Liberty Media completes acquisition of MotoGP
Liberty Media Corporation, which owns the commercial rights to Formula 1, completes the acquisition of MotoGP, the most popular motorcycle racing world championship, having received the approval of the European Commission.
In January, Derek Chang, CEO and president of Liberty, spoke, and we quoted his words: "We have postponed the approval date to June 30, 2025, and are working constructively with regulators to get the deal approved."
The process of acquiring the assets of Dorna Sports, which controls the MotoGP economy, began last spring, but the future deal had to undergo a comprehensive review by European regulators for compliance with antitrust laws.
Today, the European Commission gave its consent in principle, and it is expected that the deal will be closed no later than July 3. Thus, Liberty will receive commercial rights to MotoGP, which will allow the corporation to significantly expand its media empire.
At the same time, Carmelo Escepleta, who has been heading Dorna since 1998, will remain as executive director of the company, which is headquartered in Madrid.
"We are pleased that the European Commission has approved this transaction," said the Spanish businessman. – This is an important event that confirms that MotoGP has an even brighter future ahead. This is one of the most interesting sports in the world, and we intend to accelerate its development and expand its audience so that there are even more fans around the world.
Liberty is the best possible partner for our sport and the entire MotoGP community, and we are excited to further enhance its value to our fans, commercial partners, and everyone who competes in this championship."
Liberty Media is acquiring 84% of Dorna Sports shares, with another 16 remaining with MotoGP management. Reuters, referring to Liberty, calls the deal amount: 4.3 billion euros.
Currently, the MotoGP season is in full swing, behind 9 stages, and the famous Spaniard Marc Marquez, a six-time world champion who plays for the Ducati factory team, is in the lead in the individual standings. He has already won five times this year.
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Liberty Media completes acquisition of MotoGP
Liberty Media Corporation, which owns the commercial rights to Formula 1, completes the acquisition of MotoGP, the World Motorcycle racing championship, having received the approval of the European Commission...