Luís Filipe Vieira wanted to sell Benfica to a Russian fund
Luís Filipe Vieira and José António dos Santos negotiated with a Russian fund to sell 25% of the SAD, but the deal fell through.
When former Benfica president Luís Filipe Vieira and José António dos Santos tried to sell 25% of Benfica SAD shares, they didn’t turn first to American John Textor. The businessmen negotiated with a Russian fund and even had a trip booked to Russia, but the deal ended up failing, according to Record.
The businessmen had advanced the sale attempt because Benfica was going to make a takeover bid (OPA) on the SAD shares for € 5 each, information that led António dos Santos to buy securities to sell them later at a higher price. However, the takeover bid did not go ahead, but the businessman still bought 25% of SAD to sell later.
For this sale, there were negotiations with a Russian fund, but which ended up not working out. After that, talks began with John Textor, a businessman from the USA. However, the arrest of the then-president Luís Filipe Vieira ended up compromising a possible acquisition.
