As anticipated, despite the “economic patriotism” sentiments proclaimed by its Mayor, the winds of globalization have reached Nice football and its glorious club, which is now under Chinese ownership.
Will the “Nissart” anthem Nissa la Bella, sung by fans before every match as a sign of loyalty, be replaced by the Chinese anthem, evocatively named “The March of the Volunteers”?
In fact, it was really the good will that led Jean-Pierre Rivรจre to invest and involve himself in the club when decline seemed inevitable.
Today, faced with financial challenges that require a stronger financial backbone, he prefers to gradually hand over control by becoming the manager of a Sino-American investment group that will inject around 20 million into OGCN for 80% of the capital.
Jean-Pierre Rivรจre will remain a shareholder with 20% after selling 31%, while the other minority shareholders will completely exit the group.
Even though the answers to questions posed during a press conference introducing the quartet of new investors were hesitant, it was understood that the transactions were made at their face value, meaning that the former shareholders did not gain a profit from selling their shares.
Forgetting a failed takeover by an Anglo-Saudi duo, the Gym is preparing to enter a new era that should allow it to remain competitive and especially become much more attractive.
In their presentation, the four shareholders (who did not disclose whether they were acting as a single entity or separately) particularly highlighted the strategic intent to develop the OGC Nice brand in international, notably Chinese, markets.
Chien Lee, based in Miami, and Alex Zheng, a native of China, gave the impression of being the two main figures in the quartet, are associated in the hotel and tourism business, while Paul Conway, an American also from Miami, and New Yorker Elloit Hayes are expected to act as strategic advisors.
As already mentioned, operational management will remain in the hands of Jean-Pierre Rivรจre and Julien Fournier, but more information regarding the club’s governance will be officially announced in the coming weeks.
In any case, a typically Anglo-Saxon approach of the investors has already been observed: the shareholders do not manage but choose managers to successfully implement the strategy decided by them in order to maximize the investment.
Qiร ngfรฉhg! (Issa!)
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