DUBLIN and MILAN, Feb. 06, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Brera Holdings PLC (“Brera Holdings”, “Brera” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: BREA), which one year ago became the first Italian football team to IPO on Nasdaq, today describes some of the benefits of the multi-club ownership (“MCO”) model.
As the only publicly-listed MCO company in the world today, holding six assets in its professional sports team portfolio, Brera has already begun to diversify its sports holdings.
In December 2023, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, CEO of INEOS, submitted a tender offer to acquire 25% of Manchester United PLC (NYSE: MANU). The tender offer price of $33 per share represents a 74% premium to the price Brera paid upon its purchase of a minority interest in MANU in June 2023, and Brera has decided to tender all of its shares.
In March 2023, Brera expanded to Africa with the establishment of Brera Tchumene FC, a team then admitted to the Second Division League in Mozambique. After winning its post-season tournament, the team was promoted to Mocambola, the First Division in Mozambique.
Brera believes it’s important for shareholders to understand the benefits of the MCO business model, and felt it’s best to provide some background and history to demonstrate the opportunity.
While most sports fans are familiar with international professional sports business practices, Americans are just now being introduced to terms like player transfer fees and rights, in part, thanks to the mega-deals driving the recent mania for baseball’s $700 million man Shohei Ohtani and soccer legend Lionel Messi finally playing in the United States. Outright mayhem ensues each time Ohtani takes the mound in Los Angeles, and when Messi hits the pitch (or, as the Yanks say, field) in Miami.
Fans often dream about owning their favorite team, but for 99.99% of fans, no matter the sport, venue or country, professional sports ownership has been reserved for the billionaire elite.
The allure of professional sports team ownership is so appealing, that A-listers Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney purchased Welsh soccer team, Wrexham AFC, for $2.5 million in 2021. Not only have the two already turned Wrexham into a champion, which was promoted to one of England’s higher divisions, they also seemed to connect with Wrexham’s fan base at home and now abroad.
Sports teams outside of the United States take a holistic approach to team ownership and are more judicious with their budgets. Owners typically own their stadiums and must strive to deliver a strong team, or risk demotion to a lower tier league, losing out on substantial revenue and profit. Conversely, this international ownership dynamic means that turning around under-capitalized or mismanaged lower tier pro sports teams can be extremely lucrative.
One such example is the purchase of Union Saint-Gilloise, by Tony Bloom and Alex Muzio, who took Union SG back to Belgium’s top flight after a 48-year absence, and are playing in the UEFA Champions League.
The UEFA Champions League’s international audience, like the FIFA World Cup, dwarfs the NFL’s Superbowl and offers a massive prize pool. The 32 clubs that participated in the 2021-2022 championship split over 2 billion euros ($2.35 billion) from UEFA, which is in addition to their regular season earnings.
Red Bull, which owns five football teams in Europe and the Americas, and Manchester City, which partnered with 13 clubs in five continents, are leading the privately-held MCO movement that continues to grow with moves like Chelsea’s owners’ majority stake acquisition in French Ligue 1 club Strasbourg.
Union SG’s Bloom is the owner of Brighton & Hove Albion, now an English Premier League club that was in danger of being demoted from League One, England’s third football tier, when he purchased the club. Brighton & Hove Albion is now in the hunt for a top seven Premier League finish, which would qualify it for a spot in one of the European tournaments. The club’s estimated valuation has increased by hundreds of millions of dollars, since his purchase.
UEFA published research shows that over 180 clubs worldwide were part of an MCO model and UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has been very vocal in his support of MCO expansion.
Most recently, one of the highest profile MCO moves is currently taking place, as mentioned earlier with Sir Jim Ratcliffe, is in line to buy a quarter of Manchester United from the Glazer family. Ratcliffe’s INEOS already owns two European football clubs, OGC Nice and Lausanne, in addition to his other sports properties, including INEOS Grenadiers cycling team, which is a mainstay at the largest races, like the Tour de France.
