Small Town, Big Dreams: N’Golo Kanté Buys Belgian Club Royal Excelsior Virton

Former Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kanté has completed the purchase of Royal Excelsior Virton, a third-tier Belgian team.

The acquisition was confirmed in a statement on Thursday, following Flavio Becca’s decision to sell the club to the 32-year-old Frenchman.

Kanté, who recently made a lucrative move to Saudi Arabian champions Al-Ittihad, expressed his enthusiasm for taking over the club and emphasized his commitment to strengthening its foundations, stabilizing its staff, and revitalizing the RE Virton’s Youth Academy.

The club aims to establish strong local roots and become a prominent force in Gaume and the province of Luxembourg. Despite Virton’s relegation from Belgium’s second-tier league, the Challenger Pro League, during the 2022-23 season, the club claims to be debt-free.

Alex Hayes, a former journalist and agent, currently serves as the chief executive, but a new board of directors is expected to be appointed soon.

Kanté joins the growing list of celebrity football club owners, following the recent partnership between Wilfried Zaha and rapper Stormzy in the purchase of AFC Croydon Athletic.

Notably, David Beckham, a renowned player turned owner, made a similar acquisition with Inter Miami, a team in Major League Soccer