Commitments

The Jean-Luc Lagardère Foundation:
a commitment to serving sports and culture

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A commitment to supporting sports

A passion for sports is part of Lagardère's identity and history. In the past, the group distinguished itself in two main areas: auto racing and football.

In 1969, Jackie Stewart won the Formula 1 World Championship in a Matra MS 80, while in 1972, 1973 and 1974, Henri Pescarolo triumphed at the Le Mans 24-Hour Rally in his “670.”

These race cars became a showcase for the group’s technological know-how. The adventure continued eight years on with the purchase of a football club, renamed Matra Racing, which rose to the first division.


The group has stayed true to its passions, but has modernized its approach. Today, Arnaud Lagardère demonstrates his commitment to sports by implementing a comprehensive strategy that is at once both democratic and elitist.

His aim is to allow the many who enjoy sports as a leisure activity to devote themselves to it more fully, while offering the few who compete at a very high level to prepare themselves more effectively.

In light of this, the Lagardère group has adopted an innovative, cross-disciplinary approach: promoting a number of sports, not only through traditional sponsorship but also by directly investing financial resources to develop new possibilities and make them available to the world of sports.

• The creation of TeamLagardère is the first symbol of this commitment. This training facility and centre of scientific expertise applied to sports at the highest level aims to optimize methods of preparing sportsmen and -women for performance through a quality-based approach to training. In order to achieve this, TeamLagardère has access to unparalleled human and material resources. This recently created, multi-purpose facility is currently developing skills primarily involving two sports, tennis and athletics. Its aim, however, is twofold: to gradually broaden its scope to include other sports, and to disseminate the knowledge it has acquired so as to make it available to as many people as possible.
  
  
  
  
• The development of exceptional sporting facilities is the second main focus of the group's approach. The success of any sports-related project depends on the quality of the places and facilities where it takes place. In taking over the concession for the Croix Catelan sports complex, in developing a partnership with the organization that runs Jean-Bouin stadium and in leasing and equipping the Sophia-Antipolis site, the group has a single objective: to make the most of some exceptional sites, which then become settings where athletes working at the highest levels find the facilities they need to improve their performance and boost their preparation. However, these also remain places where leisure-time sporting activities can be developed with a new degree of energy.
  
  
  
  
• Creating new dynamics is always a priority for the group. Lagardère's sporting ambitions are only valid if they bring together as many partners as possible, including high-level athletes and various clubs and federations. At present, eight athletes and 18 tennis players, from young hopefuls to France’s best players, benefit from TeamLagardère’s support. Partnerships have been signed with the country’s rugby, athletics and table tennis federations, as well as with the Paris Judo Club. Looking at things from an economic point of view, TeamLagardère’s Partners’ Club allows companies that support the concept to associate their name and image with the project. Sony, Subaru and Le Coq Sportif are just some of the firms that have already done so.
  
  
  
  
• The final focus area involves the promotion of sporting events. In this area as well, Lagardère is motivated by a determination to go as far beyond mere sponsorship as possible. For the last three years, for example, the group has organized the Jean-Luc Lagardère Trophy, a tennis tournament that forms part of the ATP Seniors Tour, bringing together eight of the greatest former players in world tennis for a two-day competition at Jean-Bouin stadium in Paris. In the same vein, the group has become the official partner of the Paris World Juniors - Lagardère Trophy international tournament for young tennis players aged 16 and under, which takes place every summer at the Croix Catelan centre. And two years ago, the group signed a partnership with the French Tennis Federation, making it an official partner of the French Open at Roland Garros stadium.

A commitment to cultural service

In the cultural domain, The Jean-Luc Lagardère Foundation exists to promote, on a day-to-day basis, the values of the man whose name it bears. The human element is always at the core of its concerns, as it urges individuals to go beyond their limits, make that extra effort and remain open to others. By extending the group's activities to disadvantaged neighbourhoods, its approach combines two objectives: making the widest possible range of knowledge available to all and allowing every individual to realize his or her potential.



Its activities focus on three main areas:

Encouraging creativity. There is never a lack of talent, but sometimes the means of expressing it are in short supply. Armed with this observation, the foundation acts to allow those with projects in mind to bring them to fruition and to offer people with creative ambitions the opportunity to express them. This is the aim of the Talent Grants in particular, which are awarded to young achievers every year.

Supporting research. Culture is not only about art: it is also about acquiring and enriching knowledge. By creating a partnership with the Supélec Foundation, the Jean-Luc Lagardère Foundation is able to target its assistance specifically at young doctoral students by supporting them through the completion of their theses.


Boosting solidarity. The foundation is not only concerned with promoting excellence; it also pursues a mission to help those who are in greatest need. This commitment takes various forms, such as humanizing hospital environments (e.g. the creation of and continued support for the media library at the Maison de Solenn centre for teenagers) and supporting access to sports in disadvantaged neighbourhoods as a means of social integration.



To find out more about the Jean-Luc Lagardère Foundation, please visit the foundation's website.eacute;.