Chapter 193: Big news from Karren Brady (Adidas and Bordeaux)

Bernard Tapie Has Finally Agreed to Sell Adidas!

The following week in Brescia, Richard was unexpectedly unable to carry out his original plans—thanks to Adidas.

The long-rumored decision by Bernard Tapie, the flamboyant French tycoon and politician, to sell his stake in Adidas has finally been confirmed.

Just moments ago, Tapie officially agreed to sell his controlling interest in Adidas A.G., closing one of the most closely watched Chapters in European business history.

Speculation that Mr. Tapie would sell Adidas had been mounting since the tousle-haired, 49-year-old industrialist was elected to the National Assembly on the Socialist ticket and appointed Minister of Urban Affairs in late November last year.

In the media, Tapie acknowledged that he would eventually have to choose between politics and business after committing to an active role in government over the coming years.

His case is especially remarkable as he remains a rare example of a successful French politician without formal party affiliation.

This decision does not necessarily signal a definitive end to his political or business ambitions. Rather, it appears driven by the urgent need to stabilize his heavily indebted primary business empire, Bernard Tapie Finance S.A., which currently carries $723 million in debt—much of it accrued to support his political campaign.

Following intense, back-to-back negotiations with Karren Brady—representing Maddox Capital—Bernard Tapie Finance S.A. has officially announced an agreement to sell its shares in Adidas to Maddox Capital, beating out Britain’s Pentland Group P.L.C., which had also been vying for the stake.

In the end, it was Maddox Capital’s bold offer of 2.8 billion francs ($500 million) in an upfront payment that sealed the deal and outpaced Pentland.

When Richard unfolded the morning newspaper and saw the photo of Bernard Tapie and Karren Brady shaking hands, a quiet smile of satisfaction spread across his face.

The long hours of negotiation had finally paid off. Richard hadn’t even needed to step in—Karren Brady had handled everything flawlessly. Though the process took longer than he had anticipated, he sighed. It was a reminder of the luxury that comes with having truly competent people by your side.

With this deal, Maddox Capital has finally managed to acquire 79.95% of Adidas, the third-largest sporting goods company after Nike and Reebok. As a result of the agreement, Maddox Capital will now enter the sportswear manufacturing industry.

Adidas’ current shareholders:

Maddox Capital (79.95%)

Britain’s Pentland Group P.L.C. (20.05%)

For the financing, Richard appointed Taylor Smith from Barclays to oversee the transaction, while on the other side of the table, Bernard Tapie Finance S.A. partnered with Crédit Agricole and Crédit Lyonnais to manage its end of the deal.

Today, a representative from Britain’s Pentland Group arrived to meet with him, accompanied by Karren Brady herself.

Richard himself was accompanied by Marina Granovskaia, who had arrived in Brescia at his request.

Pentland’s chairman, Stephen Rubin—who had sold his group’s 32 percent stake in Reebok International for $777 million the previous year—noted that Adidas remained one of the world’s most recognized trademarks.

He shook Richard’s hand firmly. "Despite disappointing recent results, we’re confident there are strong prospects for improving its performance," he said, locking eyes with Richard.

Richard could sense the disappointment in his voice. To be honest, Pentland had been planning to acquire Adidas for quite some time, especially as the brand began to experience a decline in profits. However, no one expected Maddox Capital to come in with a last-minute bid that changed everything.

Well, they missed their chance because they didn’t have the guts to make a move on Adidas like Richard did.

"We’re on the same page as Chairman Rubin. I know we’ll work together moving forward to make Adidas the number one brand in the world."

Soon, the meeting began.

As Richard read the financial report, he muttered to himself, "Hmm... the turnover was $2.3 billion."

Adidas had also seen its profits fall sharply—from $135.9 million to $66.4 million last year—ever since Tapie entered politics, which had left the company’s operations in complete disarray.

Not as bad as the Rover Group, but Adidas had its own problems. The privately held company had lost significant market share as aggressive new competitors entered the market.

In short, Adidas’s profits had shriveled largely due to two fierce competitors: Nike and Reebok International Ltd. The situation was especially difficult in the United States, where Reebok and newcomers like L.A. Gear Inc. had gained ground at Adidas’s expense.

Now, as the largest shareholder in Adidas, Richard had two options: use his future knowledge to restore Adidas’s greatness, or hand full control over to Pentland, who had tried and failed to acquire Adidas because of Richard.

Seeing Richard’s silence, Pentland’s finance director, Frank Farrant, spoke up: "We have expertise in distribution and Far East sourcing, which will allow us to increase Adidas’s profitability." He paused, then continued, "This important decision—though not easy—was made to ensure that efforts to improve Adidas’s competitiveness can continue."

"Do you have a clear plan to grow Adidas?" Richard finally asked.

"Yes," came the confident reply.

In summary, Pentland’s mission for Adidas is to revitalize the brand, expand sales across Eastern Europe, and potentially launch shares on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. Beyond athletic footwear, Adidas is also a leading name in sporting equipment, including apparel and balls.

They highlighted that the finalists of the World Cup—West Germany and Argentina—were fully outfitted in Adidas gear. Moreover, Adidas’s subsidiary, ISL, manages marketing for major global events such as the Olympic Games, the World Cup, and many others.

"This business holds tremendous potential for profitability now that the succession issues have been resolved," Director Farrant remarked. "Despite recent challenges, Adidas represents an exciting financial and industrial opportunity."

