Le Mans, the club that Novak Djokovic, Thibaut Courtois, and Felipe Massa have joined as shareholders this season, has secured promotion to Ligue 1 after an unstoppable rise over the past year. The team has established itself as the biggest surprise of the Ligue 2 campaign. The “Sangre y Oro” will compete in the top tier of French football for the first time since 2010, clinching promotion with a 0-2 victory over Bastia.
It has been a long journey from the depths to glory. Thirteen years ago, Le Mans filed for bankruptcy and was relegated to the Division d’Honneur, the sixth tier of French football. Debts, especially those accumulated from the construction of the 30,000-seat MMArena stadium, threatened the club’s survival. As recently as a year ago, the team was still playing in the National, the third division, with an uncertain present and future.
Last summer, after securing promotion to Ligue 2, the emblematic club—through which players like Drogba and Gervinho had passed—announced the entry of the Brazilian investment fund Outfield into its shareholding. Outfield, which also owns Coritiba, brought in personalities such as Novak Djokovic, Felipe Massa, and Kevin Magnussen as part of the capital of the club based in the Sarthe department, best known for hosting the 24 Hours of Le Mans each year.
Le Mans players. PASCAL POCHARD-CASABIANCA
On the 40th anniversary of Le Mans, the club made a significant effort to survive financially. A few months ago, Felipe Massa took the honorary kickoff before a derby against Laval in Ligue 2. Thanks to the brilliant work of its investors, combined with a prudent policy in talent scouting, the team emerged as the biggest surprise of the season in the second division, achieving a historic promotion that seemed unthinkable at the start of the campaign.
In February, Thibaut Courtois, through his investment company NxtPlay, contributed capital to join the project. The Belgian confirmed the agreement with Le Mans on his social media, becoming a minority shareholder and putting the spotlight on a club that had disappeared from the map 13 years ago due to massive debts.
The mastermind behind this feat, this miracle, this epic story, is Patrick Videira. The Parisian-born coach led Le Mans to promotion to Ligue 2 last season against all odds and has repeated the achievement this year. With his offensive philosophy, the manager has exceeded all expectations. His squad consists entirely of players who, until a year ago, had never competed at a professional level. Massa, Djokovic, and Courtois can be proud, and they will now seek, through their capital, to help the club establish itself in Ligue 1 for the long term.
