The French stock market policeman announced on Tuesday that he had validated the takeover bid (OPA) for Olympique Lyonnais shares filed by Eagle Football, the holding company of multimillionaire John Textor.
The Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) “declared the takeover bid compliant” on the same day as the National Control and Management Directorate (DNCG) confirmed on appeal the measures to regulate the wage bill and Club transfer fees. The AMF will soon communicate the precise timetable for the offer, according to a press release.
Eagle Football proposes to buy back some 21.4 million shares, or 12.19% of the capital, at a price of 3 euros per share, ie a maximum total amount of 64 million euros.
The AMF specifies that Eagle Football does not intend, as initially announced, to withdraw OL from the Paris Stock Exchange following this operation.
Olympique Lyonnais went under the American flag last December, when its takeover by multimillionaire John Textor and his holding company Eagle Football was finalized, after six months of negotiations and several postponements.
The entry of Eagle Football at that time to just over 77% of the capital of OL Groupe represented a historic turning point for the L1 club, chaired for 35 years by Jean-Michel Aulas.
Eagle Football had undertaken at the end of June 2022 to acquire all of the shares and half of the Osranes (bonds convertible into shares issued to finance the construction of Groupama Stadium) held by Holnest, the Aulas family holding company, plus all of the shares held by Pathé and the Chinese investment fund IDG Capitals. It also subscribed to an 86 million euro capital increase by OL Groupe.
Jean-Michel Aulas, historical figure of the club, was dismissed on May 5 from his position as CEO in favor of John Textor. He was appointed honorary chairman and must remain a director as long as his Holnest holding company holds voting rights and shares in the company.
Holnest has undertaken not to sell the nearly 14.5 million shares of OL, or 8.23%, which Mr. Aulas’ company still holds.
On Tuesday, the owner of Olympique Lyonnais, John Textor, regretted the decision of the DNCG. “Welcome to football in France!” he quipped in a statement.
