The owner of stakes in Six Nations and Premiership Rugby and the top flights of French and Spanish football is in talks with a pack of financial giants about a refinancing of its £9bn sports assets portfolio.
Sky News has learnt that CVC Capital Partners’ Global Sport Group (GSG) is in talks with firms including Ares Management about a multibillion dollar debt deal.
Details of the potential structure of an agreement, as well as the identities of other parties in discussions with CVC, were unclear on Wednesday.
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Sources close to the situation said, however, that a financing package was expected to be secured on favourable terms because of the underlying credit quality of the assets in the portfolio.
US-based Ares, which would be expected to lead the GSG syndicate if it proceeded with a deal, has become a major player in the burgeoning provision of private credit for sports assets.
It was among the big winners from the recent sale of McLaren Racing, owner of the eponymous Formula One team, has received substantial proceeds from the sale of a stake in Crystal Palace Football Club, and recently invested in SailGP.
Ares is also raising its second institutional sports fund, which had a first close to lock in investors’ capital commitments at $1bn earlier this year.
Sky News revealed during the summer that CVC had engaged a trio of banks to explore plans for a refinancing of what was at the time referred to internally as SportsCo and which has since been renamed Global Sport Group.
The portfolio also incorporates stakes in international volleyball, the women’s professional tennis tour and an Indian Premier League cricket franchise.
Goldman Sachs, PJT Partners and Raine Group are advising on the refinancing of GSG, which has been set up to optimise CVC’s investments in the sector.
The deal is expected to allow CVC to remain invested in its sports portfolio for longer, while also…
