John Textor isn’t going down without a legal fight against Michele Kang.
On Monday, Textor sued Kang in Florida state court for at least $400 million, saying damages are “believed to be in well excess” of that amount when taking into consideration interest, attorneys’ fees, and other costs.
The complaint comes a little less than one month after Kang, who owns the Washington Spirit, reached an agreement to buy Olympique Lyonnais, in a deal that would sever the French soccer club’s ties to Textor’s Eagle Football Holdings. Through Eagle Football Holdings, Textor also holds stakes in Brazil’s Botafogo and Belgium’s RWDM Brussels.
Textor’s lawsuit features seven counts, including defamation, fraudulent concealment, and civil conspiracy. It formally alleges what he has previously said in public: that Kang tricked him into handing her operational control of Lyon under the guise of a friendly business partnership, while at the same time entering into a “secret” side agreement with private-credit firm Ares, which has lent millions to Eagle Football Holdings, that established a “shadow board.” In February, Textor told Front Office Sports this all represented “one hell of a power play.”
A spokesperson for Kang said in an email to FOS “we are aware of the complaint.”
