October 20 – AC Milan owner RedBird Capital Partners is reportedly in talks to acquire a controlling stake in Al Nassr, with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) working to clean up the club’s balance sheet ahead of a potential sale.
According to Semafor, a RedBird-led consortium has held at least two meetings with PIF over the purchase of a 70% stake valued at around SAR1 billion ($267 million).
The discussions are still preliminary and there is no guarantee of a deal, but the proposed structure could also hand Cristiano Ronaldo a significant ownership position in the club he joined almost four years ago.
Ronaldo could take as much as 20%, while Riyadh-based Saudi Media Company has also been identified as a possible investor. Neither the eventual share split nor the source of Ronaldo’s prospective stake has been finalised.
Before any transaction, PIF is reportedly attempting to address around SAR800 million ($213 million) of debt at Al Nassr through new sponsorship agreements involving companies within its wider portfolio.
That debt has become increasingly difficult to ignore despite the extraordinary spending that followed Ronaldo’s arrival and the subsequent recruitment of high-profile players to the Saudi Pro League.
Al Nassr had already been facing tighter spending conditions earlier this year, with further transfer business now linked to the club’s ability to generate commercial income rather than simply draw on shareholder support.
On a straight proportional basis, the reported price for 70% would imply an equity valuation of around SAR1.43 billion ($381 million) for the club, although that figure does not account for how the existing debt would be treated.
There is already a useful comparison across Riyadh.
PIF completed the sale of 70% of Al Hilal to Prince Alwaleed bin Talal’s Kingdom Holding Company in September for SAR840 million, valuing the club’s equity at SAR1.2 billion. The Al Nassr discussions therefore follow a route that has already been tested with one of Saudi football’s other major state-backed clubs.
The four leading sides – Al Nassr, Al Hilal, Al Ittihad and Al Ahli – were transferred under PIF control in 2023 as part of the Kingdom’s effort to transform the domestic game. Having funded the initial acceleration, the direction is now towards private capital and more commercially sustainable ownership structures.
Al Nassr would add Saudi Arabia to Redbird’s football portfolio which already contains AC Milan and Toulouse, alongside its minority investment in Liverpool owner Fenway Sports Group.
The presence of Ronaldo would give any new ownership group an obvious global commercial asset as well. Prospective investors are reportedly particularly interested in expanding Al Nassr’s profile in the US.
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at [email protected]
