Bain Said to Make Bid for Stake in Top Italy Soccer League

(Bloomberg) -- Bain Capital has made a 3 billion-euro ($3.4 billion) preliminary offer for a stake in Italy’s top soccer league, according to people familiar with the matter, putting it into competition with rival private equity firm CVC Capital Partners.

The Boston-based firm has expressed interest in buying about 25% of Serie A, home to players including Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private.

Representatives for Bain and Serie A declined to comment.

Bain’s proposal would top one made by CVC, which has been holding talks about taking as much as 20% in Serie A for 2 billion euros, people familiar with the matter said in May.

The buyout funds are seeking to buy a minority stake in a league unit that owns its lucrative television rights, the people said. Serie A is the fourth-richest league in Europe, according to Deloitte Sports Business Group’s latest review of the game, published on Thursday. It generated revenue of about 2.5 billion euros in 2018-2019, with almost 60% coming from broadcasting.

The league is exploring funding options at a time when play has been suspended for months due to a nationwide lockdown to fight the coronavirus pandemic. Matches are set to resume on June 20.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.