Supposedly Linking Up With QPR: World's Fifth Richest Man, Lakshmi Mittal

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DAILY TELEGRAPH - QPR seek slice of Lakshmi Mittal's £26bn - By Tom Collomosse
Queens Park Rangers hope to persuade Lakshmi Mittal, the world's fifth-richest man, to invest some of his estimated £26 billion fortune in the club.
The Indian steel magnate was a guest of Rangers co-owners Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore for the 0-0 draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Loftus Road last Saturday which left QPR bottom of the Championship.
Mittal, 57, is a friend of Ecclestone after buying the Formula One rights holder's £70 million house in Kensington.
A Rangers source said: "The club heard Mittal had been interested in Wigan and Everton, but this is a lot closer to home. He already knew Bernie from the time when he bought his house. The real worry is what clubs are going to want for players when Rangers try to buy them."
Ecclestone is thought to be worth about £2.5 billion, while multi-millionaire Briatore is the managing director of the Renault F1 team and has diverse business interests including fashion, nightclubs and pharmaceuticals.
Were Mittal to be brought on board, Rangers' spending power would dwarf even that of their west London rivals Chelsea, who are bankrolled by Roman Abramovich's £9.5 billion fortune.
Mittal's Kensington Gardens home is known as the 'Taj Mittal' as it is decorated with the marble taken from the same quarry that supplied the Taj Mahal mausoleum in Agra, India. In June 2004, Mittal paid more than £30 million to host his daughter Vanisha's wedding.
Even if Mittal, who has been linked with Birmingham City, as well as Wigan Athletic and Everton, were not to get involved, QPR's financial future appears secure, but it is the present which causes most concern.
Since appointing Italian Luigi de Canio to succeed John Gregory as manager in October, Rangers have shown little improvement.
De Canio is expected to invest heavily in new players during next month's transfer window, and he will be expected to lead a rapid upturn in Rangers' results, as Ecclestone and Briatore are not accustomed to presiding over failing institutions.
The pair took control of Rangers on Nov 7, since when they have attended the majority of home games. Briatore is frequently at the club's Harlington training base near Heathrow Airport and holds regular discussions with his compatriot, De Canio. Telegraph

This is London - Fifth-richest man in the world set to buy into Queens Park Rangers
Mittal: Latest big name linked with Rangers
Multi-billionaire Lakshmi Mittal — the world's fifth-richest man — is to become a director of QPR.
The London-based Indian steel magnate, a friend of the club's coowner Bernie Ecclestone, is ready to pour some of his estimated £26billion fortune into the Championship club.
A QPR source said: 'The club heard Mittal had been interested in Wigan and Everton, but this is a lot closer to home for him.' This is London

The Sun - It's a Steel By MAX SHORT
MULTI-BILLIONAIRE Lakshmi Mittal — the world’s fifth-richest man — is poised to become a director of QPR.
The Indian steel magnate is a friend of Rangers co-owner and Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone, and is ready to pour some of his £50billion fortune into the Championship strugglers.
Mittal bought Ecclestone’s house in Kensington for £70m and was a guest of Ecclestone and co-owner Flavio Briatore for Saturday’s 0-0 home draw with Wolves.
An R’s source said: “We heard Mittal had been interested in Wigan and Everton but this is a lot closer to home.
"The worry is what clubs are going to want for players when Rangers try to buy them.” The Sun