Former Lyon president John Textor has responded to the news of his official departure from the club and Eagle Football Holdings.
A document this week confirmed earlier news that Textor is no longer the director of the group which also owns Molenbeek and Botafogo.
It says that John Textor was relieved of his duties on January 27, a few hours before the Eagle Football Group general meeting, when reports claimed he tried to stage a coup against new director and OL president Michele Kang.
After trying to remove two independent directors, with his lawyers, the American saw his plan thwarted by Michele Kang and Ares Management, the creditor informing him of his immediate departure.
Textor has now responded to his official exit in a statement published by RMC Sport.
John Textor’s statement
He wrote: “It was only in January 2026 that it was discovered that Ares had already intervened in June 2025, by concluding a hidden side agreement with Ms. Kang, which allowed Ares to directly manage Eagle Football Group’s (EFG) largest club, Olympique Lyonnais, without informing the Olympique Lyonnais board or the public/stock market investors.
“These changes were not only unauthorised and undisclosed, but also constituted flagrant violations of French law.
“This parallel agreement, extremely detailed, created a parallel board of directors within EFG/OL, which was to work closely with Ms. Kang to manage EFG/OL, without the involvement of its 93% majority shareholder Eagle Football Holdings (and consequently John Textor) and without the knowledge of the real EFG/OL board of directors.
“Furthermore, this ‘phantom board of directors’ and this effective takeover were not brought to the attention of the shareholders, as required by French law for any company listed on the stock exchange.”
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