French football club, Olympique Lyonnais (Lyon) has been notified of a provisional demotion to Ligue 2 at the end of the current season unless urgent measures are taken to rectify their financial situation.
Additionally, Lyon will be under a transfer ban, preventing them from signing new players during the upcoming January transfer window.
Lyon’s financial troubles are closely tied to their owner, John Textor, who is also co-owner of English Premier League club Crystal Palace and a major stakeholder in Brazilian club Botafogo.
Recently, his Eagle Football Group revealed a staggering debt amounting to £422 million, raising alarms about the sustainability of the company’s football-related ventures.
The ruling was made public by the DNGC (Direction Nationale du Contrôle de Gestion), the regulatory body responsible for monitoring the financial health of professional football clubs in France, during an official announcement on Friday.
As part of the oversight measures, Lyon will be subject to increased scrutiny regarding their payroll and financial operations by the DNGC.
Lyon who used to be dominant in French football, with seven league titles, currently sit fifth in Ligue 1 and hold ninth place in the Europa League standings.
However, the club’s celebrated history is now overshadowed by the grim reality of needing to sell several key players in the upcoming transfer window to stabilize their finances and avert demotion from the top tier of French football.
While discussions are ongoing regarding potential remedies, reports suggest that Textor could explore options such as selling his stake in Crystal Palace or offloading players from Botafogo to help alleviate the financial burden.
The club now faces a race against time to restore their financial integrity and maintain their position in Ligue 1 as the season progresses.