The high command of the red and black Atlas, who together with Santos Laguna administratively depend on Grupo Orlegui, officially announced that the franchise of this Jalisco squad was put up for sale through a process led by Moelis and Company, ADS and Weil, Gotshal and Manges LLP.

The corporate decision is intended to step aside from the timeshare that caused Club Leon to be expelled from the Club World Cup because it has the same organizational mechanism with the Tuzos del Pachuca through the business group of the same name.

For this reason, the Orlegui Group, headed by businessman Alejandro Irarragorri, who is a fugitive from justice due to irregularities in the fulfillment of his tax obligations before the Tax Administration Service (SAT)

This business group decided to keep only Santos Laguna and put Atlas in the hands of the highest bidder for an amount that oscillates $400 to $500 million dollars (approximately $9.3 billion pesos), leaving the way open to listen to offers for the Zorros to change owners.

For this reason, they made the decision that the sale process will be headed by a company with headquarters in the United States, which will be in charge of analyzing the proposals and fine-tuning all the details so that the operation can be carried out as soon as possible.

The above was announced through a press release by "Orlegui Sports" which states the following: "Orlegi Sports has initiated a process to explore a planned and structured transition in the operation of Atlas FC, with the objective of ensuring continued growth under a group that understands the relevance, context and potential of the club, both in sporting and social”

“This process will be carried out responsibly and in full compliance with the agreements established with Liga MX. To this end, Orlegi Sports has hired Moelis and Company, ADS and Weil, Gotshal and Manges LLP, to advise you on transaction and transition options"

Interested parties

So far, there have been no reports of any interested parties in taking over the administrative destinies of Atlas, although recently, the former president of the Mexican Football Federation, Alberto de la Torre, head of a business group, showed interest in acquiring the franchise.

The truth is that it will be the North American company that announces the list of interested parties and carries out the entire purchase and sale process of the popular Guadalajara team that was crowned two-time champion in 2020 under the command of Argentine Diego Cocca, whose journey with the Atlas players was marked by several refereeing collaborations.

The negotiation process will be carried out by the aforementioned American company in order to not complicate the mechanism for changing owners and that Orlegui directors only remain in charge of managing Santos Laguna.

The announcement of the sale of Atlas coincides with the recent purchase and sale of the Gallos Blancos de Queretaro to the North American group Innovatio Capital, led by businessman Marc Spiegel, who negotiated with Grupo Caliente, which manages the largest betting houses in Mexico and has the teams Xolos Tijuana in the Liga MX and Dorados de Sinaloa in the Liga Expansion.