France's Ligue 1 lands four binding bids for media rights deal - sources

LONDON : Four buyout funds have made binding bids for a slice of the media rights business of France's top-flight soccer league as the race to support the country's cash-strapped clubs with a vital lifeline enters the final stages, sources told Reuters.

CVC Capital Partners, Silver Lake, Hellman & Friedman and Oaktree Capital have all submitted rival bids ahead of a March 9 deadline, three sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

A last-ditch attempt by European private equity firm BC Partners to team up with Oaktree fell through, with BC Partners walking away from the auction, they said.

French soccer governing body Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) kicked off a process last year to sell a minority stake in a newly created company that will market the TV and online broadcast rights for Ligue 1 - home to top players like Paris St Germain's Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe.

The bids value a stake of 10per cent to 15per cent in excess of 1.5 billion euros ($1.64 billion), with the final amount hinging on the degree of governance control that the LFP will grant, the sources said.

CVC, Silver Lake, Hellman & Friedman and BC Partners declined to comment while the LFP and Oaktree were not immediately available.

The LFP aims to wrap up the stake sale after the French presidential election - which takes place on April 10 and may last until April 24 in the event of a runoff - and could invite the four contenders to an extra round of bidding to give them a final chance to improve their proposals, the sources added.

The sale, led by Lazard and Centerview Partners, is the latest move by a European league to tap into private equity as football clubs struggle to recover from the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic after being hit