Park Bench takes over Bordeaux for a symbolic euro
Investment fund Park Bench officially completed its takeover of Girondins de Bordeaux on Wednesday, ending five years of crisis under owner Gerard Lopez. The sale agreement, announced by the club, includes a takeover “for a symbolic euro with the debt included.” Businessman Dominique Delport, a former M6 editor-in-chief, is set to become the club’s new president.
Since Lopez bought the club in 2021, months after being pushed out of Lille over financial mismanagement, every close-season has revolved around an uncertain hearing before the DNCG financial watchdog. A 2024 insolvency filing had already cost the club its professional status. This summer, Park Bench’s absence from the DNCG appeal hearing on 15 July sealed Bordeaux’s relegation to the sixth tier.
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Debt cut in half
Park Bench, owned by Britons James Bord and Jeremy Green along with American Evan Sofer, negotiated the club’s debt down to 13 million euros from 26 million. The fund reached agreements with the main creditors: Fortress, the French state (wage guarantee fund, tax authorities, social security), and former coach Vladimir Petkovic, who had been seeking around 15 million euros through a labor tribunal claim. Park Bench has also committed to paying September’s wages on time.
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A return to action targeted for October 17
Two approvals are still needed: the Bordeaux commercial court must ratify the new 12-year continuation plan, and the regional league committee in Nouvelle-Aquitaine must confirm the change of ownership. If both clear, Bordeaux could join the fifth-tier Regional 1 division and kick off on 17 October against Bayonne’s reserve team, with five rounds to catch up on. Former left-back Benoit Tremoulinas, who came through the club’s academy and retired in 2019, has been linked with a free return to the squad managed by Arnaud Cormier.
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