Yunfeng Capital, an investment fund backed by Jack Ma, the executive chairman of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, and Chinese conglomerate HNA Group are among the four remaining contenders to acquire a stake in Imagina, the operator of Spanish agency Mediapro.
Spanish news website El Confidencial reported that venture capital funds Advent International and Pamplona Capital Management are the other two contenders.
In December, it was reported that 10 entities were in contention to acquire a stake of up to 51 per cent in Imagina.
Mediapro has domestic rights to LaLiga and also markets international rights to the top Spanish football division.
Yunfeng has linked up with buyout firm Centerbridge Partners in an attempt to strike a deal, while HNA has teamed up with Bank of America Merrill Lynch in negotiations, according to Bloomberg.
Mediapro has said that the agreement would allow it to restructure its funding and lead to the cancellation of a €155m ($165m) syndicated loan signed a year ago, as well as a €98m derivative-based funding instrument.