Olympique Lyon and Botafogo Offered for Sale in British Press Advertisement

The British financial newspaper Financial Times published an advertisement offering French club Olympique Lyon, Brazilian club Botafogo, and Belgian club RWD Molenbeek for sale. This development follows the placement of Eagle Football Holdings Bidco, which owns a majority stake in these clubs, under judicial administration in late March. This move resulted in the removal of American billionaire John Textor from leadership of the London-based group.

In this context, João Paulo Magalhães, president of Botafogo, described the situation as "extremely disturbing," considering the listing of clubs in advertisement pages a harsh experience. Magalhães stated: "It is very unpleasant to find ourselves in the classifieds in England – 'I sell a car,' 'I sell Botafogo and Lyon.' It is a very painful situation." Nevertheless, the Brazilian official reassured fans that this is purely a legal process aimed at enabling the judicial administrator to offer assets and settle debts owed to creditors.

For his part, the Brazilian club president affirmed that the ongoing actions adhere to strict judicial controls. Magalhães said: "It is a procedure that the judicial administrator, appointed by the English judiciary, must carry out to offer the assets on the market, attempt to obtain bids for these assets, and repay creditors in the best possible way." Meanwhile, sports circles are awaiting a move from Michele Kang, a minority shareholder and CEO of the Eagle Football group, who is preparing to submit a potential offer for full acquisition of the French team.

The roots of the current crisis trace back to June 2025, when Textor lost operational control of Olympique Lyon to the Ares fund, which had previously provided him with financing for the club's acquisition. This comes as the French team faces a severe debt crisis that nearly led to administrative relegation by the end of the 2024-2025 season. Concurrently, Botafogo continues to pursue the French club legally over outstanding debts amounting to €125 million, despite the Brazilian club remaining under Textor's control by local court order.