"Is that so?" Richard said softly before closing the financial report folder.

After a moment of reflection, Richard finally decided it was better to let Adidas grow along the trajectory it was already on—aligned with the future he envisioned.

From his perspective, if he intervened too much, Adidas might continue to thrive in traditional sports like football and others. But the company’s future wasn’t just about performance sports anymore. Adidas was evolving, branching into lifestyle and culture—think Yeezy or the collaborations with artists like Kanye West.

Richard understood that Adidas’s future success would increasingly depend on the fusion of sports, fashion, creativity, and innovation. Trying to control it too tightly could stifle that organic growth.

He might not be able to intervene directly, but he could accelerate Adidas’s profitability by initiating collaborations with bands like Oasis or Radiohead. For that, he needed to contact his brother, Harry, later.

So, he resolved to support Adidas’s existing path, allowing the brand to develop naturally while keeping an eye on new opportunities to push boundaries and redefine the sportswear industry.

"Maddox Capital will only take control of the shares but will not intervene in the operations of Adidas," Richard said decisively. Then he added firmly, "The Pentland Group will continue managing their part as they see fit. Our role is strategic ownership, not day-to-day management."

After all, the Pentland Group themselves are specialists in the sportswear industry, with an established portfolio that includes well-known brands like Speedo swimwear and Pony International shoes.

This background gives them a clear advantage in understanding the unique challenges and opportunities of the sportswear market, making them a natural fit to steer Adidas toward renewed success.

Let the experts take care of Adidas and allow the brand to grow naturally, following the path it was meant to take.

Hearing this, Chairman Rubin and Director Farrant were visibly pleased.

They had traveled all the way to Italy primarily to persuade Richard to let them handle the day-to-day operations.

Since Richard was the largest shareholder, they hadn’t been entirely confident at first. But upon hearing his decision, they breathed a sigh of relief.

After wrapping up the Adidas deal, all that was left was to wait for finalization.

Richard had already handed everything over to Taylor Smith from Barclays to manage the financial side, so he wasn’t worried.

"I know, but the alignment process and due diligence alone will take anywhere from four to nine months. Especially since Adidas is a large international company with national and possibly EU-level interests, some regulatory oversight and board approvals will be required," Karren Brady said reassuringly, as Richard asked her about the deal’s timeline.

Hearing this, Richard was finally reassured. He no longer felt anxious about how to finance the Adidas acquisition later.

With the timeline clearly laid out and the Netscape IPO set to happen first, he knew everything was falling into place—just as he had planned.

Done with that, Richard then scheduled a meeting.

For the first time, he was preparing for a personal high-level discussion. Although it was meant to be informal, he was taking it very seriously.

Present at the meeting were Karren Brady and Marina Granovskaia—two formidable negotiators Richard was hoping to cultivate as his left and right hands in the City one day.

Richard’s mouth twitched slightly as he looked at the two women seated in front of him. It was as if sparks were flying between them.

One had a singular purpose and a burning desire to become successful, while the other had been trained to be successful.

Richard then decided to ask Karren Brady first. "What about Bordeaux? How’s the situation there?"

Originally, Richard’s plan was to buy FC Girondins de Bordeaux himself, but there were risks involved.

Since Bordeaux is based in Europe and operates within the same footballing landscape as Manchester City, there was a potential for backlash.

In the end—thanks to an idea suggested by Miss Brady—he decided that as long as she could persuade the current owner of Bordeaux, M6, he would support her. He agreed to give her the freedom to run the club, as long as he could retain overall control behind the scenes—an arrangement she accepted.

When she told Richard how she managed to persuade CEO Joseph DaGrosa, the current owner of Groupe M6, Richard took a deep breath, while Marina Granovskaia’s expression changed—as if she had just found a reason to show respect to this mad woman.

Let’s pause here for a moment...

Just meeting someone influential and learning how to run a football club is not enough to get her to where she is now—agreeing to become Bordeaux’s CEO with M6.

So, what she did to convince Joseph DaGrosa was first to show how FC Girondins de Bordeaux could generate money, especially since the club had already been declared bankrupt and faced relegation if they couldn’t bring their finances back to a sustainable level.

In these four months, Karren helped DaGrosa and Groupe M6 sell their shares to the public via an Initial Public Offering (IPO), allowing them to cash out their investment profitably.

In other words, she managed the process that made it possible for the owners to sell their stake in the club on the stock market, turning their ownership into liquid assets (cash or marketable shares), usually at a significant financial gain.

So, how did she manage to persuade DaGrosa to sell his shares?

First, she used the millions Richard provided to demonstrate just how well-resourced she was.

Second, to close the deal, she guaranteed a successful outcome for FC Girondins de Bordeaux over the next five years—a guarantee she was not authorized to provide. She took all the risk upon herself and promised to repay their total investment if the club failed to win a single major trophy within five years.

Truly a crazy woman.

And what’s even crazier is—do you know who actually bought the shares from Groupe M6 when they sold their stake to the public?

It was City Football Group, or rather, the special vehicle that Richard originally planned to use to quietly acquire clubs in Europe.

With this arrangement, even though Richard did not officially own Bordeaux, he could indirectly control it as he pleased. And in accordance with the agreement, Richard did not hesitate to fulfill the promises he had made.

Another promise involved millions for Bordeaux to acquire Claude Makélélé and Patrick Vieira, pairing them with Zinedine Zidane.