Nîmes Olympique: good accounts make good friends… or not!

Le président Rani Assaf, qui ne vend pas le club, planche sur le budget de la saison prochaine. Midi Libre – MiKAEL ANISSET

National. L’intersaison et les chiffres de Nîmes Olympique, qui est auditionné par la DNCG (direction nationale du contrôle de gestion) mercredi 29 mai.

Budget, losses and cash flow

Nîmes Olympique is being scrutinized by the DNCG (national management control department) this Wednesday, May 29. As a good student, the croc club has no particular fear… hellip; even if it should show significant losses during the past season. According to our information, they should amount to between 3 and 4 million euros. for the 2023-2024 financial year. On a budget which will be around 6.5 M€, this is not a straw.

But as, according to a well-informed source, NO "perhaps has the largest treasury in the National, or even in Ligue 2", the hole will be filled. The club is lacking revenue, only has 1.4 million euros left; approximately TV rights and must bear the cost of renting the Antonins, operating the Bastide, "a chasm" according our interlocutor, and the reimbursement of the PGE (loan guaranteed by the State).

it will work for this season and the next (even with fewer TV rights, around 400 000 €) but for the next one, there should no longer be a lot of money in the coffers. Unless there is an increase generating new TV rights… and/or a sale, which is not on the agenda.

4 700 € per month of average salary

"We had a player payroll of 1.1-1.2 M€ (excluding bonuses) this season. We were in the high average, in the first third, confides sports director Sébastien Larcier. But the Red Star, for example, had between 1.8 and 1, 9 M€." Dijon, Versailles or Nancy also had more than Nîmes. According to our calculations, the average monthly salary of a Crocodile therefore amounted to 4,700 euros. (gross) per month.

For 2024-2025, the Nîmes payroll should be approximately equal. Even slightly lower by being cut from Ligue 2 version salaries, like that of Burner, at the end of the contract and not renewed. Which should not prevent NO from being ambitious and aiming to improve.

Denkey, millions and training

Who wants to win millions ? Nîmes Olympique, if their former player Kevin Denkey is sold this summer ! The Togolese finished top scorer in the Belgian championship with Cercle de Bruges (27 goals), which he joined in January 2021 from Gard. And arouses the desire of many European clubs.

Denkey, whose agent is Eric Castagnino, is currently valued at 13 M€ by the transfermarkt website. However, NO benefits from a resale right (resale percentage) of 20%. And, in the event of a transfer, he would also receive the solidarity contribution (a sort of training allowance) for the years spent by Denkey at the Croco training center. These two financial windfalls could bring in 3 M€, or even more, to Nîmes. That's at least half of the club's budget!

Fortune, Gazeau and cassation

The majority shareholder Rani Assaf could also soon recover 1.45 M€ which he had to pay in 2022 to the minority shareholders Messrs. Gazeau and Roticci and their company Sports Développement Gardois as a return to better fortune. A clause which allows a partner to be reimbursed what he had paid into the current account if the economic situation improves. Which was the case on certain exercises.

The former owners had won their case at first instance. But Assaf appealed, and the court has just ruled in his favor. According to our sources, Sports Développement Gard has decided to appeal to the Court of Cassation to have the decision overturned on appeal. Good accounts make good friends… or enemies. Moreover, other legal proceedings are underway between the shareholders…

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