Frank McCourt ready to sell Olympique de Marseille after investing €710 million in ten years

Frank McCourt would be ready to part with Olympique de Marseille, ten years after buying the club for €45 million from Margarita Louis-Dreyfus. According to several French football figures who have recently met with the American billionaire, a sale is now being concretely considered.

Since his arrival in October 2016, McCourt is said to have injected approximately $800 million — just over €710 million — into the Phocaean club, in addition to clearing its debts at the time of purchase. On the economic front, the balance sheet is not without merit: the club’s annual revenues have risen from €111 million to €189 million, a 70% increase, placing Olympique de Marseille in the top 30 global football brands.

But on the sporting side, the picture is far darker. Over a decade, Marseille has participated in only three editions of the Ligue des Champions, far from the ambitions displayed when control was taken. This gap between the resources committed and the results obtained is said to have finally weighed on the shareholder’s motivation. His entourage acknowledges a certain fatigue with how the invested sums have been used, while assuring that McCourt “will speak when he has things to say or announce”.

The growing unpopularity of the owner among part of the Marseille public, who have been calling for a change of hands for several years, adds to this context. While no official negotiations have been confirmed at this stage, the question of a possible successor to McCourt at the helm of Olympique de Marseille has never seemed more serious.