A stunning decision has been made regarding the financial oversight of French football clubs.
On Tuesday, the DNCG (Direction Nationale du Contrôle de Gestion), the body responsible for controlling club finances, announced its findings for teams at the National 1 level and below.
Nîmes Olympique, which had already faced sporting relegation to National 2 at the close of the recent season, has received a much more severe penalty: exclusion from all national competitions! This means the club, a recent participant in Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, is now set to play at the regional level next season, likely in Régional 1 (the sixth tier), at best.
The club does have the right to appeal this ruling.
Effectively relegated to the sixth division, Nîmes Olympique will, for the moment, cease to be a professional club. Competing at the regional level is a significant shift, marking a first in decades for this club which boasts a long history, including a spell in Ligue 1 from 2016 to 2021.
