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F1 governing body welcomes Liberty Media investment – Metro US

F1 governing body welcomes Liberty Media investment

F1 governing body welcomes Liberty Media investment
Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) – Jean Todt, the head of Formula One’s governing body which has to approve any takeover of the sport, said on Thursday he looked forward to working with new owners Liberty Media and welcomed the U.S. company’s investment.

The International Automobile Federation (FIA) said in a statement that it had not been involved in negotiations for Liberty to acquire Formula One’s parent company from CVC Capital Partners.

It added that it awaited more information about the deal and wanted “to discuss with all parties the possible consequences of this agreement on the promotion of the FIA’s flagship championship.”

Todt, a former Ferrari team principal, said the FIA welcomed the long-terminvestmentby a company with extensive interests in sport, media and entertainment.

“Weacknowledge Liberty Media’s wide expertise in these fields and we look forward to working in close partnership withthemin the future in order to further develop Formula One and bring it to new generations of motor sport enthusiasts around the world,” he said.

Liberty Media has acquired an initial 18.7 percent stake from CVC and plans to compete a cash and shares deal by the first quarter of 2017.

The company is owned by U.S. mogul John Malone, whose 40 years of dealmaking in the cable and pay-TV industry have earned him the nickname the “Cable Cowboy”.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Toby Davis)