The 3rd Business Court of the Rio de Janeiro Court of Justice has frozen the actions of Botafogo’s Eagle Football Holdings in SAF (SAF) because of the high debt of the American tycoon John Textor with the current Libertadores champion, according to a court document obtained by AFP.
The measure occurs amid the fragile financial situation of another Eagle group team, Lyon’s Olympique. According to Textor, the good results of the Brazilian club allowed him to cover losses of the French club.
Eagle owes to the Rio club to equivalent to $ 27.2 million ($ 152 million), according to Judge Victor Agustin Cunha Jaccoud says Torres, who granted “the precautionary seizure of the actions of Eagle Football Bidco at Saf Botafogo”.
After recognizing errors in the Lyon administration, which was about to be relegated to the Second Division of France by debt, Textor was replaced by the club’s presidency by American Michele Kang in June.
Due to Lyon’s bad economic situation, “a manifest risk is denoted that the existing multi-million dollar debt with SAF Botafogo is not paid,” warned the Brazilian court.
In response to the assumptions of the French fans, which accuses him of funding Botafogo’s achievements with Lyon resources, Textor said on Saturday that “Botafogo was generating a significant amount of money, was funding many of the OLON OLON (OLOON).”
Textor is also owner of the Belgian Club Moenbeek and, in June, sold his actions at Crystal Palace, from the English Premier League.
