KBRA Affirms BBB+ Rating to Olympique Lyonnais’ (OL or the Club) EUR320 Million Financing for the Groupama Football Stadium
27 Jun 2025 | Dublin
KBRA Europe (KBRA) affirms the BBB+ rating for Olympique Lyonnais’ (OL or the Club) Groupama Stadium financing. The affirmation reflects StadCo’s financial performance for the 2024/2025 season, which has been robust due to OL’s participation in the Europa League as it provides additional matchday ticketing and other revenues for the Club. KBRA has also revised its outlook from Developing Outlook to Negative given the recent decision by the Direction Nationale du Contrôle de Gestion (DNCG) to relegate OL to Ligue 2.
Key Credit Considerations
(-) Relegation
KBRA has been informed that on 24 June 2025 the DNCG decided to relegate the Club to Ligue 2. This follows an announcement in November 2024 that the Club had been provisionally relegated due to its financial position. Additionally, the Club had been handed a transfer ban, and its payroll was placed under supervision. While the Club subsequently took steps to improve its financial position including various player sales and the sale of the women’s team, the DNCG were apparently not satisfied that the Club’s position had sufficiently improved and announced its decision following a meeting with the Club’s owner, Mr John Textor. The Club have firmly criticized the decision and has announced its intention to launch an appeal, the result of which is expected in the coming weeks.
Rating Sensitivities
An upgrade is unlikely as the issuer and relatedly the club are indefinitely exposed to the risk of relegation.
A rating downgrade could occur should the appeal process be unsuccessful and the club subsequently spends a prolonged period of time in Ligue 2 leading to reduced ticket prices, declining attendances and more limited commercial opportunities which will in turn impact StadCo’s ability to generate revenues. Additional downward pressure may arise if there are any changes in ownership and/or commercial strategy.
ESG Considerations
Environmental Factors
During the 2021/2022 season, OL was certified as a “Committed Club” by Fair Play for Planet, due to efforts to reduce its environmental impact. This included focusing on energy and water consumption; transport and accessibility; and waste management.
Social Factors
The Groupama Stadium is used to support social projects, making the stadium a valuable, regional resource as a Community Innovation Centre. The stadium regularly hosts employment forums and job seeking events in partnership with Pole Emploi, the French national employment office, and Nes & Cite, a company that promotes social integration.
Governance Factors
OL is owned by Eagle Football Group which acquired 77% of the share ownership from Mr. Jean Michel Aulas in 2022. Eagle Football are an experienced football club owner, with various stakes in different clubs. Notably, 2.84% of OL Groupe is traded publicly on the Euronext Paris, which provides a more stringent level of oversight than some privately owned teams. KBRA understands there are no immediate plans to delist OL Groupe. The remaining ownership consists of 1.23% Treasury Shares and an 8.23% minority shareholding by Mr Aulas via his holding company, Holnest.
Rating Rationale
Under KBRA’s rating and stress cases, the assigned revenues are sufficient to repay debt service. The rating is based on a KBRA Project Risk Score (KPRS) of Strong and a sound financial risk profile. Under the KBRA rating case, aggregate average and minimum debt service coverage ratios (DSCR) are 2.84x and 2.54x, respectively, which along with fully amortising debt and strong cashflow resiliency supports a BBB+ rating on the notes.
Outlook
The Negative Outlook reflects OL’s recent relegation to Ligue 2 albeit noting that the Club is currently appealing this decision. A rating downgrade could occur should the appeal process be unsuccessful and the club subsequently spends a prolonged period of time in Ligue 2 leading to reduced ticket prices, declining attendances and more limited commercial opportunities which will in turn impact StadCo’s ability to generate revenues. Additional downward pressure may arise if there are any changes in ownership and/or commercial strategy. KBRA continues to monitor the appeals process which is expected to be concluded before the 2025/26 season commences. The Outlook is likely to revert to Stable if the appeals process is successful.
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