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The so-called “closing” marked the completion of Porsche AG’s acquisition of shares. In the coming years, the company will also play a major role as a VfB Stuttgart sponsor and in the club’s youth academy.
As announced in June 2023, Porsche AG is initially acquiring a 5.49 per cent share in VfB Stuttgart 1893 AG. All necessary documents and agreements have been carefully reviewed and approved by the relevant authorities and institutions, including the German Federal Cartel Office and the German Football League (DFL). A second tranche of 5.2 per cent will follow in June 2024, after which VfB Stuttgart e.V. will hold 78.2 per cent of shares. Mercedes-Benz Group AG and Porsche AG each hold 10.4 per cent, with Jako AG holding a one per cent stake in VfB Stuttgart 1893 AG. In the coming years, VfB Stuttgart intends to sell the remaining 3.9 per cent in accordance with the Articles of Association through a further increase in capital, which would lead to a dilution of shares belonging to existing investors in accordance with their shareholding.
As part of their investment, Porsche will also be given two seats on the VfB Stuttgart 1893 AG supervisory board. Lutz Meschke, deputy chairman of the board and member of the board for finance and IT, and Albrecht Reimold, member of the board for production, will assume these positions.
Claus Vogt, president and chairman of the supervisory board, said, “We’d like to welcome Porsche to our VfB family and are very much looking forward to working together. With Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and Jako, we have strong partners at our side who are rooted in the region and in VfB, and from whose experience and expertise we’re going to benefit. I’d like to thank everyone involved in our goal-oriented discussions. Our CEO Alexander Wehrle and head of marketing Rouwen Casper in particular deserve great credit for their role in forging this unique alliance alongside Porsche’s head of finance, Lutz Meschke.”
Alexander Wehrle, CEO of VfB, said, “The Württemberg global brand alliance is now formally complete. Getting Porsche and MHP on board is a historic step that gives us room for manoeuvre and stability in the long term. We’ll use this to ensure a sustainable future for VfB and develop the club further. We’re very grateful to Porsche and our current partners Mercedes-Benz and Jako for the trust and enthusiasm with which they’re embarking on this collaboration with us. I’m also fully confident that other strong companies from our region will want to be part of VfB’s shared history in the coming years.”
Lutz Meschke, deputy chairman of the board and member of the board for finance and IT at Porsche AG, said, “With MHP as holders of the stadium’s naming rights, and our colleagues and partners from Mercedes-Benz and Jako, we want to play our part in ensuring VfB’s future is as bright as possible. With two seats on the supervisory board, we want to be pro-active in contributing our expertise and developing something together. We share a great tradition with VfB Stuttgart. Through this long-term commitment, Porsche wants to play a bigger role in the Stuttgart region, in which both parties are deeply rooted. Our youth development programme, under the motto “Turbo for Talents”, is also about social issues – we want to support young players in both their sporting and personal development while teaching them values such as team spirit, fairness, respect and passion.”
Turbo for Talents and Porsche Tunnel Club
As well as becoming an investor, Porsche AG is also set to play a major role as a VfB Stuttgart sponsor. Porsche will be given prominent visibility at the MHP Arena from the second half of the current season onwards, including naming rights of the new exclusive business area in the main stand – the so-called Tunnel Club, which is unique in Europe. As part of its Turbo for Talents programme, Porsche has also been the main partner of VfB’s youth academy since the beginning of the season, thereby supporting not only elite-level sport but grassroots sport at the club. The wide-ranging partnership also involves Porsche being displayed on the sleeves of VfB jerseys as well as the training tops of VfB’s youth sides from the U21s to the U11s.
Rouven Kasper, VfB board member for marketing and sales: “Through its wide-ranging sponsorship commitment, Porsche is taking on a leading role among our partners and bringing all areas of our collaboration to life. By taking on the naming rights of the Tunnel Club, Porsche is underlining its ambition to be a modern and innovative luxury brand as well as taking on responsibility for our youth and talent development. All in all, it’s a very strong package which we want to put into practice together in the coming years, both domestically and internationally.”
