Nissa Rugby's administrative demotion has been confirmed by A2R, French rugby's financial regulator, dropping the club from the professional Pro D2 tier it won on the pitch in May all the way down to Fédérale 3, the fourth level of French rugby, over its unresolved 4.5 million euro funding shortfall.
The scale of the fall prompted an emotional public appeal from the club's own players this week, addressed to all parties involved in the dispute, warning that behind the roughly 50 athletes the club employs sit 120 further staff, including coaches, physiotherapists and administrators, along with 850 registered members, many of them children who play at the club.
Nice mayor Éric Ciotti responded by capping the city's financial contribution at 3.5 million euros, telling ICI Azur the municipality had "gone to the maximum effort we can commit," and calling on the club's shareholders to cover a further 2.1 million euros beyond the 2.5 million euros already pledged by the SIE ownership structure. Ciotti pointed to what he called "excessive salaries" within the club's operations, calling on its leadership to build a "responsible" budget going forward. The club retains the right to appeal the demotion.