Financial Issues Force 6-Time French Champions Bordeaux To Go Semi-Pro
Wolfsburg in Germany. AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands. And
Football Club des Girondins de Bordeaux in France. The 2008/09 season threw up a few unexpected national champions that haven’t won their respective titles again since.
It’s almost impossible to imagine one of these national champions 15 years ago not only being relegated to their third tier but also having to remove their professional status. Yet that’s the case for Bordeaux.
FC Girondins de Bordeaux was formed 104 years ago in 1920 and is the sixth-most successful club in French history with six national titles. However, a series of financial issues has culminated in the club plunging to a new low over the summer.
A History of Financial Struggles
This is far from the first financial challenge that Bordeaux has faced. Back in 1992, the club was relegated to the second tier due to administrative issues. But an immediate promotion and the emergence of talents like Zinedine Zidane, Bixente Lizarazu, Christophe Dugarry and Sylvain Wiltord saw the club win the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 1995, come runner-up to Bayern Munich in the UEFA Cup in 1996 and win their fifth title in 1999.
Another financial challenge arose in April 2021, caused by the double blow of lower revenues through the Covid pandemic and the bankruptcy of TV rights holder Mediapro. That forced Bordeaux into administration as US owners King Street revealed it couldn’t support the club financially.
Three months later, the club was acquired by Boavista owner and former Lille owners and Lotus F1 team president Gérard Lopez. However, Bordeaux finished bottom of Ligue 1 in 2022, which meant relegation to Ligue 2 for the first time since 1992. The club was subsequently forced into administrative relegation to the third tier due to its financial situation, but it won an appeal and was reinstated to Ligue 2 for the 2022/23 campaign.
Just two years later, a familiar story has seen Bordeaux sink to new lows. The club finished 12th in Ligue 2 last season but financial issues saw it administratively relegated down to the third-tier Championnat National. A failed appeal means the club has to go semi professional, which will see its players’ contracts terminated and its training centre closed down.
Earlier this month, it looked like Bordeaux's lifeline could be coming its way. Fenway Sports Group, the owners of English giants Liverpool, was in talks to purchase the club from Lopez. But negotiations fell through this week, meaning Bordeaux lacked the finances to compete in tier two and had no choice but to drop into semi-pro tier three.
The club then issued the statement: “While discussions had resumed in recent days, FSG representatives indicated yesterday, Monday July 22, to Bordeaux and its shareholder their desire not to follow through despite the assurances provided by various stakeholders.
“Therefore, in the absence of new elements, Bordeaux withdrew the appeal lodged against the decision of the DNCG. As a result, Bordeaux accepts the sanction of administrative demotion to the Championnat National for the 2024–2025 season and will be summoned again to present its budget to the DNCG.”
Life In Tier Three
Bordeaux drop into the third-tier Championnat National alongside several other former Ligue 1 sides, including Dijon, Nancy, Sochaux and Troyes. How well they’ll fare will depend on how many players they can hang on to, but there’s no doubt the club’s name will attract new players.
However, it remains to be seen whether Bordeaux will be able to stay in their current stadium, the 42,115-capacity Matmut Atlantique or how their financial situation will affect the club over the next few months. But it has certainly been a dramatic fall from grace for one of France’s biggest clubs.
