Soccer-FC Barcelona sells bonds, restructures stadium-revamp debt
A silhouette of a woman walks past behind a FC Barcelona's logo at Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, Spain, March 24, 2016. REUTERS/Albert Gea
MADRID (Reuters) -FC Barcelona said on Friday it was selling 424 million euros ($498 million) in bonds as part of a deal to restructure the debt it contracted for its Camp Nou stadium renovation that allows it to postpone the first repayment to 2033 from 2028.
The Spanish football club had secured 1.45 billion euros ($1.70 billion) in financing in 2023 from 20 investors including Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan to overhaul its ageing stadium. The men's first team is scheduled to play a friendly at Camp Nou on August 10 in a partial reopening.
The club said in a statement that Goldman Sachs, acting as financial adviser, had facilitated the restructuring of the 424-million-euro debt tranche, allowing the full debt to be repaid from 2033 to 2050.
Under the original 2023 deal, the club had been due to pay back investors in progressive tranches - after five, seven, nine, 20, and 24 years.
"The club is fulfilling the necessary steps to ensure a gradual and staggered repayment," FC Barcelona said. The average cost of the refinanced amount stands at 5.19%.
Barcelona expects the modernised stadium to boost annual revenues by more than 200 million euros through sponsorship deals, naming rights, ticket sales, catering, VIP services, and events.
($1 = 0.8521 euros)
(Reporting by Inti Landauro and Corina Pons; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
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