Juventus Shares Climb After Agnelli Holding Company Rejects Bid From Tether — Update
By Najat Kantouar and Adria CalatayudShares in Juventus Football Club, one of Europe's most storied soccer teams, jumped early Monday after cryptocurrency giant Tether offered to buy the club from Italy's Agnelli family, which rejected the bid.The move marks the latest attempt by a financial group to push into European soccer and pits El Salvador-based Tether, operator of the world's largest stablecoin, against a family that has been involved in the club for more than a century.Shares in Juventus jumped as much as 14% in early Monday, coming back after this year's losses. In midday trading, the stock was up 12% at 2.46 euros, which values Juventus at 930 million euros ($1.09 billion), according to FactSet.Tether on Friday said it submitted a binding all-cash proposal to Exor, the Agnellis' holding company, for its 65.4% stake in Juventus and that it intended to make a public offer for the remaining shares. The price wasn't disclosed, but Tether said it was prepared to invest 1 billion euros to support the club if the deal went ahead.In response, Exor said Saturday that its board unanimously rejected Tether's unsolicited proposal.While majority owned by the Agnelli family's company, Juventus is publicly listed. Tether has an 11.5% stake, according to the club's website.European soccer clubs have drawn interest from the financial world lately, as private-equity groups and other financial backers seek to juice lucrative media rights and player transfers.Private-equity group Apollo Global Management last month agreed to acquire a majority stake in Spanish soccer club Atletico de Madrid. The ownership of two other top Italian clubs, Juventus's historic Milan rivals, changed hands in recent years as U.S. buyout group RedBird Capital took over AC Milan for some $1.2 billion in 2022 and U.S. investor Oaktree Capital seized control of FC Inter Milan last year.Tether said its bid aimed to support Juventus in a rapidly changing global sports and media landscape with stable capital and a long horizon from a position of strong financial health. The proposal reflected a belief in Juventus as more than a soccer club, Tether said.But Exor said it had no intention of selling any of its shares in Juventus to El Salvador-based Tether or any other third party."Juventus is a storied and successful club, of which Exor and the Agnelli family are the stable and proud shareholders for over a century, and they remain fully committed to the club," Exor said.Write to Najat Kantouar at [email protected] and to Adria Calatayud at [email protected]