National Champion Club Brugge has a new investor. The American investment fund Orkila Capital – which is also the owner of Ironman – provides an infusion of capital of 20 million euros. In March, the football club was forced to cancel the IPO.
Chairman Bart Verhaeghe, CEO Vincent Mannaert, Jan Boone and Peter Vanhecke combine their stakes in Grizzly Sports NV, which together hold approximately 72 percent of the stock.
In addition, the Club is taking an important international step by bringing Orkila Capital on board. This US investment fund has more than fifteen years of experience in the sports, media, entertainment and B2C markets in Europe and the United States. Orkila Club Brugge will help Brugge grow further in digitization, intellectual property and content development, as well as in direct-to-consumer strategies.
“Orkila Capital is providing a capital injection of €20 million to strengthen the club both in sport and in terms of brand experience,” the company said in a press release. “In addition, the investment group will acquire shares from existing shareholders with a total value of 30 million euros. As a result, Grizzly Sports NV will continue to hold 71.89 per cent of the shares of Club Brugge and Orkila Capital will acquire 23.26 per cent of Tasharak.”
215 million euros
The deal now values Club Brugge at 215 million euros. This is in line with the valuation with which it eventually tried to go public. But it is still well below the initial valuations of 400-500 million euros that were traded after the exchange’s plans were announced.
“I am extremely proud to announce a clear, stable and bright future for Club Brugge today,” said Chairman Bart Verhagé. “I am convinced that our expertise in international football, combined with Orkila’s extensive experience with its broad portfolio, provide a solid foundation to further our growth in the rapidly changing world of football and business.”
“With this transaction, Orkila Capital Club Brugge has added to its portfolio of leading global brands including Ironman, Superstruct Entertainment (owner of music festivals such as Sziget and Zwarte Cross), Recognition Media (owner of The Webby Awards), and Oatly (the world’s leading company). in and oat milk) and many others.”
strategic error
Remarkably, the transaction is a combination of raising capital and selling existing shares. The failed IPO was simply a sell-off of existing shares, which many observers saw as a strategic mistake. The current deal also enhances Club Brugge’s financial strength and not only benefits existing shareholders.
It is not yet clear with which time perspective Orkila Capital has entered. As a minority shareholder, with no control over the club’s strategic decisions, the fund is in a somewhat uncomfortable position unless Orkila Capital has already negotiated an exit strategy. So this deal may be an intermediate step toward a new IPO bid.
Chairman Bart Verhaeghe, CEO Vincent Mannaert, Jan Boone and Peter Vanhecke all combine their stakes in Grizzly Sports NV, which together hold approximately 72 percent of the stock. In addition, the Club is taking an important international step by integrating Orkila Capital into the company. This US investment fund has more than fifteen years of experience in the sports, media, entertainment and B2C markets in Europe and the United States. Orkila Club Brugge will help Brugge grow further in digitization, intellectual property and content development, as well as in direct-to-consumer strategies. “Orkila Capital is providing a capital injection of €20 million to strengthen the club both in sport and in terms of brand experience,” the company said in a press release. “In addition, the investment group will acquire shares from existing shareholders with a total value of 30 million euros. As a result, Grizzly Sports NV will continue to hold 71.89 per cent of the shares of Club Brugge and Orkila Capital will acquire 23.26 per cent of Club Brugge. 215 million euros. This is in line with the valuation with which it eventually tried to go public. But it is still well below the first valuations of 400 to 500 million euros that were traded after the stock exchange plans were announced. “I am very proud to announce a clear future A very stable and bright club for Brugge today,” answers. President Bart Verhagé. “I am convinced that our expertise in international football, combined with Orkila’s deep expertise with its extensive portfolio, provides a stable foundation to further our growth in the rapidly changing world of football and business.” Ironman and Superstruct Entertainment (owner of music festivals such as Sziget and Zwarte Cross), Recognition Media (owner of Webby Awards), Oatly (global leader in oat milk) and many others.” Increase capital and sell existing shares. The failed IPO was simply a sell-off of existing shares, which many observers saw as a strategic mistake. The current deal also enhances Club Brugge’s financial strength and not only benefits existing shareholders, and it is not yet clear what time perspective Orkila Capital has stepped in. As a minority shareholder, with no control over the club’s strategic decisions, the fund is in a somewhat uncomfortable position unless Orkila Capital has already negotiated an exit strategy. So this deal may be an intermediate step toward a new IPO bid.
