Singaporean tycoon Peter Lim, owner of Primera Division club Valencia has secured the image rights of Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo.
Superstar Ronaldo, banked a reported £50 million (€70m) last year in salary, bonus and endorsements, making him the highest-paid team athlete, according to American business magazine Forbes.
A statement from Ronaldo’s official website read: “I am very excited to announce my latest deal with Mint Media, owned by my good friend, businessman Peter Lim from Singapore, to acquire my image rights. “This is a very strategic move for me and my management team to take the Cristiano Ronaldo brand to the next level, especially in Asia.”
Mint Media is a Hong Kong-based company owned by Lim, who 13 months ago acquired a 70.4% stake in Valencia.
It is the second football story of the week around Peter Lim with reports earlier quoting that Phil Neville would be joining the coaching staff at Valencia. Lim and Neville know each other through business ventures, Lim owns a 50 per cent stake in non-league side Salford City, which was purchased for an undisclosed price in March by Ryan Giggs, Neville and fellow United luminaries Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Gary Neville.
Peter Lim has also become a joint partner in the £20 million (S$41.3 million) Hotel Football project owned by former Manchester United stars Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville.
