Barcelona received a major financial boost a few weeks before beginning its first La Liga title defense since Lionel Messi departed in 2021.
The Spanish club is getting a $65.83 million payment from reselling a portion of its media production arm Barca Studios, according to El Confidencial. The cash injection is vital to complete signings of key players.
A German private equity company is buying two 8% stakes in Barca Studios from existing investors Socios and Orpheus Media — who both initially paid more than $100 million each for 24.5% stakes in the outfit. However, Socios and Orpheus had delayed $30 million-plus payments due to Barcelona, causing the club to seek new funding.
As it stands now, Barcelona itself owns 51% of Barca Studios, while Socios, Orpheus, and the new German company each own about 16%.
UEFA has permitted Barcelona to play the upcoming Champions League season despite an investigation into a potential scandal involving $7 million paid to a referee — a case that could eventually be reopened.
Problems Off The Pitch
In Italy, bids for Serie A domestic media rights aren’t reaching the $1.1 billion annual threshold the league seeks for a deal to begin next year. Discussions had taken place with DAZN, Sky Italia, and MediaForEurope.
Another update is scheduled to be announced in October.
