American businessman Bill Foley, who has just bought the English club Bournemouth, will enter the capital of Lorient, the Breton club announced on Friday. The agreement that Lorient has reached with Foley and his partners in the Black Knight Football and Entertainment (BKFE) consortium and the listed company Cannae Holdings provides for a capital increase “in the coming weeks”. Loïc Féry, owner of the club since 2009, will remain the majority shareholder and retain the presidency.
Boss of the Las Vegas franchise which plays in the North American Ice Hockey Championship (NHL), Bill Foley bought all the shares of Bournemouth in December with his consortium of investors, with the aim of creating a new group of European and South American clubs. “Recent events have shown the need to be ready to face the vagaries of an increasingly demanding industry,” Féry said in a statement. “I want FC Lorient and our Hakes to be able to fit into this increasingly competitive future with serenity”.
Returned to L1 in 2020, Lorient struggled to maintain itself for two years but achieved unexpected performances this season under the leadership of new coach Régis Le Bris. With 32 points in 19 days, a total that the team only approached in mid-April last season, Lorient is 6th in the championship, within reach of European places.