Mumbai City confirms exit of majority stakeholders City Football Group due to ISL's uncertainty

New Delhi, Dec 26 (PTI) Mumbai City FC on Friday confirmed that City Football Group, which held a majority stake in the club, has divested its entire shareholding to the founding partners of the Indian Super League franchise in the wake of the uncertainty over the ISL's future.

City Football Group owns several top clubs worldwide including English Premier League giants Manchester City.

The Mumbai-based ISL side's full ownership will now return to the founding partners, Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor and businessman Bimal Parekh.

"Mumbai City FC (the Club) can confirm that City Football Group Limited (CFG) has divested its shareholding in the Club. The founding owners will assume full control of the organisation moving forward," the club said in a statement on its social media handles.

"Since 2019, CFG and Mumbai City FC have reached new heights, winning two ISL League Winners’ Shields and two ISL Cup titles, strengthening the Club’s football operations, and making meaningful contributions to the growth of the game in India." The City Football Group (CFG) acquired a 65 per cent stake in Mumbai City FC in 2019. Mumbai City FC are one of the most successful teams in the history of ISL, winning four titles, which includes two League Winners Shields and two ISL Cups.

The CFG said that the decision followed a comprehensive commercial review and was shaped by the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the ISL.

"CFG has made this decision following a comprehensive commercial review and in light of the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the future of the Indian Super League (ISL). This step reflects CFG’s disciplined and strategic approach, ensuring its focus remains on areas where it can have the greatest long-term impact," it said.

"CFG remains proud of the achievements and deeply appreciative of everyone connected to Mumbai City FC -- from players and coaches to staff, fans, and partners -- for their commitment and passion, and looks forward to continuing its relationships and partnerships in India in the years ahead." Indian domestic football plunged into chaos after FSDL -- the organisers of the ISL -- informed the All India Football Federation (AIFF) in July that it was keeping the country's top-tier league on hold due to a lack of clarity over the renewal of the 15-year Master Rights Agreement (MRA) which ended on December 8.

Under the supervision of a Supreme Court-appointed committee, a tender was floated for ISL's commercial rights but found no takers.

On December 20, a proposal from 10 ISL clubs for "perpetual" operational and commercial ownership of the country's top-tier competition failed to get the approval of the AIFF's General Body, which formed a committee to look into the matter. PTI PDS PDS AT AT