France prepares to have two super teams in Paris

The possible purchase by the Arnault family (owner of the luxury giant LVMH) and Paris FC Red Bullcurrent leader of the second division, is an opportunity for the French football to be compared to other major European championships.

and for Paristhe opportunity to offer a real derby against the powerful Paris Saint-Germain, as all the major European capitals already have.

If the operation is completed it will be the end of the French exception. “Finally we are going to have a real derby in Paris, like there is in London, Madrid or Milan,” said Jean-Baptiste Guégan, expert in the geopolitics of sport and follower of the PSG.

“In the medium term, the PFC will benefit from the economic power of the Arnault family, the richest in France, the fifth in the world, and the sporting knowledge of Red Bull, which has nothing to prove, reinforced by the arrival of Jürgen Klopp as director of the company’s football team,” he added.

A necessary boost

But everything remains to be confirmed. According to the newspaper L’Equipe, which reported the information on Wednesday, the purchase should become official in a few days and its amount could change. Contacted by AFP, neither the PFC nor the Arnault family wish to comment on what was published.

This Thursday the newspaper Le Monde published that the Parisian club will report on the operation on October 17.

According to L’Equipe, the Arnault family will be the majority shareholder of the club “at the height of 55-56%”, Red Bull will keep 15% and Pierre Ferracci, current president and majority shareholder, will keep 30% of the capital before to leave the club completely in 2027.

The 72-year-old businessman had already commented on his desire to retire after having led the change in the dimension of the entity, which he arrived in 2006 as administrator.

PSG and the French league, which are still digesting the departure of Kylian Mbappé to Real Madrid, will directly benefit from the economic boost to the Parisian club.

“It is very good for Paris and for French football,” said PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi about the birth of a rival promoted by the Arnault family, in which Antoine, the son of the great boss Bernard, is on the front line. of the dossier, is a regular at the Parc des Princes.

“It will inevitably be a challenge for PSG. On a sporting level, but also economically because it has a monopoly in an area where it will have to start competing,” added Guégan.

French football, in economic crisis due to the substantial drop in income from television rights, also celebrates the potential good news.

“A formidable projector,” said a president of a Ligue 1 team from anonymity.

Moving in front of the Parc des Princes?

In the Professional Football League, aware of the negotiations, the operation will not be commented on until it is finalized.

But the entry of the global luxury giant into national football is a sign that the championship can continue to attract investors despite having lost icons such as Mbappé, Lionel Messi and Neymar in two years.

“The Arnault family does not invest in anything,” Guégan added. “Paris FC is a value, especially when it comes to the inclusion of women in the club, taking possession of the club embraces these values.”

One of the first objectives of the Arnault family will be to find a stadium that lives up to their ambitions. Until now the PFC plays in Charlety, a multi-sports stadium owned by the Paris city hall, poorly adapted to elite football.

The goal would be to play at the Jean-Bouin stadium, separated by a pedestrian crossing from the Parc des Princes. The exciting Parisian derby could be played between two streets.