On 1 January 2017, the Lou Rugby Matmut Stadium was transferred from Vénissieux to Gerland, as expressly stipulated in the lease between the City of Lyon and the Lou Rugby team.
As part of the new emphyteutic lease (very long term) between the City of Lyon and Lou Rugby concerning the Gerland site, Lou Rugby will be responsible for a public-interest assignment in promoting and developing sports activities and will also have the more comprehensive task of developing the Gerland site in line with urban planning regulations in force. Lou Rugby will invest more than 60 million euros in this project, which will result in the emergence of a new urban area focused on sports activities, and will provide the club with a new home in Lyon.
This contract was signed for a 60-year period in the presence of the Mayor of Lyon, Mr Gérard Colomb, the Chairman of GL Events, Mr Olivier Ginon, and the CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre Lyon teams. Thanks to this project, LOU will play its next TOP 14 match – on 21 January 2017 against Grenoble – in the Matmut Stadium de Gerland.
Project counsel
The City of Lyon was assisted by CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre Lyon – Michaël Karpenschif (public law partner) for negotiations and the drafting of the various legal deeds to move Lou Rugby to Gerland and Delphine Martin-Picod (tax law partner) for issues related to the VAT scheme for the project's various operations – and by Dominique Bremens and Marc Van Gorp of the the notary office of Bremens Associés Notaires.
