Bordeaux: The Shocking Collapse of a Football Giant

Introduction It was the massacre of the club It was stolen, pillaged, and defiled It’s madness A club with more than 140 years of history was destroyed in just 6 years It's like a part of us is collapsing I set my bags down in Bordeaux Call: President of the Girondins de Bordeaux I immersed myself in the surreal chaos that one of France's greatest clubs is currently experiencing Former players, supporters, club employees, journalists, a writer Shared with me their sorrow, their anger, and their hopes for the future of a giant now on the brink Bordeaux is the story of a centenary club crushed in just a few years by the cynicism of football business How could such a monument of French football collapse in such a short time? What future lies ahead for the Girondins? And why does a similar trajectory threaten other French clubs? Bordeaux, at the heart of chaos: an investigation by SAMOS TV Bordeaux : un géant à l'agonie French radio: 'Bordeaux will play in the fourth division' The club is dead, it's over Why a video about the Girondins? Because it seemed important to me. Bordeaux is one of the most decorated clubs in France When I was young, I have incredible memories of the Champions League Iconic players: Pauleta, Cavenaghi, Chamakh, Gourcuff So it's important to understand what happened And also because it tells us something about French football and many historic clubs So I dug into this topic, trying to meet as many people as possible to be as thorough as possible We'll explore the city, wearing the jersey—let's go! I have the navy blue, as I'm wearing today, deep within me Alain Giresse, Bordeaux history top scorer I believe joining the Girondins de Bordeaux was one of the best decisions of my life Most capped player, top scorer in the club's history. How do you feel today, seeing Bordeaux starting their season in 4th division? We are astonished, and all we can do is cry. It's infinitely sad You can't imagine I was very, very sad. I went to the club store not long ago, and when I left, I started crying You can't imagine it if you knew the club as it was Very bad. I have tears in my eyes, but you can’t see them behind the glasses We went through a difficult summer I'm deeply affected by this situation I also feel anger towards the people inside the club and how they managed it But now, it feels like everything is destroyed, everything is ruined There's a training session open to the public today We've got a meeting with Laurent Brun Who has been following the Girondins for over 40 years, so it's going to be really interesting to talk with him Laurent Brun, freelance journalist and author for 20 years We've had a bit less work in recent months... Samos : or more, depending on how you look at it! I'm sad because it's a catastrophe We're not only dealing with sports here: it's about human aspects, economic issues, and more We need to think about all those employees' families who are without news And all the people who were laid off and are still hurting from everything that's happening. Five tough years to endure Today, there were former players: Jimmy Briand and Rio Mavuba There are still a few former players here L'ère américaine When did the turning point, the beginning of the decline, happen ? Well, five years ago, I think we started to sense the first signs 'It's a chapter closing' The owners have decided to enter negotiations to sell the club to an American investment fund We decided to enter negotiations for a sale to the Americans Why? Because the budget we were allocating didn't allow us to go beyond 5th place So, we found the Americans, who are willing to take more risks After 19 years at the helm of the Girondins de Bordeaux With one Ligue 1 title, one French Cup, three League Cups and 13 European seasons The M6 Group, despite having managed the club healthily but with financial losses Decided to part ways with Bordeaux Two American investment funds, GACP and King Street, then bought the club in 2018 for 100 million euros A good deal for M6 group, but less so for Bordeaux The problem with those who came in didn't know anything about it I met with the president at the time, and when you think that these are the people who are going to run the club, it’s scary And that was the breaking point Because right from the first year, this entity adopted a very extravagant policy in terms of payroll They blew up the payroll from the start With the rhetoric that they wanted to compete with PSG A risky bet that quickly proved to be a losing one Player salaries skyrocketed, but the results did not follow They increased this structural deficit, but the resources didn't grow Because the club did not qualify for European competition As a result, the deficit became astronomical By 'astronomical,' we mean a deficit of 70 million euros in just two years King Street, the main financial shareholder, then took over the club from GACP and appointed Frédéric Longuépée to steer the drifting ship 'Football clubs are institutions that deserve respect' Longuépée, who did not understand what Bordeaux was 'We’re going to change the logo, it will no longer be Girondins de Bordeaux but Bordeaux Girondins' It's as if suddenly Real Madrid were called Madrid Real There are things you cannot touch When you start messing with a club's symbols, it's the beginning of the end! Is it from that moment that we lost the local Bordeaux connection in the club? Yes, absolutely The former players from the youth academy were sidelined Through all the conversations I had during my investigation What really stood out was that it had always been a very family-oriented club Employees could have lunch with the players, attend training sessions Partners could also come And all of that was lost with the arrival of the Americans, who decided to segment everything The players got their own cafeteria to avoid mixing with the