EU approves MotoGP takeover by F1 owner Liberty Media
Liberty and the Commission both released statements saying the deal had received 'unconditional approval'.
'The deal is now expected to close no later than July 3, 2025, opening the door to a new era for the sport,' said MotoGP on its web site.
Liberty had agreed to buy the motor-cycle grand prix competition from Dorna Sports in April 2024, but the European Commission opened an investigation to determine whether the merger violated competition rules.
Colorado-based Liberty said it would acquire 84 percent of MotoGP with Dorna, a Madrid-based company, retaining 16 per cent in a deal that valued the company at 4.3 billion euros ($5 billion).
The Commission had been concerned 'that the transaction could lead to an increase in licensing prices for broadcasting rights to motorsports events.'
On Monday the Commission said it was satisfied that, in the European national markets it investigated, 'the companies are not close competitors for the licensing of broadcasting rights for sports content.'
The Commission also looked at Liberty Media's relationship with parent company Liberty Global, a leading cable operator in several European countries.
The statement said there was 'insufficient evidence that Mr. John Malone, Liberty Media's largest shareholder, could exercise decisive influence over Liberty Global.'
'We are thrilled,' said Derek Chang, Liberty Media President and Chief Executive Officer, in the company statement.
'MotoGP is a highly attractive premium sports asset with incredible racing, a passionate fanbase and a strong cash flow profile. We believe the sport and brand have significant growth potential.'
Since Liberty took control of F1 in 2017, it has implemented an expansion strategy, particularly in the United States, making spectacle its main focus.
With the help of the long-running Netflix series 'Drive to Survive,' the group has attracted a younger, more female audience.
'MotoGP is one of the most thrilling sports on earth, and we look forward to accelerating the sport's growth and expanding its reach to even more fans around the world,' said Dorna chief executive Carmelo Ezpeleta in the Liberty statement.
As part of the deal Ezpeleta, CEO since 1998, and his team will continue to run MotoGP.
'Liberty is the best possible partner for our sport and the entire MotoGP community, and we are excited to create even greater value for our fans, commercial partners and everyone competing,' he said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malaysian Reserve
21 minutes ago
- Malaysian Reserve
RepTrak Appoints Thierry D'Hers and Catherine Hernandez-Blades to Board of Directors
BOSTON, Aug. 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ –The RepTrak Company™, the world's leading provider of reputation intelligence, proudly announces the appointment of Thierry D'Hers and Catherine Hernandez-Blades to its Board of Directors. These strategic appointments underscore RepTrak's commitment to scaling its reputation intelligence suite with cutting-edge technologies, AI-driven insights, and product innovation. Thierry D'Hers Thierry D'Hers brings more than two decades of experience in product innovation, engineering leadership, and advisory roles. He is most known for his foundational role at Tableau, where he helped scale the company's data visualization platform, PowerBI, into a global business intelligence leader. Most recently, he served as Chief Product & Engineering Officer at Vivun. D'Hers has also advised several tech organizations including Pigment, Radar, Indico Labs, and Headwaters Economics — holding strategic roles in both enterprise and mission-driven technology ventures. 'RepTrak is uniquely positioned at the intersection of technology, data, and trust,' said D'Hers. 'I'm excited to join the Board at a time when innovation and AI are reshaping how organizations manage stakeholder perception. I look forward to aiding the growth of the world's most powerful reputation intelligence platform.' Catherine Hernandez-Blades Catherine Hernandez-Blades holds a distinguished track record across the financial services, defense, aerospace, technology, and government sectors. She currently serves as an independent board director for CoreCivic, Inc., where she sits on the Nominating & Governance and Risk Committees. Previously, she held C-suite roles at three Fortune 500 companies: Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at SAIC, Aflac, and Flex. In addition, she is an EMMY® winner, Cannes Lions recipient, Forbes Top 50 Global CMO, and the first and only American recipient of the Relations 4 the Future medal at Davos. 'Having relied on RepTrak's products and services for over a decade across multiple Fortune 500 companies, I can personally attest to the platform's immense value. It not only quantifies the business impact driven by teams but also plays a crucial role in strategic decision-making — extending its influence to the entire C-suite and Board of Directors. I'm particularly excited about the innovative new products in development and am delighted to join RepTrak's board.' Fueling Product and Platform Evolution These appointments reflect a deliberate move to accelerate the evolution of RepTrak's recently launched platform, Compass™ — deepening its technology, product, governance, and communications expertise. D'Hers and Hernandez-Blades bring strengths that will help guide RepTrak through its next phase of growth and innovation. 'Thierry and Catherine bring distinct and deeply aligned expertise to RepTrak. Thierry's product and AI leadership, paired with Catherine's global reputation leadership, governance insight, and ESG acumen, position us to serve clients with sharper intelligence, deeper trust, and greater value than ever before. We are proud to welcome them both to the Board' says Mark Sonders, CEO of The RepTrak Company. About The RepTrak Company The RepTrak Company is the world's premier provider of reputation data and insights, helping businesses harness reputation intelligence to secure competitive advantage. RepTrak's predictive insights enable subscribers to safeguard business value, optimize ROI, and amplify their positive societal impact. Combining advanced metrics with dedicated reputation advisors, RepTrak delivers actionable analyses that align business goals with stakeholder sentiment across global markets and diverse industries. Established in 2004, The RepTrak Company owns the world's largest reputation benchmarking database, gathering over 1 million company ratings per year used by CEOs, boards, and executives in more than 60 countries worldwide. For more information, please visit About RepTrak Compass Compass is the only truly integrated global solution for reputation intelligence — combining RepTrak's world-class Global Advisory expertise with AI-enabled navigation. Designed for today's dynamic stakeholder environment, Compass enables leaders to shift from measuring reputation to actively shaping it. RepTrak invites communications, corporate affairs, brand, and reputation leaders around the world to explore Compass — and see how it empowers them to lead reputation, not just report on it. To learn more about Compass, visit
