Blackrock arm in talks to back Six Nations Rugby investor

A part of Blackrock, the world's biggest plus manager, is successful talks to supply hundreds of millions of pounds of backing to a institution which owns stakes successful Six Nations Rugby and the women's nonrecreational tennis tour.

Sky News has learnt that HPS, the planetary backstage recognition giant, is among the parties negotiating with CVC Capital Partners implicit the financing of its Global Sports Group (GSG) holding company.

The talks, which are not exclusive, would spot HPS assistance supply firepower for the CVC-backed conveyance to marque further acquisitions to grow its portfolio.

Chaired by Marc Allera, the erstwhile BT Group user boss, GSG holds stakes successful Premiership Rugby, the apical flights of French and Spanish shot and the planetary volleyball tour.

In caller weeks, Mr Allera has outlined his ambitions to get further planetary sports properties.

HPS, which was acquired by Blackrock for $12bn precocious past year, is said to beryllium superior astir becoming progressive successful GSG.

Other parties with whom CVC is successful discussions see Ares Management, which is funny successful providing some indebtedness and equity to GSG, according to insiders.

Any caller financing bundle was expected to beryllium secured connected favourable presumption for the CVC-controlled radical due to the fact that of the underlying recognition prime of the assets successful the portfolio.

Sky News revealed during the summertime that CVC had engaged a trio of banks to research plans for a refinancing of what was astatine the clip referred to internally arsenic SportsCo and which has since been renamed Global Sport Group.

The portfolio besides includes an Indian Premier League cricket franchise, respective of which are presently exploring income astatine valuations of good implicit $1bn.

Goldman Sachs, PJT Partners and Raine Group are advising connected the refinancing of GSG, which has been acceptable up to optimise CVC's investments successful the sector.

The woody is expected to let CVC to stay invested successful its sports portfolio for longer, portion besides paving the mode for the merchantability of a number involvement successful SportsCo oregon a aboriginal archetypal nationalist offering.

Having made billions of dollars from its ownership of Formula One centrifugal racing - 1 of the astir lucrative deals successful the past of athletics - CVC has bought stakes successful leagues and different assets spanning a spectrum of elite sporting assets implicit the past 2 decades.

Its concern successful the media rights to La Liga - Spain's equivalent of the Premier League - is expected to make a handsome instrumentality for the firm, though a comparable woody successful France has faced important challenges amid broadcasters' fiscal challenges successful the country.

CVC's backing of planetary sports properties is intended to presumption it to maximise their commercialized imaginable done caller media and sponsorship rights deals, arsenic good arsenic their enlargement into caller formats aimed astatine drafting wider audiences amid accelerated shifts successful media consumption.

In rugby union, its acquisition of a involvement successful Premiership Rugby's commercialized rights was deed by the pandemic and the consequent fiscal pressures connected clubs which saw a fig of the league's teams forced into insolvency.

CVC, which bought into Premiership Rugby successful 2019, owns a 27% involvement successful the league.

Its sporting assets volition proceed to stay autonomous and autarkic of 1 another, contempt the caller umbrella holding entity.

One expected payment of the SportsCo attack would beryllium the sourcing of caller concern opportunities, with CVC being linked to a bid for 1 of the caller European NBA hoops franchises which is expected to beryllium sold successful the coming months.

Global sports properties person go 1 of the hottest maturation areas for backstage superior successful caller years, with firms specified arsenic Ares, Silver Lake Partners and Bridgepoint each investing important sums successful teams, leagues and different assets crossed the industry.

CVC and Blackrock declined to comment.