The US Lone Star Fund last week announced its need to attract €1 billion in investment from foreign companies willing to develop the 18 new new sites in the Vilamoura area, and former international footballer Luís Figo has offer to lend them a hand.
"We have a vision for the 'new Vilamoura', a plan and an ambition that we want to be at the forefront of tourism in Portugal," said Paul Taylor, the executive chairman of Lone Star’s ‘World Vilamoura.’
"Vilamoura, which is eight times larger than Monaco and even bigger than the City of London," but smaller than Wales, will within five years be "a leading resort in Europe" according to the rallying cry.
The Lone Star Fund has spent €200 million aquiring the site but does not want to spend any more of its shareholders’ money in developing the project.
Paul Taylor says they are looking for investors from countries such as China, India and the Middle East as well as Europe, USA "and of course not forgetting the Portuguese."
In steps Figo, footballer turned businessman who has a restaurant in Vilamoura marina and has offered his services to publicise the development and to help raised the billion euros needed.
Figo’s restaurant and leisure business partner, Paulo Tong Tam, said "We believe in investing in this fund to help Vilamoura, which stood still under the Spanish (former owners) who did nothing here."
Luís Figo, according to his partner, also is a kind of ambassador with know-how and contacts to help Lone Star in its mission to attract investors to Vilamoura from around the world.
"Luis no longer plays football, he will now play tourism," according to Tam.
The 2014 Scolari tax evasion story included allegations of a series of ‘massive bungs’ to Luís Figo, international player and ex-manager of Portugal.
Figo was implicated in the covert use of offshore accounts and cash payments as investigations into failed bank BPN unearthed tax evasion tactics used by the bank's rich and famous clients, many of them politicians.
See also: http://www.algarvedailynews.com/news/2342-scolari-and-figo-in-massive-bung-probe