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Soccer-Real Madrid oppose LaLiga Miami match and urge UEFA, FIFA to block it
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - LaLiga - Real Madrid v Girona - Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain - February 10, 2024 General view inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Isabel Infantes/File Photo MADRID (Reuters) -Real Madrid on Tuesday denounced plans to stage a LaLiga match between Barcelona and Villarreal in Miami, warning the proposal could undermine football's competitive balance and vowing to petition global governing bodies to block the move. The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) on Monday approved the December 20 fixture at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, which could become the first LaLiga match held abroad and the first European league fixture staged in the United States. "Real Madrid wish to express to its members, supporters and football fans in general its firm rejection of the proposal," the club said in a statement, revealing they have already urged FIFA, UEFA and Spain's Higher Sports Council (CSD) to intervene. The club accused the RFEF of making its decision "without informing or consulting the clubs participating in the competition" and argued that staging the match in Miami "violates the essential principle of territorial reciprocity" in home-and-away league formats. Real further stated that the move would "alter the competitive balance" and grant "an unfair sporting advantage" to the clubs involved. The club also warned that approving the proposal could compromise sporting integrity and "set an unacceptable precedent," insisting any change of this nature should require "the express and unanimous agreement of all the clubs participating in the competition". The plan still requires approval from UEFA, US Soccer, CONCACAF and ultimately FIFA before LaLiga President Javier Tebas can realise his long-held ambition of taking Spanish football to the U.S. (Reporting by Fernando KallasEditing by Christian Radnedge)
New Straits Times
2 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Calls to boycott American goods grow in India
FROM McDonald's and Coca-Cola to Amazon and Apple, United States-based multinationals are facing calls for a boycott in India as business executives and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's supporters stoke anti-American sentiment to protest against US tariff. India, the world's most populous nation, is a key market for American brands that have rapidly expanded to target a growing base of affluent consumers, many of whom remain infatuated with international labels seen as symbols of moving up in life. India, for example, is the biggest market by users for Meta's WhatsApp and Domino's has more restaurants than any other brand in the country. Beverages like Pepsi and Coca-Cola often dominate store shelves, and people still queue up when a new Apple store opens or a Starbucks cafe doles out discounts. Although there was no immediate indication of sales being hit, there's a growing chorus both on social media and offline to buy local and ditch American products after President Donald Trump imposed a 50 per cent tariff on goods from India, rattling exporters and damaging ties between New Delhi and Washington. McDonald's, Coca-Cola, Amazon and Apple did not immediately respond to Reuters queries. Manish Chowdhary, cofounder of India's Wow Skin Science, took to LinkedIn with a video message urging support for farmers and startups to make "Made in India" a "global obsession", and to learn from South Korea whose food and beauty products are famous worldwide. "We have lined up for products from thousands of miles away. We have proudly spent on brands that we don't own, while our own makers fight for attention in their own country," he said. Rahm Shastry, chief executive officer of India's DriveU, which provides a car driver on call service, wrote on LinkedIn: "India should have its own home-grown Twitter/Google/YouTube/WhatsApp/FB — like China has." To be fair, Indian retail companies give foreign brands like Starbucks stiff competition in the domestic market, but going global has been a challenge. Indian IT services firms, however, have become deeply entrenched in the global economy, with the likes of TCS and Infosys providing software solutions to clients world over. On Sunday, Modi made a "special appeal" for becoming self-reliant, telling a gathering in Bengaluru that Indian technology companies made products for the world but "now is the time for us to give more priority to India's needs". He did not name any company. Even as anti-American protests simmer, Tesla launched its second showroom in India, with Monday's opening attended by Indian commerce ministry officials and US embassy officials. The Swadeshi Jagran Manch group, which is linked to Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party, took out small public rallies across India on Sunday, urging people to boycott American brands. "People are now looking at Indian products. It will take some time to fructify," said Ashwani Mahajan, the group's co-convenor. "This is a call for nationalism, patriotism." He also shared with Reuters a table his group is circulating on WhatsApp, listing Indian brands of bath soaps, toothpaste and cold drinks that people could choose over foreign ones. On social media, one of the group's campaigns is a graphic titled "Boycott foreign food chains", with logos of McDonald's and many other restaurant brands. In Uttar Pradesh, Rajat Gupta, 37, who was dining at a McDonald's in Lucknow on Monday, said he wasn't concerned about the tariff protests and simply enjoyed the 49-rupee coffee he considered good value for money.
