Altrad Becomes Majority Shareholder of Montpellier Top 14 Rugby Club

The president and founder of construction company the Altrad Group, Mohed Altrad, has become the majority shareholder of French rugby union’s Top 14 team Montpellier Hérault.

The new investment will see Altrad provide an initial figure of around US$3.4m, and a total of $ 8.5m over the next three years to replace current majority shareholder, the Nicollin Group.

Altrad conducted a full audit of Montpellier Hérault and spoke with the local authorities, the Nicollin Group and high-ranking officials within the club’s structure before making the decision to invest in the financially unstable club, which recently was threatened with demotion to Pro D2 due to its spiralling debts.

Altrad stated: “I wanted to have access to everything. We had to reassure the supervisory bodies last Friday. The club needs stability in terms of management and financial matters. The philosophy is to combine all the good interests of the club around a project that has clarity and thoroughness. Today, the sporting performance is successful. We must now capitalise on this great enthusiasm, sustain the club over the long term and remain at the top.”

The new majority shareholder has strong ties to the club; his stepfather Vezinhet Andre is president of the team’s general council and former Hérault president Thierry Perez is a close friend. The new investment is expected to boost Montpellier Hérault’s budget for next season to around $24m.