Latest Barcelona News: Barcelona issues bonds to finance large-scale renovation of outdated Camp Nou

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Latest Barcelona News: Barcelona is looking forward to renovate the Camp Nou

On Wednesday, Barcelona released bonds to fund the renovation of their Camp Nou stadium. The interest rates, which were published on the Vienna stock exchange, ranged from 6% to 7.22% depending on the maturity of the bonds. These rates were higher than what was originally anticipated.

In April, the Spanish club announced that it had obtained a funding agreement of 1.45 billion euros from investors such as Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan. This funding will allow the club to modernize its historic yet obsolete stadium and the surrounding area.

The stadium known as Camp Nou has a seating capacity of 99,354, making it the largest football stadium in Europe and the fourth-largest in the world.

The company has decided to reimburse its investors in multiple installments, which will be spread out over five, seven, nine, 20, and 24 years. The repayment plan is designed to be adaptable and includes a period of leniency. Additionally, the final payment will be made six years earlier than what was originally agreed upon by the club members in 2021.

The financial director of Barca has predicted that the average net interest rate would be around 5.5%. However, the director cautioned that unforeseen events like the earthquake in Turkey in February and the instability in the banking sector could increase the cost of the issuance.

The Espai Barca fund managing the stadium project has issued bonds that were registered on Wednesday at the Vienna stock exchange. These bonds will reach maturity in 2028, 2030, 2032, 2043, and 2047, and have varying interest rates between 6% and 7.22%.

Barcelona did not immediately provide a response to a Reuters inquiry regarding their plans to generate over 200 million euros in extra revenue each year through various means such as sponsorship and naming rights, ticket sales, catering, VIP boxes, hospitality, meetings, and events, all of which are expected to be facilitated by the stadium renovation.

The club spent two years in discussions with investors and rating agencies to finalize the deal. Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA) downgraded the financing plan’s rating from BBB+ to BBB because of the revised preliminary debt structure, which increased the risk of refinancing and interest rates. At the club’s request, KBRA changed the rating from published to unpublished.

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