Barcelona Sells Additional 15% Stake in Media Rights

FC Barcelona was not interested in La Liga’s agreement with CVC Capital Partners, but the team is doubling down on its own private equity deals.

Barca agreed to sell an additional 15% stake in its broadcasting rights to investment firm Sixth Street, boosting the company’s total stake to 25%. 

• The deal is reportedly worth around $327.4 million, bringing its total investment in Barca’s media rights to $539.7 million.
• Sixth Street will hold its stake for 25 years.
• The firm would rake in around $1.1 billion over that period based on the media rights’ current value, per ESPN, though the annual haul will fluctuate.

Barca president Joan Laporta said in August 2021 that the team held $1.4 billion in debt, including $688.6 million owed to banks.

The team aims to use the fresh capital to register a handful of summer signings.

Going Solo

The team opted out of La Liga’s similar deal with CVC in 2021. The top-flight Spanish league sold an 8.25% stake in its media rights for $2.1 billion.

“We want to recover this asset in 25 years,” Laporta said. “The [CVC] operation that was presented was collective, and Barca have their own special value.”