Cleveland Browns owner Randy Lerner - who is reportedly preparing a takeover of Premiership club Aston Villa - is 'exploring' business interests in England, according to the NFL team.
It is understood the American billionaire will enter the bidding for the West Midlands club when Villa chairman Doug Ellis returns from holiday this week.
A spokesman for the Cleveland Browns said: 'We have no comment on this specific matter, but can say that Randy has always maintained interests outside of the Browns and is currently exploring ones in England where he has been involved since 1993.'
Ellis put Villa on the market in October last year, but despite interest from a number of parties, is yet to receive a firm offer.
A consortium controlled by businessman Michael Neville is also understood to be ready to bid when Ellis returns from Spain tomorrow.
The 44-year-old Lerner has an estimated 1.2 billion-dollar fortune and is chairman of credit card giants MBNA, while business magazine Forbes ranks the Browns as the seventh-most valuable franchise in the NFL at 892 million US dollars.
Ellis, 82, has been at the helm at Villa for almost 24 years since returning to the club for a second spell in 1982, but he is ready to relinquish control.
An unnamed Saudi Arabia-based consortium is also understood to be considering the possibility of attempting to buy into Villa.
Lerner began his career as an investment analyst, the son of MBNA founder Al Lerner. In 1991, he started an independent investment firm with Progress capital called Securities Advisors Inc (SAI) which he owned and managed until 2001.
In 1993 Lerner became a director of MBNA and became chairman nine years later. It was also following the death of his father that he became owner of the Cleveland Browns.
