Le Figaro Marseille
When he sat in opposition, it was one of his hobby horses. On social networks, in the hemicycle, and quickly after taking the reins of the second city of France, the former socialist Benoît Payan proclaimed it loud and clear: with him, the rules between OM and the city would change. And particularly the issue of the rent that the football club pays each year to the municipality.
OM is indeed a tenant of the Vélodrome, owned by the city. The stadium is at the heart of a public-private partnership (PPP) set up in 2010 by former LR mayor Jean-Claude Gaudin to renovate the stadium in preparation for Euro 2016. Until now, Olympique de Marseille has been paying a rent of between €5 million and €6 million, which is a tiny part of the total cost of this infrastructure for the city. "The people of Marseille don't have to pay for Mr. McCourt," the mayor said in 2022, well aware of the financial difficulties of his city, whose debts have peaked at thousands of euros.
A financial disaster that has also been pointed out for a long time by the regional chamber of auditors, which recommends a rent of 8 million euros per year to rebalance things. So, last December, the press release sent by the town hall was intended to be victorious. And for good reason: as the regional chamber demands, since 1 January, the fixed part of this rent now amounts to 8 million euros. "The city of Marseille and Olympique de Marseille have worked very rigorously to obtain a more balanced rent for the provision of the Stade Vélodrome in the interest of the people of Marseille," the mayor said in the text.
Millions and questions
But at the December 15 municipal council meeting that adopted the new three-year agreement, opposition was raised. The "rigour" in this negotiation seems to be relative. Article 20 already stipulates that this rent has been agreed "taking into account the expectations of the Club's participation in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League". And what will happen if OM does not achieve this sporting objective, which is uncertain to say the least?
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There have been some copy-pastes compared to the other conventions, justifies Joël Canicave, deputy mayor in charge of finance. And so there was this article that OM is going to participate in the Champions League. But yes, even if OM is not in the Champions League, the fixed part of the rent will continue to be 8 million euros." When questioned on this point, the Marseille club assures that there will be "no change if OM does not achieve this objective", and specifies that "the variation in OM's revenue is captured via the variable part of the rent.
»There is another point that raises questions for the opposition. For this variable part of the rent, the calculation was previously based on turnover. However, the new agreement now provides for a calculation based on gross operating income. This indicator is automatically lower than turnover, and which, moreover, is a declarative data that no statutory auditor is required to verify.
Read alsoLigue 1: OM's rent for the Vélodrome will increase
Mayor admits 'clerical errors'
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The devil, it's true, is in the details, admits Joël Canicave. The city wanted the variable part to be calculated on the turnover, and there is a somewhat bizarre definition of turnover as the RBE. But it's the turnover that counts!
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At some point, Marseille's folklore had a good back, lamented a source close to the case. It cannot be said that it is the turnover when it is written that it is the gross operating income. The truth is that the city has been amateurish and very bad at negotiating. And instead of accepting it, she pretends to have had a political victory!" "All this is totally approximate," said Julien Ruas, an LR municipal councillor. The agreement is riddled with clerical and definitional errors, to the point that I wonder if it will pass the legality test."
Questioned on this point, Joël Canicave indicated that he had "not heard back to date from the prefecture, which has two months to make its remarks." At the last municipal council meeting, on the perch of the Espace Bargemon, Benoît Payan himself acknowledged "material errors." "They have to be corrected and they will be corrected," said the mayor of Marseille. I'm sticking to what I negotiated with the president of Olympique de Marseille, to the exchanges of letters we had.
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