Peter Lim’s Meriton Holdings has agreed to bring Pitchwise Holdings into Valencia CF as a 42% shareholder. The club announced on 23 October 2026 that Pitchwise will buy shares from Meriton and put €100 million of new capital into the club, at an enterprise value of €1.25 billion. Meriton remains the majority shareholder and Kiat Lim, Peter Lim’s son, stays president, the club said. Regulatory approvals are still needed.
For families, the pattern is a founder selling part of a prized asset while keeping a family member in the chair, with family offices buying in as minority partners.
Who Is Buying Into Valencia CF
Pitchwise is led by general partners Ann Rodriguez and Corey Woolfolk. The club names as backers KKR co-founders George Roberts and Henry Kravis, without naming their vehicles, and Penner Sports Group, a Denver family holding company founded in 2022 by Greg and Carrie Penner. Its holdings include the Denver Broncos, Spanish outlets report.
Does Meriton Keep a Majority?
The club says yes but gives no percentage. In 2014 the club’s foundation sold Lim its 70.4% for €100 million, EFE reports. A 2016 capital increase took him to about 90%, a 2021 increase left small shareholders below 9%, and in 2022 he turned €38 million of loans into shares. Nostresport puts Meriton at 91.55% in the latest published accounts.
By our arithmetic, 91.55% minus 42 points leaves Meriton about 49.5%, just under half. If Pitchwise ends at 42% and Meriton above 50%, everyone else must hold below 8%, against about 8.5% now, which only dilution by new shares allows. OKDIARIO reports the €100 million is meant to become shares; Valencia Noticias estimates Meriton at about 50%. The club has not published the split, so exact figures remain unclear.
The club calls the €1.25 billion an enterprise value, a measure that normally counts debt as well as shares, so 42% of it is not the undisclosed price. Compare Viessmann at Bayern Munich, done through new shares, and Stephen Ross’s Dolphins stake sales, where the owner keeps the cash.
The Stadium and the Approvals
The club ties the deal to its move from the 49,000-seat Mestalla to the Nou Mestalla, planned to seat more than 70,000. In June 2025 it announced €322 million of financing: €237 million of 28-year notes and an €85 million five-year loan, to be repaid from selling the old Mestalla land.
Libertad Digital and ElDesmarque explain that buying 25% or more of the votes in a Spanish sports company needs prior authorisation from the Consejo Superior de Deportes, the government sports council.
What to watch
- The sports council’s decision and the closing.
- Meriton’s exact stake after closing, and how the €100 million becomes shares.
- The roles Rodriguez and Woolfolk take at the club.
A fair caveat
The club disclosed neither the price nor the post-deal percentages, so our arithmetic is a check, not a share register. The ownership history comes from EFE and Spanish press.
Questions to bring to your advisors
If we sell part of a family company, does the money go to us or into the company, and what happens to our percentage? Who keeps the chair, and what rights do new partners get? These are questions to bring to your advisors, not advice.
