Countdown to formalize the sale of Atlético Madrid to the Apollo Global Management fund. According to market sources, the structure of the operation is practically signed and, barring any last-minute setbacks, all that remains is to agree on the announcement day. The American giant of alternative investments, founded in 1990 by the controversial Leon Black and with 900 billion dollars under management, will end up acquiring around two thirds of the capital of the football club, while the current shareholders will maintain minority shares for now. As happens in these processes, it is expected that both the CEO, Miguel Ángel Gil Marín, and the president, Enrique Cerezo, will be an active part of the transition process.
The club is currently 70% controlled by the Atlético Holdco SL company, in turn held for just over 50% by the Holding de Informaziones Atléticas (whose 100% belongs to Gil Marín); Video Mercury Film (with 15% and whose chain of control leads to Cerezo), and Stormont Investments (vehicle of the American management company Ares Management). The remaining 27% is in the hands of Quantum Pacific Management, another investment fund, in this case in the hands of Israeli millionaire Idan Ofer. According to these sources, the valuation of Gil Marín’s majority stake will be between 600 and 700 million, which will bring the company’s valuation to around 2,000 million euros.
The interest of the financial world in sport has gained ground in recent times. In addition to the operation with Atlético de Madrid, Apollo launched in September an investment vehicle aimed at strategic financing operations for this segment for a volume of 5,000 million dollars, in line with the commitment of competitors such as CVC Capital Partners or Oaktree Capital. The CEO of the mattress team admitted this in September, during a forum organized by Expansionthat taking on new partners was a real possibility. “We started to invite groups, banks or people into the capital of the club, we generated trust and they came in. We started with Wanda, we continued with Quantum, Ares… We are open to the entry of new capital, which we understand is necessary for the club to function better. To try to make this concept I have that football that lasts more than 90 minutes can be achieved”, he underlined.
The Apollo project, in fact, is long-term and will continue the professionalization path of a club that has already taken decisive steps in that direction in recent years. Due to its idiosyncrasy, the fund will seek returns from management. Atlético de Madrid strengthens its structure in anticipation of the arrival of the American club, with two fundamental pillars in the organization chart, to support the future project. On the one hand, the manager Óscar Mayo, who will remain at the helm of the company and who has made sponsorship revenues skyrocket since his arrival in January 2024. In a matter of months, Atlético de Madrid has announced lucrative deals with Red Bull, Riyadh Air and the Rwanda Development Board, among others. In many cases, in fact, it was partner coveted by all of European football. For example, just a few days ago it became a collaborator of the Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix which will take place in Madrid from 11 to 13 September 2026, with the Metropolitan stadium as the heart of the event. hospitality and the concert of the week. Regarding the playing fields, the recent incorporation of Mateo Alemany guarantees the presence at the helm of the sports field of a high level professional, respected throughout the sector, with successful management – often with few resources – in teams such as Barcelona, Valencia or Mallorca.
The intention of the fund is to base the bet on the recurring revenue that the organization can generate, moving away as much as possible from the axiom that in football things go well or badly depending on whether the ball goes in or not. Here we look for balance sheet stability and institutional growth. To this end, on the title page there is the City of Sport in the making, which Apollo wants to express in the belief that the ups and downs of football cannot be decisive in the progress of society. The project involves an investment by the club of 350 million and more than 265 thousand square meters dedicated to leisure and sport. It includes five well-differentiated areas, some for use by the football club itself – a sports centre, an academy, etc. – and other areas under municipal management and which will be handed over to the district. The megaproject in San Blas, just outside Coslada, will include shopping centers, hotels, a beach with surfing waves and a sanda large pavilion next to the Metropolitano to host concerts all year round. An entire potential income stream a stone’s throw from Barajas airport and with public transport to the center of Madrid.
The neighbor’s mirror
Not only does Apollo’s move not happen in a vacuum, but the big picture reveals a huge global effervescence in the relocation of sports franchises, which has affected ratings. According to the latest classification of Forbesthe Dallas Cowboys of the NFL (the American football league, for its acronym in English) are the most valuable entity, with a valuation of 10.1 billion dollars, after growing 12% in a year. It is the only one that exceeds the 10,000 million threshold. Followed by Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors, from the NBA, with a valuation of 8.8 billion, and the Los Angeles Rams, also from the NFL, with 7.6 billion. Followed by the New York franchises of the Yankees, baseball, and the Knicks, basketball, with 7,550 and 7,500 million respectively. You have to go down to twelfth place to find the first football team, Real Madrid, which reaches the figure of 6.6 billion dollars. Compared to the entities that preceded it, under the control of historic families, new millionaires or multinationals, Real Madrid is the only one where the members are owners. Without losing this sign of entity, its president, Florentino Pérez, is preparing to make a change and modernize the ownership structure. According to informed sources, Apollo is looking with suspicion at the valuation that the merengue team could obtain with this corporate transfer.
Real Madrid’s idea is to put part of the capital on the market, keeping 51% in the hands of the subscribers. The German model, based on the 50+1 rule and embraced by historic clubs such as Bayern Munich, opens up a maximum of 49% to private capital while a members’ association retains the majority of the club’s voting rights. The formula, not contemplated in the Spanish corporate system, is the one that inspires the white reform. “Our club must have an organizational structure that protects us as an institution and that also protects us all as owners of Real Madrid. To do this, I confirm that we will bring to this Assembly a proposal for the corporate reorganization of the club that guarantees our future”, Pérez said a year ago in front of the social masses. After the Buss family sold the Los Angeles Lakers in June to Mark Walter, CEO of TWG Global and owner of the Dodgers, for 10 billion dollars, suspicions spread in the financial market that, with the boom in franchise sales, the valuation of Forbes For Real Madrid he is not up to par. That’s where Apollo can do the math.
The entity chaired by Florentino Pérez was the first to exceed the 1,000 million revenue threshold. He did it last season reaching the budget of 1,185. Atlético Madrid’s trend follows this line. According to the Football Money League 2025published by the consultancy firm Deloitte, the company has increased its turnover by 12% in the last year, up to 409.5 million euros, moving from fifteenth to twelfth place among European clubs. The Sports City, when launched in 2027, is expected to provide a decisive boost to business. Forbes It guarantees the red and whites a valuation of 1.7 billion, 3.8 times lower than Real Madrid, whose revenues multiply those of Atlético only 2.9 times. Everything that, in the medium term, Atlético de Madrid professionalizes the management, reduces the income gap and improves its profitability ratios will benefit the success story, the valuation and the latent or future capital gains of the Apollo. There is room for growth.
Him history of equity it is relevant. Atlético Madrid, in fact, seems to be riding the good wave while Real Madrid has encountered problems. While the ambitious renovation of the Santiago Bernabéu, with a retractable floor to preserve the grass and a roof to host concerts, has struggled with decibels, neighbors and restrictions, the Metropolitano has emerged as an alternative venue. Of course, as a Real Madrid fan would say, football is football and a goal is a goal. None of this approach would have been possible – nor will it be – without the sporting success, today measured by entering the Champions League year after year, the competition into which millions flow. Diego Pablo Simeone arrived on a cold day in January 2012 to take charge of a team that was bottom of the table. He debuted with some soulless tables in Malaga. He currently boasts 13 consecutive seasons in the top continental competition. Apollo has demonstrated its ability to manage budgets; Now you will have to manage feelings too.
