Brazilian football team Esporte Clube Juventude has been put up for sale after falling out of the country’s top flight once again.
(Bloomberg) — Brazilian football team Esporte Clube Juventude has been put up for sale after falling out of the country’s top flight once again.
The second division team, founded in 1913, won the Brazilian Cup in 1999 and is considered one of oldest football clubs in southern Brazil. The club has since struggled, collapsing to the fourth division in 2013 before climbing back up to Serie A in 2021. The team was relegated in 2022 after two years in the league.
“Juventude has been organizing and structuring itself in order to be ready for a possible investor,” said club President Fábio Pizzamiglio, “with the main objective of improving the football branch of the club so it will be able to place itself more and more among the great clubs of Brazil.”
The team has rejected at least two bids so far, according to a club spokesman. XP Investments has been retained by Juventude to act as its exclusive financial adviser on any deal.
If a sale goes ahead, it will follow a number of recent deals that have brought foreign capital into Brazilian football. Miami-based 777 Partners acquired a controlling stake in CR Vasco da Gama for $137 million in February 2022, a month after US investment fund Eagle Holding acquired Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas. Abu Dhabi-owned City Football Group, which also owns Manchester City, this week acquired 90% of the shares in Bahia SAF, according to a statement.
Juventude, the former home to stars including Thiago Silva and Alex Telles, plays at the Alfredo Jaconi stadium with a capacity of more than 18,000 seats. The club expects about $8 million in revenue by the end of this year, according to the spokesman.
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