(Bloomberg) -- Valencia CF has reached an agreement to refinance its debt, paving the way for the Spanish football team to raise funds for a new stadium ahead of the 2030 FIFA World Cup.
The six-time Spanish football champion will refinance €186 million ($196 million) in existing debt, with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. playing a leading role in the deal, according to people familiar with the matter. Now, Valencia and its advisors are working on preliminary plans to raise additional funds for a new arena, said the people, who asked not to be named because the information isn’t public.
Football clubs across the country are looking to upgrade their stadiums as they vie to host matches of the global tournament that will be held mostly in Spain, Portugal and Morocco at the start of the next decade. They are also betting that newer venues will boost income from other types of events, such as concerts. Real Madrid and Barcelona, Spain’s two biggest teams, have recently either rebuilt their home stadium or are in the process of doing so.
Valencia, which ranks last in the Spanish league’s current season after 11 matches, is owned by Singaporean business tycoon Peter Lim, who acquired it in 2014 but has faced strong criticism among fans in recent years for the squad’s poor performance. Local media have reported that he would be open to considering a sale.
The club has a long-standing plan to build a new stadium, the Nou Mestalla, and in October presented an updated plan to the city of Valencia. In December 2023, club President Layhoon Chan had said the new stadium would cost €340 million and added that loans used to build the new stadium will be partially paid off by selling the land of the current Mestalla stadium.
The club’s premises weren’t damaged by the catastrophic floods and mudslides that devastated parts of the Valencia region last month.
Valencia will likely seek the additional funding for the new facilities in 2025, one of the people said.
Representatives for Valencia didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. Goldman declined to comment.
Valencia’s refinancing will include a mix of fixed-rate bonds and floating-rate loans, with interest rates between 6% and 7%, cheaper than the older debt’s 9%, one of the people said. Bibium Capital advised Valencia.
Goldman has also assisted Spanish football club Real Betis Balompie SAD in refinancing its debt, and led the financing of FC Barcelona’s stadium revamp.
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