Whether or not INEOS make a healthy return on their investment in fallen Premier League giants Manchester United remains to be seen, but at the other club owned by Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s company, OGC Nice, there’s absolute carnage.
French football has always been full of uncertainty and there’s always a crisis around the corner somewhere—regular Ligue 1 followers can attest to this. And as the winter break approaches during the 2025–26 season, it’s OGC Nice who are further tarnishing the image of what is an attractive but unstructured championship.
To understand how a club, who have the fifth biggest budget in Ligue 1 and have regularly performed well over the past few seasons, could be plunged into a situation where players are being physically assaulted by supporters, you have to go back to the first few weeks of the season.
Nice qualified for the preliminary rounds of the Champions League thanks to a fourth-place finish during 2024–25, but were swiftly eliminated by Portuguese giants Benfica. The club’s recruitment was immediately called into question and it soon became apparent that there were structural issues as well as on-field problems—namely grave concern over how the club could balance their books.
A net loss of €64 million was posted in 2023 and the need to get some money in saw five major departures sanctioned in the summer—Evann Guessand to Aston Villa, Marcin Bułka to NEOM SC, Badredine Bouanani to VfB Stuttgart, Gaëtan Laborde to Al-Diraiyah and Pablo Rosario to FC Porto. It’s been a downward spiral from there.
Poor Recruitment and a Disaster in Europe
After a slow start to the season, Nice found some confidence and rhythm and sat just three points off second place in Ligue 1 heading into Matchday 10. But things have fallen apart since then.
In November, they lost six matches across all competitions, gutting any hope of continental qualification for next season, and they are now firmly in the midst of a relegation battle. The 3–1 defeat to Lorient at the weekend highlighted how their transfer window has negatively impacted them; of the eight signings made in the summer, only two—Yehvann Diouf and Tiago Gouveia—were in the starting lineup.
They’ve also become a laughing stock in Europe, seemingly going through a complete identity crisis rather than just a results-based one. They haven’t picked up a single point in the Europa League and, worse still, are now on a run of 17 games on the continent without a win. Mocked back in France, they are a shadow of their former selves. After the 3–1 defeat to German side Freiburg in October, manager Franck Haise let loose a press conference.
“I’m sick and tired of losing games,” he said bluntly.
A Manager Ready to Walk Out
A month and a half later after a crushing defeat against Porto, Haise indicated in a press conference he was ready to resign. “Of course I’m questioning myself. The club’s directors can tell you that, because I offered to be the shock treatment a few days ago, after Marseille. I said to myself, ‘If that’s what it takes, I’m ready to accept it.’ But it seems that, for now, that’s not the solution.
“I’m getting back on track with my players, my staff and the club. If I have to be the fuse, I will be. It will be for the good of the club. Today, since that’s not the solution, I’m fighting with our weapons, with mine. I’ll keep fighting as long as I’m at the helm of Nice.”
The truth of the matter is, sacking Haise would cost Nice a fortune. With his contract extended last September until 2029, he would be entitled to 43 times his approximate €200,000 a month salary—or €8.6 million (£7.6 million/$10 million)—if no amicable agreement is reached. It’s not a smart move to make for a club that wants to reduce its net losses.
Last weekend’s defeat in Lorient further fueled the fire. This time, it was the club’s supporters who expressed their dissatisfaction. At the final whistle, a confrontation took place between the players, led by Sofiane Diop, and the supporters who had made the trip to Brittany. Peaceful but heated, this interaction was only the prelude to an evening that would take a dark and violent turn.
Players Punched by Angry Suppoters
As reported by the French newspaper L’Équipe on Tuesday, about 400 supporters were waiting for Nice’s players to arrive back at the club’s training centre on Sunday evening. As they were about to get back to their personal vehicles to return home, the players were accosted by violent individuals who had come to express their dissatisfaction.
In addition to receiving verbal abuse, two players, Terem Moffi and Jeremie Boga, a Chelsea academy graduate, were reportedly punched by their supporters. Struck on the head, chest and genitals, as well as spat on, the two players bore the brunt of frustration. ESPN report they have since been given time off.
Moffi is said to have angered supporters by sharing a joke with the president of Lorient, his former club, after the game, per L’Équipe. Marseille-born Boga, meanwhile, reportedly infuriated supporters by giving tickets to some of his relatives, who support Marseille, for the derby.
Florian Maurice, Nice’s sporting director, was also targeted by the angry fans.
Nice, surprisingly, waited 24 hours to issue a statement on what happened, posting on Monday evening: “On Sunday, upon their return from Lorient, the Aiglons were greeted by a large crowd outside the training and education centre. The club understands the frustration generated by a series of poor performances and displays that fall short of its values.
“However, the excesses observed during this gathering are unacceptable. Several club members were targeted. OGC Nice offers them its full support and condemns these acts in the strongest possible terms.”
Silence From INEOS
On Tuesday morning, the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP), the equivalent of the FA in England, took a more dramatic stance with a damning statement.
“The LFP condemns in the strongest possible terms the acts of violence committed against the players and staff of OGC Nice. These attacks, which are totally unacceptable, undermine the integrity of those involved in the game and the values of football. The LFP announces that it will be a civil party in the complaints filed by the players, in order to fully support their action and help shed light on these serious events.
“The LFP expresses its full support for the players concerned and OGC Nice, and reaffirms its determination to guarantee the safety of all those involved in football.”
INEOS have remained silent to this point and Ratcliffe, potentially focusing on events at Old Trafford with United, has been more discreet than ever in Nice. It’s led to finger pointing in French media that an absence of leadership and management could be to blame for current events. Editorialist Daniel Riolo told RMC Sport: “When you reach such a state of decline, it means that nothing is being managed within an institution. It means there is a deep malaise.”
French football is no stranger to crises, but this one seems particularly deep.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Players Punched, Fans Rioting: The Unthinkable Chaos at Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s OGC Nice.
