It has been confirmed today that Manchester City’s parent club has secured a 13% stake investment worth £265million from Chinese investment group China Media Capital and Citic Capital.
City Football Group – including sister clubs New York City FC, Melbourne City FC and Yokohama Marinos – will now have access to the burgeoning East Asia markets in newer ways than before as the overall CFG looks to grow further revenue, income streams and tap into different markets.
The deal has been concluded after six months of talks and new shares covering the deal will now be issued.
The BBC’s Simon Stone points out that it’s simply the next step of Sheikh Mansour’s larger plan and it’s most certainly not the start of an exit strategy.
‘This deal is big news for Manchester City, but I am told it is absolutely not the start of an exit strategy from the current owners. China has long been viewed as having huge potential for growth commercially. In China, an area where only Real Madrid of the established European heavyweights has a significant presence, CMC Holdings will provide contacts to open the right doors to the right opportunities. If their Abu Dhabi ownership is any guide, City’s presence in China will expand rapidly. It is also worth noting that through this deal, including satellite clubs New York City FC, Melbourne City and Yokohama Marinos, City are now worth approximately 10 times more than Sheikh Mansour bought the club for in 2008.’
Chairman Khaldoon al-Murbarak explained.
‘Football is the most loved, played and watched sport in the world and in China, the exponential growth pathway for the game is both unique and hugely exciting. We have therefore worked hard to find the right partners and to create the right deal structure to leverage the incredible potential that exists in China, both for CFG and for football at large.’
As for our new investors, CMC owns a number of exclusive major sports media rights including the Chinese Super League, China Football Association national teams and the China University Football League, as well as being involved in sports production and media operations.
Citic Capital manages $5bn of capital for international and Chinese institutional investors, and they have offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Tokyo and New York.
CFG is now valued at £2billion.
With Chinese President Xi Jinping on his recent state visit taking a trip to the Etihad it should not be lost on some that this deal has now come to fruition as it’s said he’s a self confessed football fan who is determined to see growth in the domestic game in China.
What better way as the BBC put it than for a soon to be Shanghai City or Beijing City to be the next step, with developmental links to a China wide Academy system.
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