LaLiga has secured a majority vote from the 42 member clubs to secure $3.2 billion funding from CVC. The deal was approved by 38 clubs from the first division and second division.
The top two – Real Madrid and Barcelona – are against the disinvestment, but the Spanish professional league garnered much more than the mandatory support needed to go ahead with the funding.
The LaLiga General Assembly today gave its support to “Boost LaLiga” (LaLiga Impulso), the project that last week received the unanimous approval of the organisation’s Executive Committee (Comision Delegada). In the General Assembly all LaLiga clubs were given the platform to express their position regarding the project and to exercise their right to vote secretly and democratically,
Through this strategic agreement, CVC becomes a partner of LaLiga and its clubs with the objective of boosting global growth and continuing its transformation into a global digital entertainment company. LaLiga will retain its sports responsibilities as well as the organisation and management of the marketing of the audiovisual rights.
Boost LaLiga is an unprecedented milestone, representing the greatest boost for Spanish football in its history. The project allows LaLiga, with the help of an internationally renowned partner, to execute a long-term strategic plan of investment. Boost LaLiga will provide LaLiga clubs with the necessary resources to improve the competition and the experience of its fans, accelerating clubs´ growth and making LaLiga the world’s leading sporting entertainment provider in the medium term.
With 38 clubs in favour, of the 32 required, the project is approved, giving the go ahead to the ambitious investment plan that will boost the professionalization of the clubs and provide a more attractive competition, with better facilities, better players and a better fan experience. All this supported by a competition model that will be more digital, more focused on data generation and analysis, and more international exposure.
The clubs that have approved the operation will receive up to EUR2.668 billion. These Clubs commit to allocate 70% of the resources they receive within the framework of this project to investments related to their development in both infrastructures and technological innovation, with the possibility of an additional 15% for the registration of players and the other 15% for the restructuring of financial debt.
A total of 90% of the capital invested in Boost LaLiga will go to the Clubs. A percentage will be earmarked for other areas of Spanish sport and football, making this an inclusive, equitable and democratic agreement. Boost LaLiga not only shields the economic viability of all Spanish football clubs, but also opens a new present and future for them by allowing them to advance in their development and transformation by a decade.
In the words of Javier Tebas, president of LaLiga, “we are convinced that Boost LaLiga is the answer to the challenges we have to face in the medium and long term. It is a strategic agreement that will provide our clubs with greater capacity, will transform their management model and boost the appeal of our competition. It is the boost we need to turn LaLiga into a global digital entertainment company that has the most attractive football competition in the world”.
The league, struggling with its finances, is feared to lose some of its brand value after Lionel Messi have moved on from FC Barcelona to the French Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain.
Also read: LaLiga ropes in Euro 2.7 bn investment
