The Metropolitans will be there

This time for sure Metropolitans 92 will play well in Betclic Elite next season. After long weeks of hesitation and a threat of cessation of activity, the vice-champion club of France will remain in the elite. “We continue, we will have a team with a budget of 5 million euros and more if affinity”, assures Luc Monnet, chairman of the board of directors of the company Boulogne-Billancourt Sport Development (BBSD), owner of the Metropolitans 92, in the columns of the Parisian.

Despite the cash inflows following the draft of Victor Wembanyama and Bilal Coulibaly, but also the transfer of Armel Traoré to Blois, the sale of “Wemby” jerseys and ticketing revenue from matches relocated to the Accor Arena and Roland-Garros, the Hauts-de-Seine club said it needed 2 million euros to start again. The problem seems to have been resolved.

Only one player under contract and no coach

“We were strongly encouraged to continue by the world of basketball, the Federation and the League, continues Monnet. We have a good machine and we will be able to respond even if the context is complicated and it is not easy to find money. We must not forget that last year, before the arrival of Victor (The animal), we didn’t know if we were going to leave. I am proud of what we have accomplished in Boulogne over the past two seasons. »

Last summer, the Metropolitans club had indeed been on the verge of getting closer to that of Nanterre, which is no longer relevant at all today. Boulogne-Levallois, who will not play in the European Cup next season, his file having been rejected by the Eurocup, will now have to find a coach and players. Vincent Collet has indeed given up his place on the bench to devote himself 100% to the France team, and the name of former international Laurent Foirest, who coached Quimper for six years, is cited by The Parisian. On the player side, only Lahaou Konaté is under contract for 2023-24. As the season kicks off on September 16 against promoted St-Quentin, the countdown is on.