Inter Milan owners Suning could refinance their debt to Oaktree Capital with a new loan from Ares Management or Sixth Street Partners.
Today’s print edition of Turin-based newspaper Tuttosport, via FCInterNews, highlight a potential route forward for Suning at the Nerazzurri via one of the two US-based funds.
Suning will soon have to make a decision regarding their future at Inter.
The massive loan that the Inter owners took on from Oaktree in May of 2021 comes due in May of next year.
And the situation is clear – the Nerazzurri owners must either repay the debt including interest, sell the club, or refinance to avoid control of the club passing into the hands of Oaktree.
The former would be impossible. And obviously Suning would have no intention of allowing control of Inter to pass into the hands of Oaktree via defaulting on their debt.
Therefore that leaves a sale or refinancing.
And by all accounts Suning want to refinance rather than sell Inter. President Steven Zhang has explicitly confirmed such.
But the crucial matter is whether or not Suning can reach an agreement to do so in time.
How Inter Owners Suning Could Reach Refinancing Agreement With Ares Or Sixth Street
As Tuttosport note, the timeline is increasingly tight for Suning to refinance their debt to Oaktree.
The Inter owners would practically need to reach an agreement by January of next year.
That is because it will take 2-3 months to finalize a deal. Therefore, they need to give themselves time to do so before the May due date for the Oaktree loan arrives.
But Suning are working to do just that.
US investment banks Goldman Sachs and Raine Group are advising the Nerazzurri owners in the process and have for some time been scanning the market.
And two primary candidates have emerged. Both US-based funds.
One is Ares Management. And the other is Sixth Street Partners.
Both have already shown a propensity for involvement in European football.
Ares made a €460 million loan to Chelsea that allowed the Premier League giants to redevelop Stamford Bridge.
And Sixth Street acquired 25% of Barcelona’s broadcasting rights for the next twenty-five years for €519 million as the Spanish giants aimed to ease their financial crisis last summer.
Tuttosport note that both Ares and Sixth Street are in active talks as possible candidates to refinance Suning’s debt at Inter.
Agreeing a deal would not be straightforward given current interest rates.
But Tuttosport note three factors that could play in favour of a deal.
Two relate to prospective future revenues.
For one, there is the financial windfall of participation in the 2025 Club World Cup in the US on the horizon for Inter.
And then there is the progress that the club is making with its new stadium project. That would be a massive boost for revenues when completed.
And one last factor concerns both Ares and Sixth Street having an interest in a potential handover of control of Inter.
Oaktree have little interest in taking control of the Nerazzurri by all accounts.
But Ares and Sixth Street do. Therefore, Suning could entice these funds with the incentive of a potential pathway to taking control of Inter.
