In recent years, the news has been nothing but bad for malls.

With the rise of Amazon and other online shopping options, consumers have skipped treks to the sprawling malls that dot the American landscape, preferring to click-and-shop from the comfort of home. Struggling to adapt, the stores that once lined the interiors of malls, from RadioShack to The Limited, filed for bankruptcy. Then, department store giants like Sears, J. C. Penney and others — long the reliable anchors of malls everywhere — began shuttering properties at a fast and furious pace.

But now, a megadeal is signaling that there may still be life after all in the American mall — especially the luxury version. On Tuesday, the European property company Unibail-Rodamco said it had agreed to acquire the Westfield Corporation for $15.7 billion.

For Unibail-Rodamco, which is based in France and has a bevy of glitzy shopping centers across Europe, including Le Forum Des Halles in Paris, the deal means a significant foothold in the United States — one defined by a number of trophy mall properties, including Westfield Century City on the west side of Los Angeles and the shopping center at the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan.