- Eagle Football now owns 77.49% of shares in Lyon
- Textor planning tender offer for remaining unowned shares and bonds
- American commits to being ‘supportive and meaningful partner’ for Crystal Palace
US businessman John Textor (pictured left) says the completed takeover of French top-flight outfit Olympique Lyonnais will be a ‘milestone’ in European soccer, as the multi-club group run by his Eagle Football Holdings grows further.
The Facebank founder had been in discussions to buy a significant stake in the Ligue 1 club for several months, with the acquisition undergoing several delays until a final deadline was set in early December. Lyon have now confirmed that Eagle Football has acquired 77.49 per cent of the shares in the French outfit, with the company committing to increasing the team’s capital by €86 million (US$91.4 million).
The deal, alongside the capital increase commitment, values the club’s equity and debt at about €884 million (US$939.4 million). Eagle Football plans to make a tender offer for the remaining shares and bonds it currently does not own, while the club’s long-time president Jean-Michel Aulas is to join Eagle Football as an independent director.
Lyon now becomes the fourth club affiliated with Eagle Football, joining English top-flight outfit Crystal Palace, of which Textor is the single largest stakeholder, as well as Brazilian side Botafogo, and Belgian club RWD Molenbeek. In a statement, Textor said: ‘Today represents a new beginning for Olympique Lyonnais.
‘Eagle Football… intends to quickly implement collaboration across its clubs notably in France, Brazil and Belgium, reliant on training and development methodologies of Olympique Lyonnais, a reference in the field.
‘Of course, we will continue to be a supportive and meaningful partner at Crystal Palace as we hope our global footprint of talent development can be a collaborative asset to all of our Eagle-affiliated clubs and communities.’
Despite recent struggles seeing the men’s team currently sit eighth place in Ligue 1, Lyon remain one of France’s biggest clubs, with the women’s team among the most successful globally, having won a record eight Uefa Women’s Champions League titles.
SportsPro says…
According to The Athletic, Textor has prioritised a multi-club ownership model for some time, believing the system represents the only way to compete with soccer’s richest sides. Lyon join Nice and Toulouse as French clubs operating in such a model, but the Groupama Stadium-based outfit are by far the most historically successful of the three.
However, it will be interesting to see how Lyon fits into Eagle Football’s model. The French club are used to competing for titles, but juggling the needs of Lyon against Premier League outfit Crystal Palace will be a tough task. While Lyon’s path to European competition is perhaps more straightforward, the financial rewards on offer in the English top flight are significantly greater.
Most multi-club groups have a clear top team. With Eagle Football, prioritising resources, succession planning and finding a cohesive strategy across Textor’s collection of clubs will not be so straightforward.
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