Olympique Lyonnais has officially announced the resignation of John Textor from his management position. The businessman, who remains owner of the Rhone club for the time being, has been replaced by Michel Kang, majority shareholder of OL Lyonnes, the club’s women’s team.
At 66, the American becomes the first woman to hold this position in OL’s history. Michael Gerlinger, Eagle’s global director of football, has for his part been appointed managing director.
“This is a critical time for OL and I would like to thank John for his commitment and vision in bringing the club into the Eagle Football family. I look forward to working closely with Michael, the OL management team and the Board to support the club through the DNCG process and beyond,” said Kang in an official statement.
The change comes in the wake of the club’s demotion to Ligue 2 following an unsuccessful visit to France’s financial regulator. A decision that sent shockwaves through the French footballing landscape and led to Olympique Lyonnais fans rallying to demand Textor to leave the club.
Under pressure, the Eagle boss announced on Saturday that he was stepping down from his role at Lyon in order to ‘spend a lot more time thinking about Eagle as a whole, and devoting more time to Botafogo’. Not enough to solve all the problems facing the seven-time French champions, who will now have to convince the DNCG at their appeal, but still sufficient to reassure Lyon fans.
