Chinese investors buy 13 pct stake in Man City group

Manchester City announced Tuesday that a Chinese consortium is investing $400 million to buy 13 percent of the Premier League club's umbrella organization in a deal that values the business at $3 billion. Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan bought City in 2008 for around $400 million and since then the club has expanded to create the City Football Group that includes teams in New York, Melbourne and Yokohama. China Media Capital Holdings and CITIC Capital are investing in the group after six months of talks and the deal remains subject to regulatory approval in some countries, City said. City's injection of funding comes after Chinese President Xi Jinping visited the club during a four-day state visit to Britain in October. During Xi's visit, former City defender Sun Jihai, who made 130 appearances for the club between 2002 and 2008, was inducted to the Manchester-based National Football Museum's Hall of Fame. He was also appointed a club ambassador in China in September.

Though long overshadowed in Manchester by the more illustrious United, City's value as a business is now closer to its neighbor following the Chinese investment. United, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, is currently valued at $3.05 billion.