City Football Group have added a 13th club to their collection having bought Braziian top-flight side Esporte Clube Bahia. Manchester City’s owners forked out £158m for 90 percent of Bahia’s shares, and the Brazilian outfit becomes the second biggest club in their growing list of teams. Negotiations took place last year, but the completion of the deal took time due to legal paperwork, which has now been completed. Ferran Soriano, chief executive of City Football Group, told a press conference on Thursday: ‘In this moment, this a hugely important moment for us. We celebrate today the first day which will certainly be a long-term project, and the first day of a journey to take Bahia to the maximum of its potential. It’s a huge responsibility. All our clubs, with Bahia it’s 13, all have a story but Bahia is exceptional for its size. Bahai will be the second biggest club in the group. We also understand that Bahia is part of the fabric of Bahia’s society. It has huge potential and we were impressed with the administration in the worst modern circumstances of the football club – a pandemic and a relegation. It’s very hard to feel responsible.
The remaining 10 percent of club shares will be held by Bahia’s elected administration. Soriano also spoke to fans of the side, saying: ‘Thank you for trusting in us to take care of your club. We have already started to work together. Bahia and City’s teams will start to work together for the next season and all the projects are set to come.’ The clubs in City Football Group’s collection include Manchester City (England), New York City FC (USA), Melbourne City (Australia), Yokohama F Marinos (Japan), Montevideo City Torque (Uruguay), Girona FC (Spain), Sichuan Jiuniu (China), Mumbai City (India), Lommel SK (Belgium), Troyes AC (France), Palermo (Italy), Bahia (Brazil) and Club Bolivar (Bolivia).
City Football Group have added a 13th club to their collection with the purchase of Braziian top-flight side Esporte Clube Bahia for £158m. 90 percent of Bahia’s shares were bought by Manchester City’s owners, making it the second biggest club in their growing list of teams. Negotiations took place last year, but the completion of the deal took time due to legal paperwork, which has now been completed. Ferran Soriano, chief executive of City Football Group, spoke at a press conference on Thursday, expressing his excitement for the project: ‘We celebrate today the first day which will certainly be a long-term project, and the first day of a journey to take Bahia to the maximum of its potential. It’s a huge responsibility. All our clubs, with Bahia it’s 13, all have a story but Bahia is exceptional for its size. We also understand that Bahia is part of the fabric of Bahia’s society. It has huge potential and we were impressed with the administration in the worst modern circumstances of the football club – a pandemic and a relegation. It’s very hard to feel responsible.’
The remaining 10 percent of club shares will be held by Bahia’s elected aministration, and Soriano also addressed fans of the side: ‘Thank you for trusting in us to take care of your club. We have already started to work together. Bahia and City’s teams will start to work together for the next season and all the projects are set to come.’ The clubs in City Football Group’s collection include Manchester City (England), New York City FC (USA), Melbourne City (Australia), Yokohama F Marinos (Japan), Montevideo City Torque (Uruguay), Girona FC (Spain), Sichuan Jiuniu (China), Mumbai City (India), Lommel SK (Belgium), Troyes AC (France), Palermo (Italy), Bahia (Brazil) and Club Bolivar (Bolivia).