The destiny of the operator of Matmut Atlantique necessarily concerns the Football Club des Girondins de Bordeaux (FCGB), resident club since the opening of the enclosure in 2015, and simple occasional tenant since their fall into the fourth division in the summer last for financial reasons. This change in status is not just semantic. The club is now exempt from rent by the Metropolis (owner)… and by SBA, which “only” charges it for technical costs – around 50,000 euros per match.
To say that relations have not always been smooth between the FCGB and SBA for ten years is an understatement. The first criticizes the second for inflating prices by a significant margin and not making their lives easier for optimal use of the stadium. The second accuses the first of being a bad payer, particularly in recent years. Until the standoff in the summer of 2024 to know who paid what and especially how much so that the National 2 matches took place at Matmut Atlantique.
Status quo this season
In the short term, in the very likely event that the dispute between SBA and the Metropolis is not resolved, the directors of SBA do not intend to request judicial liquidation but to be placed in receivership. If they are followed by the commercial court, the freezing of debts would allow the company to continue its activity for at least two months, more certainly six. This would therefore not change anything for the Girondins until the end of the sporting season.
If SBA did not survive the spring or summer, the Metropolis would become the sole master on board. This would have the merit of clarifying the situation for the FCGB, which would only have one interlocutor. In recent years, the community has been conciliatory so as not to push his head further underwater. Rents are significantly reduced or fully deferred, and owner Gérard Lopez (via his holding company Jogo Bonito) has not been asked to pay in place of the club, although he had committed to doing so.
-A favored sale of the club?
We need to look at the longer term. The club has always thought about recovering the entire operation of Matmut (not just on match days) but has never been able or able to take the plunge. This is obviously impossible today given his financial situation. A purchase of the stadium or a transfer of operations by the Metropolis, which seems inevitable, would automatically imply new negotiations to define the terms and costs of use.
The Metropolis does not intend to operate the stadium over the long term and will rather be a seller. This will place interested buyers in a strong position to negotiate a good price… and could at the same time encourage a takeover of the club by the same player, since it will be easier to finally associate an asset. To do this, we must wait until the Girondins’ debt (around a hundred million euros) is renegotiated. This should be done in the coming months. More than ever, the destinies of FCGB and Matmut Atlantique have a good chance of being closely linked.
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