April 10 (Bloomberg) -- Valencia is considering becoming the first Spanish soccer team to sell shares to investors following public offerings by Italy's Juventus and France's Lyon, President Juan Bautista Soler said.

``We could become stock-market listed; it's a possibility, that's where the future is,'' Soler, a property developer who owns 33 percent of the club, said in an interview. ``There are a lot of investment funds that want part of their portfolio in sports.''

Valencia, the last remaining Spanish club in Europe's Champions League this season, is in a better position to sell shares than Real Madrid and Barcelona because its bigger rivals are owned by their fans and have repeatedly rejected the possibility of having their shares publicly traded. Valencia lost to London's Chelsea today and missed out on a place in the semifinals of Europe's richest club competition.

Soccer's unpredictability -- Valencia's Spanish title in 2002 was its first in 31 years -- has deterred some investors from the sport. Since Juventus raised $129 million in December 2001 in the sport's biggest public offering of the past decade, the stock has halved in value partly because the team was ejected from Italy's top league for its part in a match-fixing scandal.

Lyon became the first French team to hold an IPO in February this year, raising $115 million after the government lifted restrictions on clubs sharing dividends. The shares of its parent company, OL Groupe SA, have declined 16 percent from the offer price as the team failed to advance to the Champions League quarterfinals.

`Risky Investment'

``Valencia could be a risky investment in the medium term,'' said Alberto Espelosin, a strategist at Zaragoza, Spain- based Ibercaja Gestion. ``The stock's performance will ultimately depend on how well it plays and whether it makes it to the Champions League.''

Valencia is currently fifth in Spain's top division, too low to qualify for next season's Champions League. It generated 14.5 million euros ($19.4 million) in revenue from reaching the 2004-05 quarterfinals, equivalent to 17 percent of annual sales.

Soler said Valencia directors weren't yet studying the offering plan ``seriously.'' Valencia would be an attractive bet for investors, he said. Bloomberg's Eurokick index of soccer stocks, including teams from Scotland's Celtic to Turkey's Galatasaray, has rallied 15 percent in the past 12 months.

``We've read some studies about what the value of Valencia would be and it was impressive,'' Soler said, without giving details. ``It's one of the Spanish clubs with the most assets.''

Stadium Expansion

Valencia, a two-time Champions League finalist which won the last of its six domestic titles in 2004, plans to lift revenue by building a 75,000-seat stadium and developing a new training center. It was the world's 19th-richest soccer team in 2004-05, according to accountancy firm Deloitte & Touche LLP. Real Madrid was the richest, and Barcelona was ranked sixth.

``Valencia is a good team but it's not the unquestionable leader in Spanish football,'' Ibercaja Gestion's Espelosin said.

Soler, 51, said he expects 100 million euros from the sale of real estate around the training center outside Valencia. He bought the land in 2004. The project is in the final stages of approval by the regional government, he said.

The new stadium, with 20,000 more seats than Valencia's 84- year-old Mestalla arena, will increase sales by doubling the number of season-ticket holders and providing 140 VIP boxes, Soler said. The plans were unveiled in November.

`Europe's Elite'

``We intend the new stadium to keep us among Europe's elite,'' Soler said. ``It can't just be beautiful and used every two weeks. It has to produce returns.''

Valencia expects to report a 10 million-euro loss for the year to June 30, 2007, better than a budgeted deficit of 30 million euros, partly because of the team's Champions League run, Soler said.

This season's quarterfinalists have already made at least 11 million euros in prize money alone and will get a further 3 million euros by reaching the last four. Excluding ticket sales and other commercial spinoffs, Barcelona made 30 million euros by winning the competition last season.

Valencia drew 1-1 at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge in the first game of their quarterfinal on April 4. Today at the Mestalla, it lost 2-1 on a last-minute goal by Michael Essien.

Valencia has no plans to sell top-scoring striker David Villa, who joined from Real Zaragoza in 2005, even if a rival club were to bid 40 million euros, Soler said. He got 25 goals in 35 league games last season and has 11 in 27 matches this term.

``Valencia is a buying club, not a selling club,'' Soler said. ``An elite club in Europe can't release one of its stars.''

To contact the reporters on this story: Alex Duff in Madrid at aduff4@bloomberg.net; Ricard Alonso in London at ralonso3@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: April 10, 2007 16:55 EDT