A new era will officially start on the side of Le Havre. Maintained in the 7th minute of the additional time of the 34th day of Ligue 1 and a penalty of Abdoulaye Touré in Strasbourg (victory 3-2), the club dean – which will travel to Monaco during the first day of the 2025-2026 exercise in Ligue 1 – was barely saved in the elite of French football. A new chapter, which will however mark a sacred change of course with the arrival of a new owner at the head of the Le Havre training, as we revealed to you exclusively. Already holding Loganés (Spain – D2) or Cancún (Mexico), Blue Crow Sports Group, an American investment fund led by Jeff Luhnow, thus appeared on the side of the port city.
A case of law …
“Vincent Volpe gives up the shares of his company owned by the HAC (96.2%) to Blue Crow Sports Group. The arrival of M. Vincent Volpe in June 2015 enabled the Havre Athletic Club to save himself economically, before the owner implies a strategy of structuring and investments necessary for the evolution of the club (…) M. Vincent Volpe, very attached to Le Havre as in the Hac, marked with his imprint, his personality and his vision the dean of the French clubs, which will start thanks to his commitment, for the 3rd consecutive season, A new Ligue 1 championship and for the 5th season, a new Arkema Premier League exercise. After ten years in the heart of the Havre Athletic Club project, Mr. Vincent Volpe will give in his company holding the majority of the club's shares to Blue Crow Sports Group, chaired by Mr. Ieff Luhnow ”detailed, in this sense, the press release from the sky and navy.
Yes but now, in recent hours, a rumor has quickly ignited the canvas. As reported by certain sources, several minority shareholders, present in the capital of the club since the Jean-Pierre Louvel era (former president of the HAC), would thus denounce an opaque operation, a non-compliance with the Pact of Associates and would therefore consider appeals in order to have the transfer canceled. “It is not a question of money but of respect. We do not know how much our shares are worth, or even what has been sold. We are beyond disdain. We bleed because our love of hac was stronger than anything. Today, we are left in ignorance. We have been linked by a associate pact since 2015. Obviously, Vincent Volpe has not respected it ”regretted, as such, Christophe Duval, one of the minority shareholders. What question the recent buyout initiated by Blue Crow Sports Group? Nothing is less certain …
Let's summarize. At a time when we write these lines, the HAC is, in fact, 96.21% owned by Football Club Investment, the remaining 3.79% being divided between 235 minority shareholders. On July 2, Vincent Volpe therefore ceded the shares of his company based in Luxembourg and owner of the Norman club to the American holding company Blue Crow Sports Group, chaired by Jeff Luhnow. “It is a transfer of beneficiary ownership. This company belongs to my family and this is what we are selling (the Pact of Associates therefore concerns the company of Vincent Volpe and his family but in no case the club, editor's note). This facilitates the sales process since there is no need to organize a general meeting ”added Vincent Volpe during his handover with the graduate of the prestigious universities of Pennsylvania and Northwestern. In other words and technically, the club was therefore not directly sold to Blue Crow but Blue Crow bought the Luxembourg company created by Vincent Volpe with his wife, brother and sister.
The DNCG has already given its green light
An important clarification since there was therefore, fundamentally, no change in status for the Norman club. Note, in this perspective, that the sale of the HAC will not bring anything to the club, since it is simply a sale of shares of a company, owner of the club, from Volpe to Luhnow. Most importantly, at the end of last June, after studying the various documents, the DNCG for its part gave its green light, pronouncing a simple supervision of the payroll for the HAC. The financial monitoring body of French football will officially make its decision after the 10 days of “closing” specific to a transfer (withdrawal period, signature of legal documents, payment of funds by financial investors, etc.). A communication which is therefore expected within two to three days but ultimately responding to a completely normal procedure.
In the meantime, the HAC, already very active on the transfer market, can therefore sign players but cannot yet “officially” record them. In recent hours, Mathieu Bodmer and his teams have completed the arrivals of Mory Diaw, Félix Mambimbi, Lionel Mpasi, Godson Kyeremeh or Thomas Delaine, who is preparing to sign a two -season contract with the sky and navy. An beginning of the transfer window finally symbolizing the strong ambitions of the new owner of the Le Havre stable. “In the short term, what we want is to stabilize the club and make it grow”notably said Jeff Luhnow during his presentation press conference. One thing is certain, if minority shareholders, although frustrated, sought today to have the sale canceled, no possible appeal would ultimately be acceptable on the legal level since the very status of the club has not changed.
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