French hotel chain Accor has expanded its presence in Brazil ahead of the World Cup in 2014 and Olympic Games in 2016 with the £180m acquisition of Mexican hotel chain Grupo Posadas, which has 11 Brazilian properties. Overall, the deal sees 2,600 Grupo Posadas hotel rooms in 15 hotels (and a further 2,000 rooms in another 14 hotel development projects) transfer to Accor, which has not said how it will brand its new purchases.

The four non-Brazilian properties are in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Santiago, Chile. Sofitel, Pullman, Novotel and Mercure already represent Accor in the continent, while Grupo Posada’s current stable includes Caesar Park and Caesar Business hotels. In total, Accor now has 200 hotels (34,000 rooms) in South America, which includes 164 (26,200 rooms) just in Brazil, and, worldwide, more than 4,400 hotels and 530,000 rooms in 92 countries.

Denis Hennequin, Accor’s chairman and chief executive officer, said: “With its strong financial position and now a structurally generating cash model, the Accor Group, through this acquisition, records another success and confirms its ambitious expansion plan.”

The news follows Accor’s 22 May deal to purchase Australasian company Mirvac Hotels & Resorts.

Pictured: Denis Hennequin, Accor’s chairman and chief executive officer