Ligue 1 leader Lille sold to investment fund
Gerard Lopez has sold Ligue 1 leader Lille to Callisto, a subsidiary of the Merlyn Partners investment fund, a source close to the club revealed on Saturday (AEDT).
The new owner has installed Olivier Letang, a 48-year-old former sporting director at Paris Saint-Germain and president of Rennes, as chief executive.
Lopez, a Spanish-Luxembourgish businessman, bought Lille from Michel Seydoux in January 2017.
It finished 11th that season, dropped to 17th the next year, but has since finished second and fourth.
This season it leads the league after 15 matches and has progressed from the group stages of the UEFA Champions League for only the second time in its history, achieving it for the first time in 2006.
"I have achieved my goal and I believe that it is now time for a new owner to take over and for me to concentrate on other sporting endeavours," Lopez said via a statement issued by the club.
Lopez also leaves the club deeply in debt.
He borrowed more than €225 million ($362 million) from Elliott Management during his first months in office. He was pushed towards the exit by the American investment fund, to which he had repaid less than half of this sum.
"Given the recent difficulties in Ligue 1 and in particular the uncertainty surrounding the TV rights contract for the French championship, it is important that the LOSC is owned by a reputable owner with recognised financial strength such as Merlyn," Lopez said.
Luxembourg-based Merlyn said in the statement that it focused on "long-term" investments in European assets.
It said Lille's "outstanding debt will be significantly reduced and new equity will be injected into the club".
Merlyn said it had hired Letang as chief executive because it wanted "to build a new, experienced and strong leadership within the club".
Under Letang, Rennes beat PSG in the French Cup final in 2019 for its first trophy in 48 years. When Letang left the club in February, saying it was against his wishes, Rennes was third in Ligue 1. It ended the coronavirus-curtailed season still in third, its highest top-flight finish.
He is a former second division midfielder, who was described by former colleagues as a workaholic and an unyielding but highly competent boss. He has a reputation for feuding with the coaches he hires.
"My intention is for the club to reach its full potential and I will ensure that LOSC is well managed from a sporting and financial point of view," Letang said in the Lille statement.
