Report: Apollo Global Management to Offer $1.25B Investment to Liga MX

Private equity might be leaning even further into international soccer — this time into Liga MX.

Apollo Global Management is proposing a $1.25 billion investment in the Mexican league, according to Sportico. In return, the firm, which boasts $498 billion in assets under management, is asking for 20% of profits from international broadcast rights.

• In order for the deal to work, Mexican teams reportedly have to bundle media rights rather than selling them individually.
• The pitch, part of a deck called “Project Goal,” will reportedly be sent to the league by the end of the week.

The investment would make sense given Liga MX’s major success in the U.S. market: It’s more popular than any other soccer league.

Fraught Partnerships

Private equity firms aren’t always welcome in soccer.

It took multiple tries for CVC Capital, for example, to land a deal. It had failed in negotiations with Germany’s Bundesliga and Italy’s Serie A before an agreement was finalized between the firm and Spain’s La Liga.

The deal provided the league with a $2.3 billion cash injection — though even the newly minted funds didn’t stop some teams from questioning it.