Outfield e Ingresse querem R$ 500 mi para antecipar bilheterias do futebol

Outfield Ventures, a sports-focused manager, is raising a new fund of up to R$ 500 million to pre-empt soccer club ticket revenues and shareholder program receivables, injecting crucial capital into club coffers at a time when the sector is suffering from the ban on betting. The fund is being created in partnership with Ingresse, a ticketing company that operates ticket sales for 10 Série A clubs, including Grêmio, Botafogo, Fortaleza, and Bahia.

Outfield already has R$ 100 million in commitments from two independent managers, one from one of Brazil's largest banks, and several multi-family offices. The goal is to reach between R$ 300 million and R$ 500 million in the coming months. This is the sixth fund focused on soccer from Outfield. Last year, the manager raised R$ 100 million for FIDC Futebol, which anticipates receivables from clubs, including revenue from ticket sales, shareholder programs, television broadcasting, player sales, and sponsorship.

Outfield also has a FIDC focused solely on pre-empting São Paulo's receivables, another for Corinthians, and two vehicles targeting legal claims. "The FIDC Futebol is doing very well, but we understand that the ticketing strategy is so big that it deserves an exclusive product for it," said Felipe Araújo, Outfield's credit manager.

The timing of the pitch appears favorable. "Since there has been a huge revenue decline for clubs with the betting ban, other revenues become even more relevant. And ticket revenue is a growing one that can be worked on better. By improving the customer experience in the game or in the purchase, for example, you can increase ticket sales and also increase the club's numbers."

Felipe explains that the fund's credit risk is low because the ticket sale money passes through Ingresse's platform and lands directly in the fund's coffers - without going through the club's account. The partnership with Ingresse also allows for visibility of the ticketing history, such as knowing that over the last 10 years this club has earned an average of R$ 50 million per year in ticket revenue, whether at the top of the table, at the bottom, or after being relegated.

Initially, the fund will only work with the 10 clubs that are already Ingresse partners. Over time, the goal is to expand this client base of Ingresse - using the anticipation as a selling point. Ingresse's contracts with the clubs last 5 to 10 years, but the fund's operations have a median term of 12 to 18 months - allowing capital to be recirculated throughout the contract's duration.

Felipe explains that it's very difficult to make longer operations than that due to the risk clubs have of being demoted - which directly impacts ticket and shareholder revenue. For Ingresse, the fund is an evolution of a business they had been doing already. "Soccer clubs constantly need working capital, and it's very common for them to seek these partnerships with ticketing companies," said Gabriel Benarrós, Ingresse's CEO.

"We were already doing a little of this in an artisanal way, but we decided to seek a more professional financial product." According to him, Ingresse started with their own capital, then raised a generalist FIDC (which antedated receivables for clubs, not just soccer, but also for shows and entertainment events), and now decided to capture this soccer-focused fund together with Outfield.