Manchester City owners CFG add Ligue 2’s Troyes to their stable of clubs
Manchester City’s owners City Football Group have become the new majority shareholders in Troyes which makes the Ligue 2 club the tenth side in CFG’s stable. The Esperance Sportive Troyes Aube Champagne were owned by Daniel Masoni but had Evangelos Marinakis reportedly interested over a move.
While the coronavirus pandemic has had a financial impact on nearly every football club across the world, Manchester City’s owners have been unaffected so far. The City Football Group (CFG), that own the Cityzens, already have stakes in ten clubs across the world. That is a list that includes New York City in Major League Soccer, Melbourne City in the Australian A-League, Mumbai City in India and Segunda Division side Girona amongst others.
CFG have, however, now added to their stable with them becoming a majority shareholder in Ligue 2 side Troyes. Esperance Sportive Troyes Aube Champagne, or ESTAC as they are known, had reportedly attracted the attention of Nottingham Forest and Olympiacos owner Evangelos Marinakis earlier this season but no move ever materialized. CFG managing director, and Manchester City’s CEO, Ferran Soriano confirmed the move and admitted that the group had been looking at French football for a while.
"We have been interested in French football for some time and have long admired ESTAC. We are therefore delighted to have completed the acquisition of our 10th club and to have a permanent presence in France. This is an important milestone for City Football Group, which proves that our model continues to adapt and develop in a relatively short period of time,” Soriano said reported Manchester City’s official website.
“At City Football Group, our objective remains to play beautiful football, identify and develop grassroots talent and have a permanent presence in the world’s football centres. There is no doubt that France is one of the top football countries in the world and we are proud to be part of that community. We look forward to getting to know our new home and the club’s fans and working together to create a bright future for ESTAC. We would also like to thank Mr Masoni for all his contributions to the club”.
🔹 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐞́ 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐥
— ESTAC Troyes (@estac_officiel) September 3, 2020
L’ESTAC rejoint le City Football Group !
Plus d’infos 👉 https://t.co/YfeDbry1eU pic.twitter.com/3P6ZMY1OY9