FFF closes door on Girondins, condemned to sixth division and possible liquidation

The Executive Committee of the French Football Federation (FFF) has definitively closed the door on a reprieve for Girondins de Bordeaux, condemning the club to compete in Régional 1 — the sixth tier of French football — with the underlying risk of judicial liquidation.

FCGB made one final attempt this week, backed by Alexandre Gougnard, president of the Gironde District. The objective was twofold: to obtain a review of the club’s financial situation in light of the arrival of new investors, and to secure a reprieve in National 2. Of the 27 members of the Executive Committee, only eleven presented themselves to examine the file. Six of them formally refused to reopen it for further review by the National Management Control Department.

The prospect of a move to National 2 gained no traction either. According to L’Équipe, “no regulatory basis authorizes the body to do so,” and such a decision would have exposed the FFF to legal challenges from National 1 or National 2 clubs. Girondins had hoped to capitalize on Union Foot de Touraine’s promotion to National 1 and the fact that National 2 pool H currently has only thirteen entries.

It is therefore in Régional 1 that Bordeaux must compete, in a championship officially launched on Saturday, August 29. The club is already one match behind, against Saint-Médard-en-Jalles. But the gravest threat remains the judicial liquidation of SASP Girondins de Bordeaux: if it materializes, the commercial company operating the professional team would be dissolved, marking the end of FCGB as it has existed for decades.

A restructuring at the amateur level would be the only alternative to outright disappearance, without even guaranteeing the club a place in Régional 1. For one of the most decorated clubs in French football history, the descent into the abyss is far from over.