staff because the management feared leaks of information So the club closed in on itself and lost the connection that had been its strength So it’s 2020, two years since the Americans arrived They made mistakes that cost the club a lot of money But something is about to happen that isn’t their fault and which is going to worsen the situation significantly COVID and the drop in TV rights that dealt a further blow to the club And despite an austerity policy, which was encouraging but largely insufficient The debt of Bordeaux continued to grow The Americans saw that they were losing money and said, 'We’re stopping everything! L'ère Gérard Lopez And we come back to the takeover of the club by Lopez I thought, 'it can't get any worse,' even with all the negative feedback that had been circulating about him He had problems at Mouscron, at Boavista, and with the F1 team Lotus Before Bordeaux, Gérard Lopez was the owner of Mouscron in Belgium A club that has since disappeared due to bankruptcy He is currently the owner of Boavista, which narrowly avoided relegation due to financial problems He also bought LOSC in 2017 and was pushed out three years later after accumulating a debt of 120 million euros When we arrived at Lille after Lopez, the club was economically dead I'm surprised that they allowed him to buy a French club And when we see the situation of the club today, with the use of public funds It's beyond comment Serious doubts surround Gérard Lopez's arrival But the club, then under the protection of the commercial court, is in urgent need It's March 2021. To continue its operations, the club must find a buyer capable of filling the 30 million euro gap left by the Americans At the last moment, Gérard Lopez arrived And with his ability to restructure the debts He ultimately managed to convince the judicial administrator to take over the club He did so by acquiring the club for a symbolic 1 euro But he brought 10 million euros in capital at that time We're here for Bordeaux's first match in the 4th division It feels strange to say But right before, a gathering with the supporters is planned So we’re going to go there to talk with them I have three children, and I don't know what to pass on to them And it makes me very sad, really Can you tell me about Gérard Lopez's arrival and the three years that led to the current chaos? The major turning point of the G. Lopez era came quite quickly He took over a club that was already financially troubled and to turn it around Immediate sporting results were needed But that summer, the sporting decisions turned out to be disastrous And this risky approach was evident throughout Gérard Lopez's time at Bordeaux I'll spare you all the details, as it could take hours to recount Each transfer window, he made extensive signings and with salaries that were very high for the average in Ligue 1 However, the sporting results did not follow, so he started again And thus, inexorably, the club's deficit grew An infernal spiral that, in addition to creating a more than gloomy atmosphere within the club, led to what seemed inevitable And we know the ending: the team was relegated to Ligue 2 And the club didn't make any savings at all. So at that point, it was once again on the brink of the abyss In a short period, we went off the rails It's 2022 now After a disastrous season with a 20th place finish in Ligue 1, Bordeaux was relegated to Ligue 2 The club's financial plan was rejected by the DNCG, the financial watchdog of French football The Girondins was then on the brink of disappearing G. Lopez negotiated with the former owners to forgot the money they had reinvested in the club when he arrived At the time of Lopez's takeover, King Street had loaned money to him With all these elements—the partial debt forgiveness by the Americans The funds held in escrow by Lopez, Bordeaux was still alive But there was a stipulation for controlling the payroll, which prevented the club from recruiting for almost the entire month of August And ironically, these restrictions led to the best season for Bordeaux since the sale by M6. A cohesive, united team, with a renewed local connection represented by players from the youth academy The 2022-2023 season is very successful Bordeaux collapse at the last moment, and promotion to Ligue 1 eludes them once again Would it have really changed anything for the future of Bordeaux to get promoted to Ligue 1? I think it would still have been very difficult The deficit was there; that season, despite the restrictions, the club still lost 44 million euros It's worth noting that Lopez has never hidden his desire to find a financial partner, and it's certainly easier to sell a debt-laden club in Ligue 1 But with such debt, ever-increasing costs, and a significant drop in revenue from TV rights, the task was already very challenging We'll never know for sure, but what is clear—and this is a very important detail for understanding the current situation To ensure the survival of Bordeaux, Lopez wrote a personal check for 38 million euros in the form of a shareholder loan with hopes for a return under better conditions It was known that Lopez wouldn’t put 40 million euros every year, so there was a bit of a poker bluff Hoping he would indeed get promoted to Ligue 1 and find that partner plus TV rights revenue But ultimately, the budget ended up with a deficit of 42 million euros once again Les Ultras se chauffent Samos : You're expected there... La chute We're now in the summer of 2023. Bordeaux is about to start a new season in Ligue 2 After a previous season with a dramatic ending and a summer where the club's future was in jeopardy, Bordeaux completely falters at the start of the new season It quickly becomes clear that promotion to Ligue 1 will not be possible this year either By December, during the mid-season review by the DNCG Lopez announces that he is in advanced talks with financial