The Provincial Court of Madrid confirms the “full validity” of LaLiga’s agreements with CVC

The Provincial Court of Madrid has completely dismissed the appeal filed by Athletic Club and Real Madrid CF against the ruling that had already rejected their claim against LaLiga for the agreement with the CVC venture capital fund at the Extraordinary General Assembly held on December 10, 2021.

According to LaLiga, this resolution confirms the ruling handed down by the Civil Section of the Court of Instance of Madrid on February 19, 2024 and endorses the validity of the contested agreements.

“The ruling rejects that the operation entails a transfer of audiovisual rights to CVC and recalls that the clubs continue to be owners of said rights, without prejudice to the joint marketing legally attributed to LaLiga,” indicates the clubs’ association in a statement.

Likewise, the Provincial Court has considered that the contribution made by CVC is articulated through a joint account contract aimed at financing the associated clubs, improving the competition and maximizing the result of the commercialization of audiovisual rights.

“The Chamber also rules out that the clubs that are not members of the operation bear its costs, concluding that the planned mechanism guarantees economic neutrality for them. In particular, the ruling indicates that the non-member clubs do not have to assume the expenses derived from the operation and that the risk of non-payment corresponds, where appropriate, to the member clubs,” he added.

The Provincial Court has also rejected the allegations relating to an alleged lack of information, considering it proven that LaLiga made the necessary documentation available to the clubs, offered meetings to resolve doubts and allowed the examination of additional documentation with advisors.

“The resolution concludes that the clubs had sufficient information to adopt a well-founded decision on the agreements submitted to the Assembly. The ruling also confirms that the creation of the subsidiary company LGI is integrated into the self-organization capacity of LaLiga and does not void its essential functions, since LaLiga maintains the powers of marketing, management and organization of the competition,” he noted.

Furthermore, the Court highlighted that LaLiga retains more than 91 percent of the share capital of LGI and the right to appoint the majority of its directors, which confirms the maintenance of control over said entity.

“LaLiga positively values ​​this resolution, which represents new judicial support for the agreements with CVC, reinforces its legal security and confirms the legal correctness of a strategic operation aimed at strengthening the competition, supporting the clubs and maximizing the value of the audiovisual rights of Spanish professional football,” he concluded.