Nice face austerity as TV cash falls and overhaul looms | OneFootball

OGC Nice, 15th in Ligue 1, face austerity as TV income plunges. According to L'Équipe, a restructuring is under way, led by Jean-Pierre Rivère and Maurice Cohen.

Their Coupe de France semi-final at Strasbourg on 22 April briefly lifted spirits, then a 0-4 loss to Rennes underlined a relegation fight, with Nice five points above 16th-placed Auxerre.

The club was put up for sale by Ineos a year ago. Questions remain over the presidency, with Rivère saying he would depart if Éric Ciotti won the Nice mayoralty, and over Claude Puel’s and sporting director Florian Maurice’s futures.

Cohen says the club must rethink its economic model. TV rights revenue is set to drop from €35m to €7m next season, with Europa League participation slightly easing the fall. A structural deficit from Ineos’s early years persists, and the city has invoiced €6-9m over the 2016 Allianz Riviera agreement signed by Rivère.

Ineos has injected €35m this season to keep Nice afloat, but savings are required. Headcount is being reduced, with 10 admin roles gone since January and the recruitment department shrinking.

A second phase is due this summer to adjust the performance department. The priority is to align first-team wages with reality. Players entering their final year include Sofiane Diop, Hicham Boudaoui, Morgan Sanson, Youssouf Ndayishimiye, Ali Abdi, Louchet, Salis Abdul Samed, under conditions, Terem Moffi and Jérémie Boga, with few expected to be retained. The club would also consider offers for Cho and Bard, who have two years remaining.

Source: L'Équipe