Le Mans: Club backed by Novak Djokovic, Thibaut Courtois and Felipe Massa on verge of Ligue 1

Back now, manager Patrick Videira has the club in second place in Ligue 2 with just a game to go – and back-to-back promotions of course.

Consolidation into the second tier was intended after promotion from the Nationals, an amateur division, the previous summer.

“If, as a goal, you set an obligation to go up, it’s best not to go too fast and not reach that goal,” says Gomez.

But Oliveira is clear about the direction of the club’s journey: “I would say that in seven years our goal is to consolidate Ligue 1 (a place) to be one of the top 10 academies in France and to have a brand recognized in world football.”

To increase “branding and sponsorship”, Oliveira has been influenced by Italian side Como, which he considers to be the benchmark in this domain.

Inspiration, however, will not be drawn from clubs like Chelsea.

Le Mans has now entered a multi-club (MCO) model with Coritiba. And although, at present, Outfield has no plans to acquire more clubs, such organizations are viewed with suspicion in France.

D Anti-Bluco protests in Strasbourg A full takeover of Black Knight Football Club (BKFC) earlier this season has been contested – Bill Foley’s consortium also owns Bournemouth.

“We don’t like to see ourselves as a traditional MCO structure in the outfield. (At BluCo) you can clearly see that there is a pyramid and everyone involved is working up the club,” Olivera said.

“It’s the same with City (Groupe) and Red Bull. We don’t want to be like that and that’s why we’re establishing this horizontal model.”

Gomez spoke about “preserving the identity of the club”, adding: “The first objective of the investor is to understand the club he invests in, to understand its identity, to be close to local actors, whether it’s business, supporters, the wider public.”

Growing that fanbase is also on the long list of objectives. In the wider region, there are Rennes, Nantes, Angers, Lorient and Brest to compete with.

Such competition presents challenges to the sport – particularly in relation to the acquisition of youth talent – and potentially limits the scope for growing support.

But the goal is to make Le Mans known for something beyond its 24-hour race, all while harnessing that rich motorsport heritage.

Massa and Magnussen, it is hoped, will help “create a narrative” around the club, whose grounds lie in the middle of the famous circuit; It’s a sellable, but to be successful, it must be substantive.

In a city famous for endurance racing, Le Mans’ new owners are looking to create a project that will last.