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Bordeaux facing sixth-tier football after French federation upholds relegation / Photo: ROMAIN PERROCHEAU - AFP/File
Bordeaux facing sixth-tier football after French federation upholds relegation
Six-time French champions Bordeaux were condemned to sixth tier football on Thursday when the special executive committee of the French Football Federation (FFF) confirmed their relegation, AFP learned from a source close to the body.
Last month a Paris court upheld the decision to bar them from playing in the fourth tier in the coming season because of financial irregularities and the FFF on Thursday chose not to re-examine their case.
"Reclassification or a review of the situation of Bordeaux was not possible under the current wording of our regulations," the source said.
"The federation has therefore stuck with the decision."
The meeting was convened following the intervention of French sports minister Marina Ferrari on Wednesday.
Ferari wrote to FFF president Philippe Diallo urging him to reopen the case, given the club's history and contribution to football.
The FFF said it did not wish to create a legal precedent or a break in fairness with the other clubs already playing.
Bordeaux were sanctioned for failing to provide the roughly 10 million euros ($11.6 million) needed for the 2025-2026 financial year as well as 2026-2027 and meet debt payments.
The club, which was founded in 1936, now faces the prospect of court-ordered liquidation if their new owners pull out, as they indicated in August that they would.
"The club is outraged," Bordeaux said on its X account.
"The executive committee did not deliberate on the club's request, which was sent to it with all the supporting documents, and no vote was held.
"Claiming there has been a rejection when the competent body has not even deliberated makes no sense."
Bordeaux are one of France's most celebrated clubs.
Current France coach Zinedine Zidane made his name there and was joined in the 1998 World Cup-winning squad by academy products Bixente Lizarazu and Christophe Dugarry.
A decade earlier Alain Giresse and Jean Tigana were part of a celebrated France midfield that won the European championships in 1984.
However, they were relegated to Ligue 2 in 2022 and then placed in judicial restructuring in 2024, which caused them to relinquish their professional status and their highly-rated academy.
L.Girard--SMC
