ISL 2019-20: Manchester City owners to acquire majority stake in Mumbai City FC, says source

Mumbai: The owners of Premier League champions Manchester City are set to acquire a majority stake in Indian Super League (ISL) football team Mumbai City FC, a source with direct knowledge of the development told Reuters on Thursday. [caption id=“attachment_7712121” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Mumbai City FC players celebrate a goal during their match against NorthEast United FC. image credits Twitter @MumbaiCityFC[/caption] Manchester City is the crown jewel of the City Football Group (CFG), which is majority-owned by Abu Dhabi-based Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan. “The investment will showcase the interest of the world in Indian football,” said the source, who asked not to be named as the talks were private. CFG did not respond to a request for comment and Mumbai City FC declined to comment on the matter. CFG, which will outline the details of the deal at a news event in the Indian financial hub of Mumbai on Thursday, already owns majority stakes in seven soccer teams in countries ranging from the United States to China. Mumbai City, which is co-owned by Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor, has had the likes of Freddie Ljungberg, Nicolas Anelka and Diego Forlan as their marquee players in the past, and they are currently placed seventh in the 10-team ISL. The deal is set to be announced just a day after CFG agreed to sell a $500 million stake to US private equity firm Silver Lake, making it the world’s most valuable soccer group with a $4.8 billion price tag.