The City Football Group are adding a ninth club to their global portfolio after agreeing to buy Belgian second division club Lommel SK.
It means Manchester City could be given a boost in their bid to discover the next Kevin de Bruyne or Vincent Kompany.
Lommel have a reputation for producing young players and the CFG chief executive Ferran Soriano pointed to the talent in Belgium, with Roberto Martinez’s national team currently top of the Fifa rankings after reaching the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup.
Lommel, who have an 8,000-capacity stadium and who finished sixth in the Belgian second flight, will become the third European members of the CFG along with Premier League champions City and Girona FC, who play in the Spanish second division.
Their partner clubs are New York City FC in the United States, Australia’s Melbourne City, Japan’s Yokohama F. Marinos, Chinese club Sichuan Jiuniu, Montevideo City Torque in Uruguay and Mumbai City in India.
Soriano said: “Belgium is one of Europe’s best football countries as demonstrated by the success of the national team and the development of world-class players, some of whom we know very well, like Kevin de Bruyne and Vincent Kompany.”
Kompany became the most successful captain in City’s history during his 11-year stay in Manchester while De Bruyne is likely to win the club’s player of the year award this season.
And Soriano added: “This investment is part of our long-term strategy to be present in key football countries, play beautiful football and develop talent. We were attracted to Lommel’s culture, training facilities and commitment to youth development and we look forward to learning from their approach and helping the club to evolve in the months and years ahead.”
Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed is the majority owner of the CFG, though the Chinese conglomerate CMC has a 12 per cent share and the American equity giant Silver Lake a 10 per cent stake.
CFG are acquiring a majority stake from the Lommel not for profit foundation and their chief executive Paul Kerkhofs will chair the club’s new board.
He said: “We are delighted that City Football Group has chosen to acquire Lommel and ensure the future of our club. We are extremely impressed with their philosophy, track record and approach and look forward to working together to take the club forward.”
Lommel mayor Bob Nijs added: “Lommel SK is an incredibly important part of our community. In City Football Group we have an ambitious, stable and reliable partner, which is committed to developing young players and will help the club to grow and succeed in the future. It is excellent news for the club and for the city.”
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ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
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2 Kuwaiti teams
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Sustainable Development Goals
1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere
2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation
10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
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12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects
14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development
