The Spanish Serie A agreed to sell 10% of its shares to CVC for $3.2 billion

Madrid (Reuters)-Spain’s top football league agreed in principle to sell 10% of its business to private equity firm CVC Capital Partners for 2.7 billion euros ($3.21 billion) to fund its long-term growth plan. La Liga said on Wednesday.

This transaction was first reported by the New York Times https://nyti.ms/3ijT1S0. The transaction valued La Liga at approximately 24.2 billion euros. It will fund structural improvements and also offset some of the direct impact of COVID-19. The source said.

The source added that, driven by investment, the Spanish League hopes to catch up or surpass the business of the Premier League in the next six to seven years.

This transaction still requires the approval of the league executive committee and the club. If approved, it could help tightly funded teams, including FC Barcelona, ​​support the shaky financial situation that has been hit by a new blow due to the pandemic.

CVC did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment immediately after get off work, and La Liga could not be reached.

As part of the consortium, the private equity firm last year negotiated the acquisition of shares in the media business of Italy’s top football league. Due to opposition from some football clubs, the deal ended in failure.

The executives told the New York Times that La Liga representatives and CVC have been meeting with club officials to ensure their support, adding that the deal has not yet been finalized.

Earlier this year, La Liga expanded its partnership with Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:) to increase the income of its football clubs affected by the pandemic and revitalize the fan base that consumes more and more digital products.

(1 USD = 0.8424 Euro)