SINGAPORE – Peter Lim, the Singaporean billionaire owner of Valencia CF, is set to bring his Spanish La Liga football club to Singapore for the first time since he took over the club in May 2014.

TODAY understands from several well-placed sources in Spain that Valencia — bought over by Lim with a controlling 70.4 per cent of shares owned by the club’s foundation in a €420 million deal (S$657 million) —could be here as early as June.

Talks in Spain are that a Singapore stopover has been drafted into the club’s pre-season schedule, which will take place in the June-July period. The 2015-2016 Spanish football season ends on May 15.

Although it was initially thought that Singapore’s National Day Parade (NDP) preparations —stretching from the period of June to August — will deem the 55,000-­capacity National Stadium unavailable to host Valencia in their pre-season tour, there is a window of time that the venue will be available before it is used for NDP rehearsals.

In response to TODAY’s queries, the club’s commercial and marketing director, Peter Draper, said an announcement can be expected in the middle of next month.

“We’ve been exploring possibilities to bring the team to Singapore and those considerations are ongoing. We hope to say something more about this in mid-March,” said Draper, who will be in Singapore next month.

Local football may also benefit from the club’s trip. Discussions with the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) on possible collaborations, support and assistance for its national footballers and youth developmental programmes are ongoing, said Draper.

Draper had told TODAY when Valencia set up their first overseas office and Asian headquarters in Singapore last July that “putting down our roots in local organisations” and “embedding ourselves in the local football scene” are important objectives for the club.

Responding to queries, a Sports Hub spokesman said: “We’re constantly in discussions with various event organisers to bring world-class and new events to excite Singapore’s communities.”

Valencia — with a young team this season — is considered one of the most successful clubs in Spanish football. Their trophy collection ­includes six La Liga titles, seven ­Copa del Reys and one UEFA Cup. 
The club was on the brink of bankruptcy before Lim took over in 2014. He had then promised to clear the debt, finance the construction of a new stadium, and turn the club’s fortunes around.

The third-most supported club in Spain, behind Real Madrid and Barcelona, Valencia — who have former Manchester United captain Gary Neville as their head coach — are currently 12th in the 20-team Spanish Primera Liga. Valencia had been struggling this season. But the club registered their first league win two Saturdays ago under Neville, with the 2-1 win over Espanyol his first win after 10 games in charge.

On Thursday, Valencia also trounced Rapid Vienna 6-0 in the first leg of their Europa League last-32 tie at the Mestalla, with the 5-0 lead at half-time a competition record.