“We remain on target with our sports team rollup and are now ready to begin the next chapter in expanding the multi-club ownership movement and believe that our unique model, including Nasdaq-listed shares, and rapid international expansion plans, will appeal to fans and savvy investors. As we grow the Brera brand and tournament exposure, we believe that we will benefit from increased industry exposure that these mega deals generate and, whether it’s on the pitch or in the board room, Brera is playing to win,” stated Pierre Galoppi, Chief Executive Officer of Brera Holdings.
ABOUT BRERA HOLDINGS PLC
Brera Holdings PLC (Nasdaq: BREA) is focused on expanding its social impact football (American soccer) business by developing a global portfolio of emerging football and other sports clubs with increased opportunities to earn tournament prizes, gain sponsorships, and provide other professional football- and sports-related consulting services.
The Company seeks to build on the legacy and brand of Brera FC, the first football club that was acquired by the Company in 2022. Brera FC, known as "The Third Team of Milan," is an amateur football association which has been building an alternative football legacy since its founding in 2000. The Company owns the trademarked FENIX Trophy Tournament, a non-professional pan-European football competition recognized by UEFA, inaugurated in September 2021 and organized by Brera FC. "FENIX" is an acronym for "Friendly European Non-professional Innovative Xenial." BBC Sport has called the FENIX Trophy "the Champions League for amateurs," and Brera FC hosted the 2023 finals at Milan's legendary San Siro Stadium. In October 2022, the Internet Marketing Association at its IMPACT 22 Conference named Brera FC as its award recipient for "Social Impact Through Soccer," recognizing the Company's focus at an international level with this distinction.
In March 2023, the Company expanded to Africa with the establishment of Brera Tchumene FC, a team then admitted to the Second Division League in Mozambique, a country of nearly 32 million people. Brera Tchumene FC won its post-season tournament and in November 2023 was promoted to Mocambola, the First Division in Mozambique. In April 2023, the Company acquired 90% of the European first division football team Fudbalski Klub Akademija Pandev in North Macedonia, a country with participation rights in two major Union of European Football Association ("UEFA") competitions.
In June 2023, Brera acquired a strategic stake in Manchester United PLC. In July 2023, the Company completed the acquisition of a majority ownership in the Italian Serie A1 women's professional volleyball team UYBA Volley S.s.d.a.r.l. In September 2023, the Company assumed control of Bayanzurkh Sporting Ilch FC, a team in the Mongolian National Premier League, which will become Brera Ilch FC when the football season resumes in March 2024. In January 2024, the Company announced the launch of a proactive search for an Italian Serie B football club target designed to bring multi-club ownership of the highest tiers of professional sports ownership to mass investors through the Company's Nasdaq-listed shares. The Company is focused on bottom-up value creation from undervalued sports clubs and talent, innovation-powered business growth, and socially-impactful outcomes. See www.breraholdings.com
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Such statements include statements regarding the Company's ability to grow its business and other statements that are not historical facts, including statements which may be accompanied by the words "intends," "may," "will," "plans," "expects," "anticipates," "projects," "predicts," "estimates," "aims," "believes," "hopes," "potential" or similar words. Actual results could differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including without limitation, the Company's ability to continue as a going concern, the popularity and/or competitive success of the Company's acquired football and other sports teams, the Company's ability to attract players and staff for acquired clubs, unsuccessful acquisitions or other strategic transactions, the possibility of a decline in the popularity of football or other sports, the Company's ability to expand its fanbase, sponsors and commercial partners, general economic conditions, and other risk factors detailed in the Company's filings with the SEC. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, and the Company does not undertake any responsibility to update such forward-looking statements except in accordance with applicable law.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
FOR MEDIA AND INVESTOR RELATIONS
Pierre Galoppi, Chief Executive Officer
Brera Holdings PLC
pierre@breraholdings.com
