Will Frears wrote in this magazine about how many of English Premier League’s oldest teams were now foreign owned. (For example, the Glazer family, owners of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, now also owns Manchester United.) And now, add LeBron James to the list of rich American sportsmen with a stake in a Premier League franchise: He’s now the proud owner of a slice of Liverpool FC. How he acquired it is perhaps just as noteworthy. Via ESPN’s Brian Windhorst: “This week James’ primary business partner and lifelong friend Maverick Carter, who holds the title of CEO of James’ LRMR Marketing firm, closed a deal to swap part of James’ marketing rights to the group that owns the Boston Red Sox. But instead of just cashing it out, James and Carter each secured from the Red Sox ownership team a sliver of the English Soccer Club, Liverpool FC.” So James is now, if a little indirectly, in business with the Boston Red Sox. As if you needed another reason to boo him next time he’s in town. [ESPN, NYM]