Dusseldorf Investor model – yes or no? The German Football League plans to collect fresh private equity capital and offer 12.5 percent of the media rights in return. But the majority of the 36 clubs in the first and second men’s Bundesliga would have to agree to that first. And that’s where it gets difficult.
Because not all clubs are convinced. The advantages for which the DFL advertises: Up to 2.2 billion euros could be taken in this way and used for future projects. And a large part of it should go directly to the clubs.
The doubts of some clubs, especially from the second division: The entry of private equity companies could have an influence that could collide with the sporting interests of the club and those of the fans. An example: Saturday evening as a match day that is of interest to investors who invest in marketing the Bundesliga. However, many clubs and fans are against it.
The opponents of the model have recently experienced some upswing: with Christian Keller from the first division club 1. FC Köln, a person was recently elected to the supervisory board of the DFL who could definitely be described as a critic of the investor model. That makes it even more unclear whether the two-thirds majority of clubs that the investor model needs will materialize.
On the other hand: “Investors are definitely interested, and we’re talking about big names,” says our corporate finance correspondent Arno Schütze in the current podcast episode.
So what are the next steps for the DFL to achieve its goal and which investors are possible? We talk about that in this episode of Handelsblatt Deals.
If you have any comments, questions, criticism or praise for this episode, please email us at: [email protected]