OM president raises spectre of Girondins to warn of club's survival risk

Stéphane Richard, new president of Olympique de Marseille, sounded the alarm at the Tangram Talks organised by CMA CGM, the club’s main sponsor: without increased support from local authorities and economic players, OM could face the same fate as Girondins de Bordeaux, threatened with judicial liquidation.

« When you have a company that can lose more than 50% of its revenue, you can say it is at risk. It is at risk of survival. It is also at sporting risk », Richard declared gravely, before explicitly citing the Bordeaux case. « Those who think OM is immortal because it’s OM are mistaken. »

This deliberately alarming statement is part of a transparency strategy assumed by the representative of owner Frank McCourt, keen to mobilise local partners around the turnaround project. A double-edged approach that publicly exposes the structural fragility of a historic French football club.

On the reconstruction timeline, Richard is cautious. He rules out any quick turnaround and announces that the 2026-2027 season will be the one « where we lay the foundations », describing this period as a « transition season ». « In any case more than one season, that’s for sure », he specified, while maintaining that « a turnaround is possible ».

The president did not spare his predecessor Pablo Longoria, pointing to a lack of rigour in the club’s past management: « What was somewhat lacking in this club was not having enough managers. In any case I’m talking about managers in the past. » He presented Frank McCourt as a « committed » owner, seeking to temper the concern raised by his own statements.