14 hours ago
3
By Hong Duy  February 21, 2025 | 10:00 pm PT
Vinicius Jr. bites the gold medal to celebrate the Champions League title with Real Madrid, after the final victory over Dortmund 2-0 on June 1, 2024. Photo by Reuters
Vinicius Jr., one of Real Madrid's biggest stars, has made his first major step into football club ownership by purchasing a majority stake in Portuguese club Alverca.
The deal, conducted through a partnership with Spanish and Brazilian investors, sees Vinicius and his group acquire approximately 70-80% of the club's shares from former owner Ricardo Vicintin, according to Brazilian TV channel Record.
While financial terms of the transaction remain undisclosed, Alverca confirmed on its official website that Vicintin sold his qualifying stake to the new investor group.
Matheus Ornelas will continue as CEO of Alverca until the end of the 2024-2025 season, with additional details about Vinicius' co-investors set to be revealed in the coming weeks.
Alverca, based in a suburb of Lisbon, have long maintained ties to Brazilian football, regularly signing players from South America. The club is currently second in the Liga Portugal SABSEG, the second division of Portuguese football. They are just two points behind leaders Tondela, and on track for promotion to the top flight league Primeira Liga next season.
This move is similar to an investment earlier in the season by Vinicius' Real Madrid teammate, Kylian Mbappe. The French superstar purchased a majority of stake in French club Caen for US$22 million, positioning himself as the youngest football club owner in Europe.
Vinicius, who joined Real Madrid in 2018, has become a key figure for the club, scoring 101 goals in 295 appearances and winning 14 major titles, including two Champions League.
His current contract with Madrid runs until 2027, with a reported salary of $22 million per season, making him one of the highest-paid players at the club alongside Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe.
