Paris Saint-Germain owners 'closely following Championship clubs' as they eye takeover

Paris Saint-Germain’s mega-rich owners are homing in on a takeover of a Championship club.

Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), who bought PSG in 2011, are looking to take over a club in England and are closely following the fortunes of second-tier sides.

The latest club to be linked with QSI is Leeds United , although Aston Villa , Nottingham Forest and Queens Park Rangers were also touted by reports last month.

All four clubs have the large fanbase QSI are looking for – however, if either Leeds or Villa win promotion to the Premier League via the play-offs they will almost certainly be out of contention for a takeover.

That is because QSI are believed to be looking for a second-tier club with a large fanbase which they can build up towards the Premier League.

Leeds and Villa are third and fifth respectively in the Championship and in the play-offs, while Forest are 11th and QPR down in 19th.

French newspaper Le Parisien this week said QSI are ‘closely following’ clubs in the division, according to Sportwitness .

UEFA rules prevent the same entity from controlling two clubs in European club competition.

That would mean if this potential club became successful and played in either the Champions League or Europa League , then the ownership structure would have to change.

QSI have overseen a remarkable tenure that has seen the club become a European powerhouse.

PSG are now regarded as one of the most powerful clubs in the world and have won the Ligue 1 title five times in the last six years.

They have backed a string of managers including Laurent Blanc , Unai Emery and Thomas Tuchel with huge transfer war chests over the years, too.

Neymar and Kylian Mbappe have both arrived in Paris for world-record fees, with the club’s owners intent on making the club an attractive global brand.