La Liga and PSG eyeing US growth, $6.5 billion is soccer transfers and more.
Top-3 Highlights of the Week
$ 6,500,000,000
Don't get lost in the zeros. The?global transfer market?of soccer players hit $6.5 billion in fees, up from $4.9 billion in 2021. The top 10 transfers accounted for 12.5% of that sum. U.K. clubs lead the chart by far at a record spend of more than $2 billion on player contracts for the first time, while French teams were the biggest recipients of transfer fees, bringing in $740.3 million. Men’s professional soccer saw 20,209 international transfers in the year, up 11.6% year-over-year and topping 2019 levels as well. Women’s team transfers grew 19.3% to 1,555, reaching a total spend of $3.3 million.
?PARTIDAZO!??
LaLiga North America, the joint venture between Spain's LaLiga and Relevent Sports Group, has announced the launch of a year-long event series that will feature watch parties and activations at bars and restaurants around the United States. The series is called El Partidazo ('The Great Game') and will include clubs such as Atlético Madrid, FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Sevilla FC, and Valencia CF as LaLiga aims to further connect with fans in North America. In related news,?FC Barcelona?has?extended?its commercial reach in North America by naming Orlando, Florida-based subscription travel club?Travel + Leisure GO?as its official travel partner in the United States.
NEWS ABOUT MAN UTD'S SALE!
Well, not really. It's the same as every other week since the past few months. Sir Jim Ratcliffe versus US investors vs Middle Eastern sovereign funds. Same old, same old.? In the meantime, check out Sportico's Premier League team valuations here.?
Other relevant US Soccer business news
The Seattle Sounders have named not-for-profit health system Providence as the club's main jersey partner as part of a wide-ranging agreement with the organization based in Renton, Washington.
领英推荐
The Portland Timbers FC have named Heather Davis as the club's chief executive officer, overseeing all business and operational aspects of the Timbers, the defending NWSL champion Portland Thorns, and their home stadium Providence Park. By the way, the Thorns fired assistant coach Sophie Clough and trainer Pierre Soubrier, husband of Thorns and USWNT star Crystal Dunn, following NWSL investigations into separate incidents that took place in 2022 when the Thorns won their third league title. Both were suspended by the NWSL for the 2023 season.
As The Athletic reports, according to conversations with top executives at four of the biggest lower-division women’s soccer leagues in the U.S., these leagues are attracting international teams interested in operating teams of their own.
On the other end of the moneyline, PSG are?keen?to bring in more know-how in their investment base, especially in building a global business.?There are intentions to sell small stakes in PSG during this calendar year, with up to 15% likely to be sold in total. Ambitions to grow in the US are seen as crucial in the lead-up to the 2026 World Cup.?
Host Broadcast Services, the Infront-owned sports broadcast production company, has formed a North American?subsidiary?based in Miami, hiring long-serving DirecTV Latin America executive, José ‘Platao’ Rocha, to lead the operation.
Other relevant Global football business news
It was a busy week in Italy. AC Milan?appointed Randy Levine, president of MLB's New York Yankees, to its board of directors, furthering the links between the two global sports powerhouses. One of his first headaches will be to deal with the Guardia di Finanza, which investigates financial crimes in Italy and has reportedly requested documents from accountants and advisors who helped facilitate last year’s $1.3 billion sale of AC Milan to New York-based investment firm RedBird Capital Partners. The agency is looking into alleged embezzlement claims by Milan minority investor Blue Skye Financial Partners. Still in Milan, but on the neriazzuri side, Ebay is preparing itself for an "Italian e-commerce boom" with its Inter Milan sleeve sponsorship. In neighbouring Turim, The Federal Appeal Court of the FIGC, Italy’s football federation, penalized Juventus with a 15-point reduction for fixing their balance sheets with false gains from player transfers between 2019 and 2021. Wrapping up il calcio?di questa settimana?(I hope I got that right), US financial services company JP Morgan Chase is reportedly interested in financing Lega Serie A’s media business. The company would be able to provide between €700m and €1bn in bank financing.
In the UK, the English Football Association has signed up beer brand Carling as a sponsor of men’s and women’s FA Cup competitions. X Games' owner MSP Sports Capital, which was founded by Phoenix Suns co-owner Jahm Najafi and former sports agent Jeff Moorad, and has stakes in several other soccer teams, including Portugal’s Estoril Praia, Spain’s AD Alcorcon, Belgium’s SK Beveren, and Germany’s FC Augsburg, could?expand its soccer portfolio with a minority stake in Everton.
As expected, international interest in the Saudi Pro League is spiking following the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo.?The league has inked deals with many broadcasters across Europe, such as Portuguese Sport TV,?Italian Sportitalia, French RMC Sport, Greek Cosmote and Sportdigital Fussball in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.?