Skip to main content

AC Milan takeover completed

This week RedBird Capital closed on its €1.2bn acquisition of AC Milan, placing the American investment group in control of the Serie A champions.

In doing so, founder Gerry Cardinale brought in some long-time associates as minority shareholders, none other than the New York Yankees and a Los Angeles-based investment fund backed by LeBron James and the rapper Drake.

Cardinale, the former Goldman Sachs banker, is seeking to leverage his longtime relationships with celebrity athletes and the Yankees in particular to guide his vision for the Rossoneri. During his time at the investment bank, Cardinale helped start the Major League Baseball team’s regional sports channel, the YES Network, starting a two-decade relationship with the owning Steinbrenner family.

Their closeness informed the Yankees organisation’s decision to take a minority interest in AC Milan, according to people familiar with the matter. But the view from New York, where the 27-time World Series champions remain one of the most valuable clubs in sport ($6bn as estimated by Forbes), is that Milan are still a niche interest that can benefit from the halo of the Bronx Bombers’ brand.

“No one really knows them here”, said one person familiar with the investment. While the Yankees organisation will be limited partners without strategic input in Milan, they plan to help promote the Italian champions by broadcasting match reruns on YES and inviting the Rossoneri to play friendlies at Yankee Stadium.

Cardinale and RedBird are still seeking limited partners to help pay down the €600mn loan from Elliott Management, the previous stewards of AC Milan, to purchase the club. Main Street Advisors, a Los Angeles-based investment group which counts James and Drake as well as Maverick Carter and Jimmy Iovine as backers, joined the minority stakeholders at the close of the deal this week.

While the athletic and entertainment glitterati aren’t direct investors in Milan, Cardinale has shown his ability to follow through on working his existing connections to back his vision. The greater question will be if he can win over Italians.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Threat of financial calamity removed from Baggies

West Bromwich Albion had effectively been in decline ever since the club was sold to a Chinese consortium in August 2016, paying a figure north of £200m to buy former owner Jeremy Peace’s stake. Controlling shareholder Guochuan Lai’s ownership was fairly disastrous for the club, but his unloved tenure finally came to an end after Bilkul Football WBA, a company ultimately owned by Florida-based entrepreneur Shilen Patel and his father Dr Kiran Patel, acquired an 87.8% shareholding in West Bromwich Albion Group Limited, the parent company of West Bromwich Albion Football Club. This change in ownership was urgently required, due to the numerous financial problems facing West Brom, including growing high-interest debt and serious cash flow concerns, following years of no investment from the former owner. Indeed, West Brom’s auditors had already rung the alarm bell in the 2021/22 accounts when they cast doubt on the club’s ability to continue as a going concern without making player s...
1 comment
Read more

Spurs to sell minority stake

Tottenham Hotspur is in talks to sell a minority stake in a deal that could value it at up to £3.75 billion and pave the way for Joe Lewis and his family to sever ties with the Premier League football club. Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is seeking an investment that values the club at between £3.5 billion and £3.75 billion, including debt. While the terms of any deal have not been finalised, City sources expect Spurs to sell about 10 per cent. The club is being advised by bankers from Rothschild on the sale. Tottenham wants to raise fresh capital for new player signings and to help fund the development of an academy for its women’s team, as well as a 30-storey hotel next to its north London stadium. The financier Amanda Staveley, who brokered the deal for Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund to take over Newcastle United, is understood to be among the parties to have expressed an interest in Tottenham. Staveley’s fund, PCP Capital Partners, has raised about £500 million to ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Millwall punch above their weight

Millwall’s season was overshadowed by the tragic death of owner John Berylson following a car accident. The American had been an exemplary owner, beloved by the fans for his leadership, passion and generosity. Millwall’s finances had been pretty good during his tenure, which we shall explore by looking at the most recent accounts from the 2022/23 season, when the club narrowly missed out on a place in the play-offs after finishing 8th. Millwall’s pre-tax loss slightly reduced from £12.6m to £12.2m, as revenue rose £0.8m (4%) from £18.6m to a club record £19.4m and player sales improved from a £0.1m loss to £2.5m profit. However, other operating income dropped from by £1.1m from £1.3m to £0.2m, while operating expenses increased £1.7m (5%) from £31.6m to £33.3m. The main driver of the revenue increase was broadcasting, which rose £1.1m (12%) from £9.1m to £10.2m, though match day was also up £0.4m (7%) from £5.8m to £6.2m. In contrast, commercial fell £0.7m (19%) from £3.7m to £3....
Post a Comment
Read more