The financial policeman of French football severely punished Lyon for its debt by deciding on Friday to control its payroll and a ban on recruitment in the winter transfer market.
The National Directorate of Management Control (DNCG), which had interviewed the club in the afternoon, also decided to “demotion as a precautionary measure at the end of the current sporting season” of OL, currently 5th in Ligue 1, according to a press release from the Professional Football League (LFP).
The American John Textor, owner of the club, had nevertheless assured on Friday that he was not “at all worried about the sustainability“from the company that oversees Olympique Lyonnais, after his audition in Paris.”I am confident in our numbers“, “we will bring in several hundred millions of cash in the coming months“, according to statements sent to AFP by the club. The businessman, who bought OL from Jean-Michel Aulas in 2023, assured that the LFP body had looked “the complete picture” of the parent company Eagle Football Holdings, which also owns the clubs Botafogo in Brazil and RWDM. Last week, its French branch published income statements which plunged supporters into doubt. Despite a reduction in its losses net, the net cash debt of Eagle Football Group remains at 463.8 million euros To clear them, the company is banking on cash inflows coming in particular from Botafogo and Molenbeek, but, considering that he does not have sufficient elements to judge the character “reasonable” of these hypotheses, the auditors indicated that they might not certify the accounts. In July 2023, the DNCG had already taken measures to control the payroll and transfer compensation.
