For the first time since its founding 94 years ago, Grupo Televisa will not be led by a member of the Azcárraga family. In the midst of an investigation by the United States Department of Justice (DoJ) for alleged bribes to officials of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), to obtain the rights to world cup matches, Emilio Azcárraga Jean He resigned from his position and will no longer preside over the television consortium.
According to the station’s financial report for the third quarter of 2024, delivered to the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV), the Board of Directors of Grupo Televisa endorsed Azcárraga Jean’s proposal to take leave with immediate effect
that is, to separate from the position of president of the council, while the investigation being carried out by the Department of Justice, related to the so-called FIFA case, is resolved, as announced to the investing public on August 30, 2024.
Azcárraga Jean has to do with a controversy from 2017, in which it was alleged that a subsidiary of the television station had made improper payments to officials of the sports organization to obtain broadcasting rights for the 2018, 2022, 2026 and 2030 World Cups.
The DoJ accused the television station of artificially inflate
the price of its American depositary receipts (ADR), by hiding bribes of 15 million dollars in order to obtain the rights to the World Cup for the aforementioned years.
Grupo Televisa, a telecommunications corporation that owns and operates one of the most relevant cable companies and a leading satellite pay television system in Mexico, was founded in 1930 by Emilio Azcárraga Vidaurreta; Later, Emilio Azcárraga Milmo took the reins of the company and became one of the businessmen with the greatest political influence and power in the country; After his death in 1997, his son Emilio Azcárraga Jean took charge of the company until this Thursday, while the Department of Justice investigations are resolved.
▲ Emilio Azcárraga Jean, until yesterday president of the board of directors of Grupo Televisa, in an image from February 12, 2020 upon leaving a meeting with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador at the National Palace. The United States Department of Justice is investigating a subsidiary of the television station for alleged bribes to FIFA.Photo The Day
In 2023, according to various reports, Televisa agreed to pay $95 million in a class action lawsuit in exchange for the petitioners giving up the bidding competition.
Drop in income
However, on August 30, 2024, Televisa reported that it learned that the investigation carried out by the United States related to FIFA could have a material impact
in its financial situation and in its results of operations.
Proof of this was that the Televisa Group’s income decreased to 15,362.8 million pesos in the July-September period of this year, compared to 16,416 million in the third quarter of 2023, which represented a drop of 6.4 percent. annual cent.
The company cannot predict the outcome of the investigation or whether it will actually have a material impact. We are cooperating with the investigation
informed the investing public.
Since August 30, the share price of Televisa, also the largest shareholder of TelevisaUnivision, a leading media company in the production, creation and distribution of Spanish-language content through various broadcast channels in Mexico, the United States and others 50 countries, has had ups and downs in the BMV. The price of its titles was 7.85 pesos on August 30, so its market value amounted to 19,861.37 million pesos; Subsequently, on September 5, its capitalization value decreased to 17,938.49 million pesos. At the close of this Thursday, with its shares at 9.25 pesos, the market value amounted to 23,403.52 million pesos.