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Finance guru issues 'biggest in the world' claim as £200m-plus Man City deal agreed
Man City parent company City Football Group are the “biggest” multi-club empire in the world and one of football’s most attractive investment prospects.
That is the view of finance expert Doctor Dan Plumley, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about recent changes to the conglomerate’s ownership structure.
Abu Dhabi-registered Newton Investment and Development own 75 per cent of the 11-club group of which Man City are the flagship.
The remaining equity is split between Sliver Lake and China Media Capital.
As relayed by Bloomberg last Friday (16 September), Silver Lake have acquired an additional 4.1 per cent from China Media and now own 14.5 per cent of the collective.
They originally bought a 10 per cent stake for £438m in 2019, meaning this latest purchase is thought to be worth in the region of £200m.
Plumley explained how the share transfer will affect day-to-day operations.
“I think, in terms of strategy, they will have an input into where the business is going,” the Sheffield Hallam University expert told Football Insider’s Adam Williams.
“Day to day, I don’t think you’d expect too much to change. We are still talking about a relative minority stake in comparison to the full ownership of the group.
“The shift in football geography away from China and towards America is interesting. That rings true because Chinese investment is coming away from football.
“City Football Group are an attractive business investment if you look at their operation all around the world. You also have to look at how dominant City themselves have been in the Premier League.
“There are only a certain number of firms around the world who can afford that investment.
“This is what we have seen from Silver Lake in the past. It’s another opportunity to increase their stake in the biggest football group in the world.”
In other news, Paul Robinson “worried” about Kalvin Philips after journalist’s “huge” Man City update.