ATLETICO Madrid could soon fall into American hands – with Wall Street giant Apollo Global Management in advanced talks to snap up a majority stake in the Spanish football powerhouse.
Club bosses Miguel Angel Gil Marin and Enrique Cerezo are understood to be weighing up cashing in, with US private equity ready to pounce. Another investor, Ares Management, could also offload shares as part of the deal.
If it goes through, the move would value the La Liga side – home to stars like Antoine Griezmann – at a whopping €2.5 billion (£2.1bn).
Insiders say Apollo might not take outright control straight away but is expected to tighten its grip later. Gil Marin and Cerezo are tipped to stay in place for now, though their reign may be coming to an end.
The sale would be the latest example of American money muscling in on European football, with investors chasing the sport’s huge global revenues. Apollo already manages more than £650bn in assets and is plotting a £4bn sports war chest.
Atletico, who play at the 68,000-seat Metropolitano Stadium, are desperate to raise at least €60m to pump into the squad and build new sports and leisure projects around their ground.
Apollo has secured an exclusive three-month negotiating window until mid-October, but talks could still collapse, sources warned.
Neither Apollo, Ares, nor the Atletico top brass have commented publicly on the deal.
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