The negotiations that Atlético Madrid President Enrique Cerezo and CEO Miguel Ángel Gil have held with Chinese billionaire
Wang Jianlin have "come to fruition, and the documentation will be signed in Beijing on Wednesday," according to Manolete of AS. The Asian businessman, owner of the Wanda business empire which has bought the "Torre de Espana" ("Tower of Spain") building in Madrid, will pay €40M ($46.5M) for a 20% stake in Atlético. Cerezo on Monday "took a plane to the Chinese capital," where he will meet Gil, who is already there. Opening the club's brand to the Asian market is "considered to be another step forward in the expansion of the company" and will allow Atlético to continue generating income to "ramp up" its sporting aspirations (
AS, 1/19). MARCA noted that it "exclusively reported"
Wang's "signing" on Oct. 6. This is "not a case of the main shareholders selling part of their investment, a possibility that was open to them and would have meant them personally receiving the money Jianlin is paying for his share." Instead the club has "resorted to a capital increase (issuing new shares), which it was already required to do" to comply with Spanish Football League (LFP) regulations. Atlético's spending limit "for the first team increased" by €5M last summer, but this required "personal guarantees" by Gil and Cerezo, along with a "commitment to increase the club's capital by at least the same amount during the season." This sum will "easily be surpassed thanks to the new investment." Gil and Cerezo will maintain control of the club, "although their percentage stakes will decrease." Gil will own around 52% of shares, while the latter will have a similar stake to Jianlin, around 20%, "with 5% being owned by other members of the Gil family and 3% in the hands of minority shareholders" (
MARCA, 1/19).
TREND CONTINUES: REUTERS' Iain Rogers reported Atlético "would be the latest La Liga team to attract significant investment from outside Spain following the likes of Malaga and Valencia." Malaga was bought out by a member of the Qatar royal family in '10, while Singapore billionaire Peter Lim "recently took a majority stake in Valencia." Real Madrid and Barcelona, "the world's richest clubs by income, have lucrative deals with investors from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates." Atletico's "recent success on the pitch" has made the club an "attractive partner" and it already has a deal with Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei and a shirt sponsorship agreement with the Azerbaijan tourist board. Wang has a net worth of $13.2B, Forbes said in October, "putting him fourth on the magazine's China rich list after he topped the ranking the previous year." An Atlético spokesperson said on Monday that he was "unable to confirm the reports and the club would not be making any official comment" (REUTERS, 1/19). ESPN reported "once the deal is completed, it is expected Wang will eventually succeed Cerezo," who has been president of the club since '02. Atlético has "gone through considerable financial trouble" over the past years and this move "appears to be paving the way" for it to increase its "popularity and revenues within the Asian markets" (ESPN, 1/19).
PROMISING DEVELOPMENT: In Madrid, Manolete commented in a blog post "this is the best news of the present year." The club is now "looking to conquer China." This is the "path that the biggest clubs in the world are taking" and it is clear that this will allow for Manager Diego Simeone and his team "to continue to become more competitive if his team maintains its success on the field" (AS, 1/19).
