He bought several teams this summer, including two teams in Europe. There are two targets: clubs failing financially by buying up debts and clubs in regions with a large fanbase potentially.
Hence the investments in stadiums. Buying or building a stadium for these clubs makes it possible not to share the ticketing. The idea is to make the club auto-dependent.
Most teams are in lower divisions so as not to spend too much money to buy or build a stadium.
The first purchase is in Tanzania. Why Tanzania, a country relatively backward in Africa? Tanzania is a rich country with many investment opportunities. Then interests: América Mòvil is considering expanding its activity, and Africa is a possible extension place. Carlos Slim also loses nothing by investing.
Sportingly speaking, the Tanzanian championship is not the best in Africa, but they are often in major competitions. Dar es Salaam is the best-known city in Tanzania, but the capital is Dodoma.
The government has moved its premises to Dodoma in recent years. An airport is under construction, and many administrative buildings have been constructed. The president insists on making Dodoma a real capital.
In this emerging city, Hector bought a local club, Polisi Dodoma, with talks for constructing a stadium in the city center and a training center worthy of the best in Africa within two years. The total cost was $15.5 million. (33,000,000,000 TZS)
The Tanzanian Football Association sees the strategy favorably, and so does the government. Even if the two big clubs of Tanzania, Simba FC and Young Africans, located in Dar es Salaam, are competitive in Africa, ahead of Maghreb clubs, they are not the weight in all areas.
The financial power behind Hector will attract better players, so there are more chances to have titles. The training center will train young Tanzanian players, and why not hope for the first World Cup qualification in their history?
He first recruited a lot of trainees. For what? Not knowing the level of African analysts, he decided to train internally. The same goes for recruiters. Some are recruited from all over Sub-Saharan Africa, in contrast to analyst trainees who are all from Tanzania.
Then the acquisition of a Paraguayan club, the Guarani Club. It serves more support to Santos Laguna, but Hector's investments are minor at first because it is not his priority.
Sportingly, Belgium is the first strategic point. Belgian football is a financial abyss, and it is in this abyss that Hector has invested.
The Koninklijke Atletiek Associatie Gent (literally: Royal Athletic Association of Ghent), commonly called and abbreviated as KAA Gent in Dutch and La Gantoise in French, was acquired by Hector.
They have the advantage of owning their stadium. The debts have been paid off, and Hector must ensure he has a viable environment to not depend on him. The training center being correct, he has yet to do any renovation and intends to change the staff in early 2024.
Its principal places of action are first in Wales. He became the sole shareholder of the Newport County club. They are a Welsh club playing in the fourth tier of the English football league system. The construction of a 27,000-seat stadium is in advanced negotiations with the architects and the regional council.
The stadium will meet the standards required in the Premier League. The goal is to reach the Premier League within eight years. The stadium should be finished by that date.
Having a Premier League and even Championship team is beneficial for any investor. Even if Newport is in Wales, there will be differences, but this one will be minimal.
Hector is ambitious but has yet to be in a hurry. Waiting and delegating things to specialists is his strategy. He is an NBA player first and foremost and does not know precisely the gears of English football. He decided to wait before taking matters into his own hands.
But for the second club, he will do everything again immediately.