French football is cementing its position as a prime testing ground for multi-club ownership (MCO
FC Annecy is set to take a historic step by joining the V Sports structure(1),the investment fund led by billionaires Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens, who already own Aston Villa(2).
Negotiations, which began in the summer of 2025, are now at an advanced stage, and the club is currently in exclusive talks with the fund.
The agreement provides for the acquisition of 30% of the capital of the Haute-Savoie club, marking a minority but highly strategic stake. Unlike other more radical takeovers, this deal ensures a degree of continuity. Philippe Rey-Gorrez would remain the main financier and, alongside chairman Sébastien Faraglia, would retain operational control of the club. Manager Laurent Guyot and the current coaching staff are also expected to remain in place(3).
Whilst the financial agreement is due to be finalised shortly, the sporting partnership is already a reality. FC Annecy serves as a ‘feeder club’ for Aston Villa’s young talents, offering them playing time at a competitive level such as Ligue 2. This season, the club has already welcomed two promising defenders on loan from the Premier League side: Triston Rowe, an England U20 international[+note.4]], and more recently Travis Patterson(5). The project is overseen by renowned figures, notably Roberto Olabe, Aston Villa’s director of football, who has already visited Haute-Savoie, and the legendary Aimé Jacquet, involved as a training supervisor.
This partnership places FC Annecy firmly within a major trend in French football, where France has become the preferred arena for multi-ownership projects. The club joins an ever-growing list featuring famous examples in Ligue 1 and Ligue 2:
Strasbourg, now under the BlueCo banner (owners of Chelsea);
Lorient, linked to the English club Bournemouth.
Other structures such as Lyon (Eagle Football), Nice (Ineos) and Paris FC (Red Bull) complete this landscape, where 10 out of 19 Ligue 1 clubs (and 7 out of 18 Ligue 2 clubs) are already part of MCO models.
The arrival of V Sports provides the financial stability essential to sustain the club’s project in Ligue 2 and fund its infrastructure, such as the future training centre. Whilst this ‘satellite club’ model sometimes raises questions about autonomy, the current management is banking on this solid partner to take the club to the next level without sacrificing its local roots.
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