By Melody Gross 
Sporting has now increased its stake in SAD's capital to 88%, after buying back mandatory convertible securities (VMOC) held by Novo Banco for approximately €15.4 million.
“Sporting Clube de Portugal announces that it has acquired 51,416,952 VMOC from Novo Banco, and that after transferring the above-mentioned values, it will increase its contribution to the capital of Sporting SAD to 88%,” Sporting said in a statement. It was sent to the CMVM last December.
“The Lions” indicates that this is a “historic milestone” to complete “the last stage that allows us to accelerate the new era that has already begun,” explaining that it is “the last step of the path that was set in 2018, with the aim of ensuring that the club is the master of its own destiny.”
This operation was carried out through an advance payment of revenue from the contract with NOS, via Sagasta, in another financial operation that was also sent to the CMVM, resulting in a “net global increase of approximately 50 million compared to the previous operation.”
“The global value issued by Sagasta currently stands at €113,900,000.00, of which €95,247,805.00 is allocated to Sporting SAD and €18,652,195.00 to Sporting Comunicação e Plataformas, SA,” he explains.
According to Sporting, the net proceeds from this operation allowed Sporting SAD to restructure the bank's debt, extinguishing debt “originally owned by Novo Banco, SA (with an outstanding capital of €35,403,508.62), excluding financial leases.”
“As a result, the company changed its financial exposure to Sagasta only, excluding financial leases,” the document explains.
The amounts of this operation with Novo Banco increased the amounts related to the repurchase of securities held by Millennium Bank BCP, which was carried out in March 2022, by nine million, to a total of 23,7 million.
Sporting considers that today marks the “end point” on the financial restructuring framework agreement signed in November 2014, which allows entering into a new cycle.
“A cycle in which the club can, continuously and unambiguously, compete for leadership in all sporting competitions, in a sustained and sustainable way, with an emphasis on long-term value creation,” defends the “Lions”.
Sporting also talks about starting a “2.0 phase of strategic planning”, creating the conditions for entering “a strategic minority equity partnership in SAD, so that there is a strengthening of the investment policy, an improvement in the experience of all members and a globalization of the club.”
The club owns approximately 84% of the share capital of SAD, a value that now rises to approximately 89% with the change in ownership of the mandatory convertible securities held by Novo Banco.