Olympique Lyonnais demoted to Ligue 2
French club Olympique Lyonnais on Tuesday were relegated to Ligue 2, after an audit by the French football financial watchdog DNCG.
Lyon, who finished sixth in Ligue 1 last season, were provisionally demoted by the DNCG in November for financial mismanagement and the decision was confirmed on Tuesday.
Lyon are owned by John Textor and the decision to relegate them comes a day after the U.S. businessman sold a 43 per cent stake in English club Crystal Palace.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
3 hours ago
- CNA
Boss Lage urges belief in Benfica as they stun Bayern to top Club World Cup group
Benfica manager Bruno Lage urged fans to have more faith in his team after they pulled off a surprise 1-0 victory over Bayern Munich on Tuesday to secure top spot in Group C at the Club World Cup. Andreas Schjelderup's 13th-minute goal sealed the win to put Benfica top of the group with seven points, one ahead of the Bundesliga champions. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT After a 2–2 draw in their opener against Boca Juniors and a shaky first half in a 6–0 win over Auckland City, Benfica earned their first win in 14 official matches against Bayern Munich. With their first-place finish at the revamped FIFA tournament, the Portuguese league runners-up are set to face either Chelsea or Esperance de Tunis in the round of 16. KEY QUOTES Lage: "We went into this game with a lot of confidence. The first half was very good, we created the best chances to score. We wanted to be aggressive and we finished first in the group and the feeling is good. "We finished first and it means a lot for us. People need to believe more in the work we are doing. They were speaking about Boca needing to win by a lot of goals (to advance) and they forgot about this game. No one believed we were going to win against Bayern. "We have a very good group, we are evaluated every three days by the result, but when we win we are not the best and when we do not win we are not the worst. "Now we have to stay humble, recover, rest as much as possible, understand who our opponents will be and go into the game with the same ambitions."
Straits Times
5 hours ago
- Straits Times
Seven-times French champions Lyon relegated to Ligue 2
Olympique Lyonnais have been relegated to Ligue 2, French football's financial watchdog (DNCG) said on Tuesday following an audit of the club, which said it would appeal the decision immediately. Lyon were provisionally demoted by the DNCG in November due to the poor state of their finances and the decision was confirmed on Tuesday after a meeting between club owner John Textor and the DNCG. The club criticised the decision in a statement on Tuesday and said it had worked closely with the DNCG, satisfying all their requests. "Olympique Lyonnais takes note of the incomprehensible decision handed down by the DNCG this evening and confirms that it will appeal immediately," the club said. "With demonstrated funds and sporting success that has earned us a place in European competition two years running, we sincerely fail to understand how an administrative decision could relegate such a great French club." The decision to relegate Lyon comes a day after U.S. businessman Textor sold a 43% stake in English club Crystal Palace. "Thanks to the equity contributions from our shareholders and the sale of Crystal Palace, our cash position has improved considerably and we have more than sufficient resources for the 2025/26 season," the Lyon statement added. In October, Textor's Eagle Football Group revealed debts totalling around 422 million pounds ($574.85 million), raising concerns about the French club's financial stability. Since then, Lyon have raised funds by offloading several players, including Maxence Caqueret to Como and Rayan Cherki to Manchester City. The club, however, have been unable to convince the authorities that their financial situation has improved enough to have the sanctions lifted. The 59-year-old Textor gave a positive assessment of their financial position prior to the decision being announced. "You can see from the contributions of our shareholders, we have invested new capital, not only for the DNCG, but also for our UEFA licensing process. Not to mention the good news of the sale of Crystal Palace. Our liquidity situation has improved considerably," he told reporters earlier on Tuesday. Lyon, who were crowned French Champions seven times between 2002 and 2008, qualified for next season's Europa League following a sixth-placed finish in Ligue 1. Should the decision stand, Stade de Reims, who were demoted from Ligue 1 in the relegation playoffs after losing to Metz, will take Lyon's spot next season in the French top tier. Neither Reims nor French football's governing body (LFP) was immediately available for comment. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
CNA
5 hours ago
- CNA
Seven-times French champions Lyon relegated to Ligue 2
Olympique Lyonnais have been relegated to Ligue 2, French football's financial watchdog (DNCG) said on Tuesday following an audit of the club, which said it would appeal the decision immediately. Lyon were provisionally demoted by the DNCG in November due to the poor state of their finances and the decision was confirmed on Tuesday after a meeting between club owner John Textor and the DNCG. The club criticised the decision in a statement on Tuesday and said it had worked closely with the DNCG, satisfying all their requests. "Olympique Lyonnais takes note of the incomprehensible decision handed down by the DNCG this evening and confirms that it will appeal immediately," the club said. "With demonstrated funds and sporting success that has earned us a place in European competition two years running, we sincerely fail to understand how an administrative decision could relegate such a great French club." The decision to relegate Lyon comes a day after U.S. businessman Textor sold a 43 per cent stake in English club Crystal Palace. "Thanks to the equity contributions from our shareholders and the sale of Crystal Palace, our cash position has improved considerably and we have more than sufficient resources for the 2025/26 season," the Lyon statement added. In October, Textor's Eagle Football Group revealed debts totalling around 422 million pounds ($574.85 million), raising concerns about the French club's financial stability. Since then, Lyon have raised funds by offloading several players, including Maxence Caqueret to Como and Rayan Cherki to Manchester City. The club, however, have been unable to convince the authorities that their financial situation has improved enough to have the sanctions lifted. The 59-year-old Textor gave a positive assessment of their financial position prior to the decision being announced. "You can see from the contributions of our shareholders, we have invested new capital, not only for the DNCG, but also for our UEFA licensing process. Not to mention the good news of the sale of Crystal Palace. Our liquidity situation has improved considerably," he told reporters earlier on Tuesday. Lyon, who were crowned French Champions seven times between 2002 and 2008, qualified for next season's Europa League following a sixth-placed finish in Ligue 1. Should the decision stand, Stade de Reims, who were demoted from Ligue 1 in the relegation playoffs after losing to Metz, will take Lyon's spot next season in the French top tier.
