2026 Municipal Elections. Jean-Michel Aulas: “I want Lyon to reconnect with its history”

He is not yet a candidate, but Jean-Michel Aulas reveals a little more about himself in the columns of La Tribune , this Sunday, August 24. Where he affirms that he aspires to "act fairly" and to "bring a broad base" for Lyon.

In this column, which focuses on the connections between sport and society, the vice-president of the French Football Federation (FFF) looks back on his 35 years at the head of the OL institution, this "human, economic, social and political adventure."

A football club, he says, is "a 'school of life,' where 'all sensibilities exist in the stands.' Where 'there are those who sing on the left, those who grumble on the right, those who come for the club, for the neighborhood, or for an escape from everyday life.' "If it is well governed," believes Jean-Michel Aulas, "this mixture becomes a force."

On a more political level, he says he defends himself against "ignoring the realities of the city; worse, against having been complacent towards ideas that [he] fights against." A "simplicity" that would say "much of our time: amalgams, caricatures, insults erected as a method. Those who cling to them reveal their own feverishness."

He insists: "Giving in to extremes means shrinking the city. The quest for a sustainable environment, which should bring people together, cannot turn into fanaticism without betraying its purpose and weakening both our living environment and our collective well-being."

Jean-Michel Aulas believes that "the coming weeks will be decisive in charting this path […] A city does not exist by denying its culture and its history: it is its vital breath, its discreet cement. I want Lyon to reconnect with its history and make culture not an adjustment variable, but a priority, because it is what connects, inspires and gives meaning to collective action."

The question now is when the 76-year-old former OL manager will officially declare his candidacy.