From their visit to the brand new premises of the professional football league, the senators first remember the luxurious “lifestyle” of its leaders, while French football threatens to sink into an unprecedented financial crisis since the Covid-19 pandemic. The senatorial commission of inquiry into the financialization of football visited the headquarters of the LFP and its commercial subsidiary LFP Media this Thursday, for an inspection “on documents and on site”, as authorized by the investigative powers it has within the framework of the control mission of parliamentarians.
Initially planned before the summer period, this control was postponed to avoid interfering with the re-election of the president of the LFP, Vincent Labrune, on September 10. The league was finally notified at the beginning of the week, “because we wanted the people we wanted to hear to be present”, indicated the rapporteur of the commission of inquiry, LR senator Michel Savin, during a press conference given in the middle of the day. The elected officials notably questioned the two general directors and the financial and administrative directors of the two structures.
They were able to obtain all the documents they requested, and underline the LFP’s willingness to cooperate. At this stage, however, the commission of inquiry has not yet been able to analyse them.
“There is a contrast between the lifestyle of the league and the financial situation of the clubs”
In the spring, the Senate launched a commission of inquiry into the intrusion of an investment fund, CVC Capital Partners, into the capital of LFP Media, the commercial company of the Professional Football League. The agreement provides for the sale of 13.04% of the shares of the commercial company held by the league in exchange for 1.5 billion euros, the LFP seeking to bail itself out after the Mediapro fiasco in 2020.
In the meantime, the award of Ligue 1 broadcasting rights to the British DAZN and beIN Sports, for a total amount of 500 million euros over the period 2024-2029, far from the amounts initially envisaged, has sparked strong criticism and many questions from elected officials. “The figures for the marketing of audiovisual rights in recent weeks are closer to the Slovenian championship than to the English league,” mocked Laurent Lafon, the chairman of the Senate Committee on Culture, Education, Communication and Sport.
“The amount of TV rights, much lower than what the clubs knew, plunges them into significant difficulties. On average, for Ligue 1 clubs, it is a 50% drop in their income,” points out the senator. “There is a contrast between the lifestyle of the league and the financial situation of the clubs. This situation is striking,” adds Michel Savin, mentioning in particular Vincent Labrune’s salary.
Too high salaries
The amount of the LFP president’s remuneration has tripled since he took office, going from 400,000 euros to 1.2 million euros gross annually, to which is added a bonus of 3 million euros. Part of this sum was re-invoiced to the commercial company of the Professional Football League. Barely re-elected, Vincent Labrune nevertheless committed to lowering his remuneration.
“This compensation was set at a time when the league was forecasting sharply rising revenues. […] It remains obvious that the new situation, which is not temporary, must be accompanied by an awareness on the part of the leaders”, believes Laurent Lafon who calls for “the introduction of a form of ethics”. “There is an increasingly large gap between the leaders of professional football and those who make it live every day, the supporters. For us, this gap is no longer bearable”.
Hiring almost doubled
Another point of concern for elected officials: the significant increase in the payroll in recent months. “A lot of recruitment has been carried out in two years, between 2022 and 2024, the workforce of the entire LFP and LFP Media has increased from 77 to 137 permanent employees. At the same time, this payroll has increased from 7 to 17.5 million euros,” explains Michel Savin. “It is a worrying contrast between the increase in staff, the increase in the payroll and, at the same time, the sharp decrease in revenues linked to the sale of TV rights.”
With the new headquarters, the LFP leaders saw themselves as very handsome, very tall
Symbol of this contrast for the senators, the acquisition in 2023 of a new headquarters in the very affluent 17th arrondissement of Paris, opposite Parc Monceau. “Acquiring a new headquarters for an amount of 131 million euros in a context of uncertain financial visibility regarding the evolution of TV rights, such a large purchase, which weighs on the operating costs of the league, questions us,” says Michel Savin.
“We wanted to see how things were organized inside. The general director insisted a lot on the notion of shared space between the league and the clubs. It’s not only the offices of the league and its commercial subsidiary, but there are also a whole bunch of spaces reserved for the clubs. We needed to see, on site, how these square meters were used in these beautiful Parisian neighborhoods,” explains Laurent Lafon.
“These premises are perhaps part of the madness that gripped the league’s leaders two years ago. They saw themselves as very beautiful, very big. […] Today we can question their merits,” adds the chairman of the Senate Committee on Culture, Education, Communication and Sport.
At this stage, the Senate inquiry committee has heard from around forty people, but most of those questioned have called for the hearing to be held behind closed doors, “a fairly rare occurrence, and quite significant of the atmosphere surrounding professional football”, the parliamentarians note. The conclusions of their work will be delivered by the end of October, but they are already calling on the league and its leaders to change their software to avoid “a shipwreck”.
“The league must quickly undertake fundamental reforms on its governance, its operation, its transparency, its lifestyle and the changes to be implemented,” insists Michel Savin. “It is urgent that French football stops living beyond its means and returns to professional governance!”
