No-money Barca join Real Madrid in criticism of CVC’s €2.7bn LaLiga buy-in
August 9 – FC Barcelona has joined Real Madrid in protest against La Liga’s proposed CVC investment.
Finance
Concerns over Inter’s future as owner Zhang chased for $250m unpaid loans in Hong Kong court
By Paul Nicholson
August 6 – Inter Milan president Steven Zhang (pictured) is being pursued in a Hong Kong court for $250 million, according to documents filed August 2, 2021.
What do they really want? Real Madrid complain over LaLiga’s €2.7bn deal with CVC
August 6 – Real Madrid have condemned the La Liga – CVC brokered deal that will see the private equity firm invest €2.7 billion in Spanish football in exchange for a 10% stake, with the Bernabeu giants calling parts of the deal “deceptive” and CVC “opportunistic”.
Clubs cash in as CVC buys into LaLiga digital plan with €2.7bn stake
August 5 – La Liga has agreed a €2.7 billion cash injection with private equity firm CVC who will take a 10% stake in a new company set up to handle LaLiga’s commercial business.
No money Juve to issue new shares as it bids to raise €400m
August 4 – Juventus are to issue new shares in a bid to raise up to €400 million. The refinance is being run by with Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan and other banks acting as “global coordinators” and “joint bookrunners”.
Barca confident BBB credit rating is enough to enable refinancing
July 30 – Spanish giants FC Barcelona have received a triple B negative rating from credit rating agency Fitch, which the club, burdened by debts and operating on a ‘shoestring’ budget, considered a vote of confidence.
Covid can’t stop Big Five from lifting European market share in black year for revenues – and profits
By David Owen
July 28 – The European football market shrank by 13% to €25.2 billion in 2019-20 – the first reduction in revenues since the global financial crisis, according to new data from Deloitte, the professional services firm.
Lopez concludes acquisition of Girondins de Bordeaux
July 26 – Gerard Lopez has been confirmed as the new owner of Girondins de Bordeaux, saving the Ligue 1 club from bankruptcy.
OL puts lost pandemic revenue at €150m but says vaccine roll-out will return full operations
July 23 – Olympique Lyonnais have reported €177.4 million of revenuefor2020/21, a drop of €94.1 millionfrom the €271.6 million reported in 2019/20 (a 35% reduction).
OL completes share issue to make up balance of player wages
July 21 – OL Groupe, owner of French Ligue 1 club Olympique Lyonnais, has issued €800,000 in new shares to members of its men’s and women’s playing squads as part payment for wages.
€175m Mbappé tops world’s players by value; Isak, Foden and Torres stock increases
July 9 – Kylian Mbappé may have missed a penalty at the Euros, but he is still the world’s most valuable player at €175 million, according to updated player market value estimates by KPMG Football Benchmark.
Will Premier League clubs exceed £1bn of red ink? It’s all down to Newcastle
By David Owen
July 8 – Irish playwright Samuel Beckett might have called it Waiting for Newcastle.
French football’s financial regulators send Girondins and Angers to Ligue 2
July 5 – Lurching from crisis to crisis, French football has been rocked again after the Direction Nationale du Contrôle de Gestion (DNCG) temporarily demoted both Bordeaux and Angers to Ligue 2 and placed Nantes under supervision.
Orkila spend €50m on Belgian champions Club Brugge
July 2 – Belgian champions Club Brugge have a new backer, with investment fund Orkila Capital pouring €20 million of working capital into the club.
Juve turbo charge finances with €400m of new money and an ex-Ferrari F1 exec
July 2 – Juventus say they expect to lose €320 million because of the coronavirus pandemic and are planning to raise €400 million in capital through a share sale as they look to redress the financial balance.