Bordeaux excluded from national competitions, at best to play in Régional 1 | OneFootball

The DNCG confirmed on Wednesday that Bordeaux are excluded from national competitions, meaning the club will restart at best in Régional 1, the sixth tier.

The six-time French champions had immediately appealed the first instance ruling on 30 June, and did not comment straight away after the latest decision.

Owner-president Gerard Lopez, who appeared before the watchdog on 9 June, had pledged to provide nine million euros to close 2025-2026 and fund 2026-2027. That sum, required for approval, has still not arrived.

At the end of June, the board said it was counting on a 10 million euro injection from British fund Sparta Capital. Sud Ouest and L'Equipe report that Sparta ended talks to buy the club earlier this week.

The club can still, in theory, seek conciliation from the CNOSF, as it did in 2022 and 2024 after previous administrative relegations for financial reasons.

A senior figure visited the commercial court on Wednesday afternoon. The court had validated last year a continuation plan that cut debt from about 100 million euros to 26 million euros.

Bordeaux were bought by Lopez in 2021, a year after the club had to abandon professional status and its renowned academy. Without the 10 million euros demanded by the DNCG, judicial liquidation proceedings could begin, potentially ending a history of more than a century.

Source: Le Progres