International law firm Bird & Bird has advised Six Nations Rugby, the organiser of the Six Nations Championships[1] and the Autumn Internationals, on a private equity investment by CVC Capital Partners (CVC).
The investment deal is part of a strategic partnership with CVC and will provide the Unions who participate in the Six Nations Championship - the Rugby Football Union (RFU), the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU), the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU), the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU), the Federazione Italiana Rugby (FIR) and the Fédération Française de Rugby (FFR) - with a long term investment payable over a number of years. The investment will provide a platform for Six Nations Rugby and the Unions to grow the game on a global scale, including not only the Six Nations Championship, but also other competitions such as the annual Autumn Internationals series of international rugby union matches. The investment will also help support and develop the women’s game, as well as the national club and grassroots games in the various territories of each Union.
The Bird & Bird team advising on the deal was a cross-practice collaboration of the firm’s renowned Media, Entertainment and Sport sector group and its Corporate and Commercial practice groups across the UK, France and Italy. The team included Media, Entertainment and Sport partners Craig Giles, Max Duthie and associates Matt Hanson, Richard Bush and Will Deller (London), partner Matt Bonass, senior associate Richard Bloomfield and associate Richie Lamb (Corporate, London), partner Rebecca O’Kelly-Gillard and associate Katie Tyndall (IP, London), partner Zoe Feller and associate Andrew Rink (Tax, London), counsel Daniele De Angelis (IP, Milan) and partner Alexandre Vuchot (Commercial, Paris).
Craig Giles, partner at Bird & Bird comments on the deal: “We were delighted to support Six Nations Rugby and the Unions on this important transaction for the rugby industry. It demonstrates the Bird & Bird team’s deep expertise both in the sport sector and advising on major corporate transactions, particularly those with an international element. The partnership with CVC will provide a tremendous platform for growth for the Six Nations Championship, the Autumn Internationals and professional rugby in the Northern Hemisphere as a whole, as well as valuable support for the club and grassroots game.”
Max Duthie, partner at Bird & Bird and client relationship partner for Six Nations Rugby, comments: “This deal is another example of Bird & Bird’s expertise in advising on major private equity investments in sport, and follows our very recent work for the PRO14 on a similar investment from CVC. Six Nations Rugby is a long-standing client and we have had the pleasure of advising them on many regulatory and commercial issues over several years. We look forward to continuing that relationship, and seeing how the partnership with CVC will benefit the Six Nations Championship and all of the stakeholders in the game.”
[1] Guinness Six Nations Championship, Women’s Six Nations and Under-20’s
