In addition to unallocated TV rights for future seasons, the Senate is receiving several French football players in the context of the CVC affair. Joseph Oughourlian (President of Lens) spoke before the Senate accompanied by several Presidents of Ligue 1: Olivier Létang (Lille), Jean-Pierre Caillot (Reims), Jean-Michel Aulas (ex-OL) and Maarten Petermann (fund Merlyn Partners).
Ligue 1: CVC, an observed affair
On March 2, 2022, the law for the democratization of sport in France was promulgated by the President of the Republic. In particular, it confirmed the possibility for the Professional Football League (LFP) to form a commercial company (LFP Media), thus allowing it to sell part of its shares.
On March 31, 2023, this commercial enterprise signed a “firm investment commitment contract” with the CVC fund, with an amount of 1.5 billion euros, with 13.04% of the shares of LFP Media. In reality, of this amount of 1.13 billion euros, the forty professional clubs exchanged each year 13.04% of the revenue generated by the commercial company, including the television rights for Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, which are in course.
Laurent Lafon, senator Union of Democrats and Independents of Val-de-Marne and president of the Committee on Culture, Education and Sport of the Senate, expressed his wish to know the benefits that this company brings to the clubs, both on a commercial and technical level, and in developing the appeal of the French championship abroad.
The president of Lens discusses ASSE
Joseph Oughourlian (President of Lens): » We, the club presidents, when we saw this commission created and the first people summoned to the commission (Jean-Michel Roussier – Havre and Christophe Bouchet – ex OM)… There were people interviewed who were either outside from the world of football, or people who have not been in the game for a long time. A former president of OM who was fired after a very short period in 2003 (Christophe Bouchet). And a President of a club who was in L2 not long ago and who was the manager of several TV channels which all went bankrupt.
When I arrived at the Racing Club de Lens, which I bought from the commercial court, I received a phone call from Mr. Caïazzo, president of AS Saint-Etienne. He said to me “Do you have a problem if we close the Onzeo channel?” “. I answer him, what is the Onzéo channel? It’s a channel on which we broadcast content on ASSE and the Racing Club de Lens. So I looked at what the Onzeo channel was. It was only a way of paying Jean-Michel Roussier who was well paid. We therefore reached an agreement with AS Saint-Etienne to close the channel. Afterwards, I found Jean-Michel Roussier for the Mediapro channel which lasted two months. Today, these men come to teach us lessons. They come to tell us that we made absurd decisions with CVC. And you give them all the ears here (in the Senate). All the presidents, we were all moved by this situation. So we all sent letters. »
