The owners of Manchester City are close to completing a takeover of newly-promoted Serie B side Palermo FC. The deal has been touted since shortly before the Rosanero confirmed their return to the second division of Italian football and will expand The City Football Group’s ownership to 11 clubs, worldwide.
Palermo were a mainstay of Serie A after securing promotion in 2003 but financial difficulties, coupled with a change in ownership led to bankruptcy in 2019 and ultimately, demotion to Serie D.
The side were reformed as a phoenix club and have worked their way up the divisions, clinching promotion to Serie B at the end of the 2022-23 season.
A number of sources now report that CFG have held talks with Palermo over a potential deal which would see 80 per cent of the club purchased for a figure of €13m.
CFG also own Manchester City in the Premier League, MLS side New York City FC, Girona in Spain, Troyes in France and Lommel in Belgium, Australian club Melbourne City, Montevideo City Torque in Uruguay, Mumbai City in India and Sichuan Jiuniu in China as well as being a minority shareholder of Japanese club Yokohama F. Marinos.
