Struggling Volkswagen Considers Selling Stake in Football Clubs

Volkswagen, the German automaker currently undergoing massive restructuring to cut costs, is considering selling its stakes in professional Bundesliga football clubs, the investigative media outlet Correctiv reported on July 1 (local time).

The report stated that the Volkswagen Group is reviewing plans to sell its shares in Bayern Munich (8.3 percent) and Stuttgart (10.4 percent), held through its subsidiaries Audi and Porsche, while also reducing related advertising budgets.

Volkswagen acquired its stake in Bayern Munich for 90 million euros (approximately 158.9 billion won) in 2009, and its stake in Stuttgart for 45 million euros (approximately 79.5 billion won) in 2023.

If the stakes are sold, the name of the Stuttgart home stadium, MHP Arena—named after the group's management consulting firm MHP—could also be changed.

Volkswagen currently spends over 100 million euros (approximately 176.9 billion won) annually on advertising by sponsoring the German national team and several Bundesliga clubs.

A source stated that the group plans to retain its stakes in clubs based in Wolfsburg (second division), where the group headquarters and core Volkswagen brand factories are located, and Ingolstadt (third division), where Audi is headquartered, citing their social significance.

VfL Wolfsburg is a group-owned club that originated from a football team of Volkswagen factory workers in 1945.

Correctiv reported that the stake sale has not been finalized, and the company plans to evaluate the potential loss in advertising effectiveness should it withdraw from the football scene.

Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume is reportedly set to present a restructuring plan to the group's supervisory board on July 9, which includes cutting 100,000 of its 657,000 jobs worldwide and closing four additional factories.

This plan more than doubles the scale of the 2024 restructuring agreement with labor unions, which involved cutting 35,000 jobs in Germany and halting car production at two plants.

Amid fierce opposition from the German labor sector and political circles, Volkswagen has declined to comment on the additional restructuring plans.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.