John Textor is no longer unknown to the Belgian public since his investment in the RWDM project at the start of the year. Also a shareholder of Botafogo and Crystal Palace, the American is now investing in Ligue 1, alongside OL.
For President Jean-Michel Aulas, John Textor ticks all the boxes. “A certain number of shareholders were leaving. They made sure to open the game to sell their stake and find the best solution, both for the sellers and for those who remained. It was a great success, we had five or six groups interested in these operations. Over the three months of consultation, we were able to get to know all the people who wanted to work with OL. John ticked all the boxes. From the start, he wanted to get involved in having a permanent collaboration with the management team and myself”, report our colleagues from RMC Sport.
Four major points during the negotiations decided OL to trust Textor. “The first point that brought us together was to put football at the heart of our future development. To make sure that we regain ambition for all the teams. The second point was to make an offer that corresponded to the sellers and it was. The third point was to subscribe to a capital increase of 86 million euros which will be largely devoted to recruitment. The fourth objective was to be part of a relationship that made OL Groupe so successful, so that I could stay. From the start John wanted me to stay. It was not an absolute obligation, but it was a wish of all the fans and also of the management teams.”
OL will then have something to play for in this next transfer window, thanks to the beautiful envelope released by Textor. Besides, the American does not like to be reduced to his fortune, he who has dedicated a real passion to sport. “I really have a sincere love for this sport, I never considered myself an investor, when this word appears it makes me feel weird. I consider myself a builder.”
A builder who will have work on the board if we are to believe his objectives with Olympique Lyonnais. “My first suggestion would be to learn from women. No, I’m kidding. When we bought Botafogo from Brazil, in the second division, they hadn’t won titles for several decades. And we managed to beat Flamengo the last year. We want to win championships, Jean-Michel wants to return to the forefront of the European scene, I want to win the Champions League. I hope we can dream of that.”
After that, John Textor clearly distinguished his project from that which could be found in another Ligue 1 club, PSG. “I don’t like projects like PSG. If we continue to do what Jean-Michel has been doing for a few years and bring entertainment and technology to it, we will be able to earn more money than with a Qatari investor.
