Bordeaux apply for bankruptcy after failed takeover talks with Liverpool owners

President Gerard Lopez has been unable to turn around the Ligue 2 club’s fortunes

(AFP via Getty Images)

Bordeaux have filed for bankruptcy just days after they were relegated to the third tier of French football after Liverpool FC’s owner withdrew from takeover talks, the former Ligue 1 club said on Thursday.

As one of the country’s top few clubs by trophies, it marks a sour note in French sport just as the country prepares to host the Olympics in Paris.

Earlier this month the six-times French champions were demoted from Ligue 2 by the National Directorate of Management Control due to financial concerns.

Once Liverpool’s parent company, Fenway Sports Group (FSG), pulled out from takeover talks, it effectively ended the club’s survival hopes.

“It’s a difficult decision that anticipates an inevitable consequence of the restructuring process underway,” the club said in a statement. Earlier, they had also insisted that the demotion would allow them to “come back stronger and at the highest level”, after FSG opted against further talks with the club.

Bordeaux will also abandon their professional status they have held since 1937 and close their renowned training academy, which has helped to develop players such as Bixente Lizarazu, Jules Kounde, and Zinedine Zidane.

President Gerard Lopez previously owned another French club Lille, before buying Bordeaux three years ago. He also runs Portuguese club Boavista and had involvement in Formula One with Renault through his Genii Capital investment firm.

Bordeaux were formed over a century ago in 1920 and won the most recent of their six top-flight titles in 2009. They reached the Champions League quarter-finals the following season, while they were also Uefa Cup runners-up in 1996, losing in the final to Bayern Munich.

Bordeaux were previously in administration in 2021 due to financial struggles and last year finished mid-table in the second tier under the management of head coach Albert Riera - coincidentally a former player for both the French club and Liverpool.

Additional reporting by Tommy Lund for Reuters