777 Buys Controlling Stake of Bundesliga’s Hertha BSC

Asli Pelit
Updated ·2 min read

The boutique investment firm 777 Partners has reached an agreement to acquire a controlling stake of Hertha BSC, one of the oldest soccer clubs in Germany, people familiar with the deal told Sportico.

The Miami-based firm is buying a 64.7% stake from Tennor Holding B.V., the holding company of German investor Lars Windhorst, the people said. These 64.7% investor shares are equivalent to 49% voting shares of the club—the maximum allowed for outside investors under German Football League rules.

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“We are excited to have the opportunity to partner with Hertha BSC and look forward to engaging with the club and its stakeholders,” Josh Wander, 777’s founder and managing partner, said in a statement Wednesday evening. “As a founding member of Bundesliga, Hertha BSC is one of the most important and historic football clubs in Germany.”

Hertha is the fifth soccer club 777 Partners has acquired majority ownership in this year. The company has built a multi-club network featuring Genoa C.F.C. in Italy, Vasco de Gama in Brazil, Standard Liege in Belgium and Red Star F.C. in France. In addition, 777 has minority stakes in Sevilla F.C. in Spain and Melbourne Victory in Australia.

In 2019, Windhorst bought a 37.5% stake of Hertha at a valuation of $383 million. He later invested another $172 million and raised his stake to 64.7%.

“The sale to 777 Partners is an excellent solution, and we are very happy with this outcome,” Windhorst said in a statement. “We are selling our Hertha shares to a well-known international football investor who believes in the multi club ownership model and is actively developing it successfully across the globe.”

Founded in 1892, Hertha B.S.C., commonly known as Hertha Berlin, is currently in 16th place in the first division of the Bundesliga. The team has won the German championship twice in its history.

(This article has been updated in the third and sixth paragraphs with statements from Josh Wander and Lars Windhorst.)

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