Real Madrid scrapped its planned USD1 billion soccer themed resort in the United Arab Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah. This was after the organizer of the project defaulted on payments, according to the club. The Luxembourg based organizer, RAK Marjan Island Football, had a licensing agreement with Real Madrid for the project. However, the project was cancelled after payments were defaulted with no provided guarantees. This was according to a financial report distributed by Real in Madrid yesterday.
Chief Executive Officer Louis-Armand de Rouge of RAK Marjan Island Football did not return calls by Bloomberg News seeking statement.
Real Madrid, the world's most affluent soccer club said last year that it was lending its name to a proposed resort in the UAE. The resort would include retail properties, a football training academy, residential properties, a marina, a 10,000-seat stadium and a 450 room five star hotel. The project was said to be completed by 2015 on the 40 hectare manmade Marjan Island.
VTB Capital Plc analyst Digvijav Singh yesterday said, "It's very hard to raise finance domestically let alone internationally for those projects. To me, it was just a matter of time before the project was called off as the interest was just not there."
Join the Conversation