No question of competing with the federations

The Lagardère Group must sign an agreement with American coach Nick Bollettieri, who has created a tennis Academy in Florida which today, in Sophia-Antipolis, in the Centre of training of young players of tennis of his "team", the French hopes (Julien Benneteau, Gaël Monfils, Richard Gasquet,...) may treat their winter preparation. The Group also decided to resume most of the sports of the Racing Club of France. These partnerships support the willingness of the private group to invest in sport through its foundation which spent 7 million euros per year, but also in the "business" of the sector with candidate to the acquisition of Sportfive.

"The failure of Paris to the Organization of the Olympic Games in 2012 has shown the economic world who had financially supported the application in the Business Club presided over by Arnaud Lagardère should be given a new dynamic in French sport", summarizes an expert.

An attempt to perpetuate the Club companies in the national Olympic and sporting Committee action French has been attempted, without success. The CNOSF refused that is being invaded its prerogatives, determined to fight the "excesses" leading to the installation of the anglo-saxon model in France. The white paper that it has just released confirms the dominance of the binomial state/local communities in the management of the sport, and the limited space reserved for the private sector, based on the role of sponsor.

Lagardère decided to make single rider by creating a "team" private, operational since March in December 2005. The presence of this powerful group on the market of sport is grind teeth and raises many questions. In France, the single stream is federal. There is no private structure involved in the emergence of champions. "The"team"presents itself as a platform of expertise and physical preparation for top athletes". "The basic principle is to use the advanced technology of the Group (such as EADS, specializing in aerospace) companies to improve the performance of the athletes and coaches knowledge", summarizes Xavier Moreau, its Director General.

No question of competing with the federations. "I have not stopped to say that it brings a complementarity." "Julien Benneteau or Gaël Monfils won, when the tennis Federation of earning", told AFP the FFT President Christian Bîmes. "Lagardère built his involvement in the sport with three complementary levels of intervention: support at the highest level, support to the practice and detection in the field of sport with a presence in multi-sports clubs, the civic integration by supporting initiatives such as those conducted by Yannick Noah in the direction of the districts disadvantaged", explained Lucien Boyer, President of Havas sportsthe agency group.

After tennis (19 players under contract), the "team" is open to the athletics, while agreements are to be signed with the federations of judo, rugby, table tennis for the use of the technical assistance training platform installed at the stade Jean-Bouin in Paris on 1,000 m2, 20 people for a 4 million operating budget. To support the initiative, a "Business Club" has been created, where are found including Le Coq Sportif, Orange, Sony, Subaru. "2007 will be devoted to the consolidation and the integration of the"team"," says Arnaud Molinié, Director delegate to stewardship. The Group also relies on two emblematic clubs in the capital with CASG (General sports Athletic Club), tenant of the facilities of the door of Auteuil belonging to the city of Paris, and the Racing Club of France.

An audit has been requested

To secure the first, Lagardère has won the concession of the sports site of 5.6 hectares until 2024, upon payment of an annual rent of 500,000 euros and renamed all Paris-Jean-Bouin. This is that changing the Stade Francais rugby team, sous-concessionnaire of a part of the facilities subject to payment of an annual rent of 32,000 euros. The Paris municipality plans to increase the capacity of the stadium to 15,000 seats.

The second club fell into anyway early July with the grant of its 6.7 hectares at the Croix-Catelan site, located in the heart of the Bois de Boulogne, and the turnover amounts to 15 million with 80 employees. Rent paid to the city was set at 2.7 million. Lagardere, which carry out an audit on the operation of the site, was encrypted to 37 million over twenty years its modernization. The club, which in 15,000 members, will be more "open" than previously to the general public, with a new fee schedule.

The problem of integration of the sports sections. "We initially signed an agreement for the resumption of its tennis and modern Decathlon, and their transfer to the club of the Croix-Catelan chaired by Arnaud Lagardère.". "This week, we have proposed to the leaders of the Racing to resume other sections (swimming, fencing, judo, skiing, triathlon...) as we were committed to do so by taking the concession", said Arnaud Molinié. The Racing should keep hands on the La Boulie golf. However, rugby (Metro-Racing), past this season under the guidance of the pattern of Foncia, Jacky Lorenzetti, is not affected by the agreement. Asked the fate of the two buildings has the Racing in the capital: rue Eblé in the 7th, headquartered valued at 40 million, with two swimming pools, a dojo, three land MultiSport, and rue de Saussure in the 17th, estimated at 3 million, where three lots of tennis. The General Assembly of the club, on 13 November, will have to pronounce on this association of Racing to the Lagardère Group.