partners who would invest in the club to provide the additional funds But that partner never materialized. Bordeaux finishedin a disappointing 12th place And unlike the previous year, Lopez did not cover the 42 million euro shortfall The club was administratively relegated to 3rd division The club then declared itself insolvent and abandoned its professional status FCGB was placed in judicial recovery And the behind-the-scenes reality came to light: a total debt amounting to 118 million euros To simplify, this is a somewhat desperate procedure with certain advantages: For a given period, creditors cannot sue Lopez to recover their debts Operations can continue, there is the possibility to renegotiate debt repayment by spreading it over time And it may also attract investors interested in joining the project by renegotiating the debts Lopez is banking on this last option But when a judicial recovery procedure is initiated, the regulation stipulates that the club is automatically relegated by one division So from third division to fourth Premier match en N2 Well, it's a behind-closed-doors match unfortunately We're among the lucky ones who are accredited for the game. Let's go see how it goes Can you see anything from here? We can't see the ball; we can only see part of the pitch Quel avenir pour Bordeaux ? And here we are today Only four teams remain in one of the biggest clubs in France, across all categories Employees will find themselves unemployed There's a rather telling anecdote: there's no more toilet paper at the training center It might sound funny, but it's actually quite surreal There’s a bit of a feeling of the club being left to rot It's not just a feeling, I think; it's a reality I've obviously tried to contact Gérard Lopez several times, but my calls and texts have gone unanswered No response, we'll try again I also reached out to the company handling his communications, but it's the same story—radio silence Samos leaves a voicemail We're trying; I don't think we'll get a positive response, but it would be interesting to hear back from Gérard Lopez Well, I know it was a bit dense, but I wanted to be as comprehensive as possible while trying to keep it digestible This sporting tragedy ultimately tells us a lot It reflects the evolution of French football, with more and more shadowy, impersonal investors and club management that is completely dehumanized We must realize that what is happening in Bordeaux is a terrible human tragedy I spoke with several club employees who are deeply affected mentally When I see that they didn’t inform anyone about closing the training center, it’s unbelievable They didn’t even bother to notify the kids From one day to the next, the kids found out through the press that it was over It caused a lot of damage to the kids, the parents, and everyone involved But the human aspect in these kinds of models doesn't exist anymore The women's team, which had very strong results before Lopez's arrival But saw its budget slashed to almost nothing, could also disappear in the coming days It's a human tragedy because, inevitably, all the employees are facing an upcoming social plan, and almost no one is expected to be retained They haven’t known what will happen to them The cleaning isn’t being done, the fridges are empty It’s a heartbreaking sight, with employees feeling a mix of despair, sadness, and anger There's still a gardener, so there's still some hope The goal isn't even to think about returning to Ligue 1 in the short or medium term, but to rebuild solid, serious foundations? The problem is that these people would need to change completely, and that’s where I struggle. I find it hard to believe These are people who clearly don't respect the club or its employees And from that point on, it's impossible to build a new chapter with them— it's just not possible In an open letter, Lopez expressed his desire to remain at the helm of Bordeaux He hopes for the arrival of an investor who would support the club financially It’s also a personal stake for him; there are 38 million euros in debt that he has written off but hopes to recover partially if the club moves up to Ligue 2, or if there’s a takeover of the club Some would prefer judicial liquidation The business and all its debts would disappear, and Gérard Lopez would be forced to leave But in addition to restarting at the regional level, this option would mean that many service providers would not receive the money the club owes them If liquidation occurs, these companies would forfeit their payments. For some, this represents a significant amount But do you truly believe in it? I believe that the Girondins are eternal It just takes the right management for them to thrive again For me, the Girondins de Bordeaux is a unique club; it’s my whole life It’s a magnificent, unique, and family-oriented club A great club never dies so I believe we will recover It will be difficult but we will be there! I have a friend, he couldn't come because he's 80 years old, but he will be there! I’ve shared what they’ve given me; it's not now, personally, that I’m going to turn away. No. I don’t even want to talk about it; it’s better to lock me away If we don't believe in it, we can't start writing the story again You're eager to just follow your club without thinking about the off-field issues ? Just focus on football and the sport itself, and nothing else. We just want to support our team peacefully and without concerns Thanks guys ! A socios project has been launched around the Girondins It’s called Girondins Socios, and I spoke with Charles Merle, the co-founder It's a very interesting project aiming to put supporters at the heart of the club's life and support a project with new buyers If you’re interested in learning more, I’ll leave the details in the description And if you enjoyed this video, don't forget to subscribe to the channel— it helps me a lot!