Manchester United are on track to bring Champions League football back to Old Trafford but that is where the success stories end for Ineos.
Following a club-worst 15th-place finish in the Premier League last season, there was huge pressure for Manchester United to improve in 2025/26.
Thanks to a resurgence of form under Michael Carrick, United are now up to third and on track to qualify for the Champions League. Domestic cup competitions did not go to plan, though, with United crashing out of the Carabao Cup and FA Cup at the first hurdle against Grimsby Town and Brighton.
Under Ineos ownership, United are part of a multi-club network with Ligue 1 outfit Nice and Swiss side FC Lausanne as sister clubs. Their 2025/26 seasons have certainly not been as successful.
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Nice and FC Lausanne battling relegation
At one point this season, United in title race didn’t look too far-fetched.
The same cannot be said for sister clubs Nice and FC Lausanne, who have both been more concerned with the threat of relegation.
With the March international break now here, it is a good time to assess their seasons and see how they have performed under Ineos ownership.
In Ligue 1, Nice are sitting 15th in the table, just two positions above the relegation zone. It seems they will avoid the drop, though as they are 10 points clear of Nantes in 17th.
Nice also crashed out of the Europa League in the group stage after winning just one of their eight matches.
As for Lausanne, the Swiss Super League drops the bottom six sides into a relegation round. As Lausanne are ninth in the table after 31 games, they are destined to play in the relegation matches.
Lausanne made it into the play-off rounds of the Conference League but were beaten 3-2 on aggregate by Czech side Sigma.
Sekou Kone LEFT OUT of Lausanne’s Conference League squad 📉 Are Ineos to blame?
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How Nice and FC Lausanne have reacted to Ineos ownership
As recently as December, Nice fans were protesting and players were even attacked by supporters who boarded the team bus.
Just like United, Nice also changed manager this season, with Claude Puel now in charge of the French side after taking over from Franck Haise.
As per Swiss outlet BlueWin, Lausanne manager Peter Zeidler was also under huge pressure and, back in September, he admitted that: “The situation is serious.”
Zeidler remained in charge of Lausanne, but he is now under pressure to keep the club in the Swiss Super League.
It is fair to say that United have been Ineos’ only success story from their multi-club football network, although Champions League football is not yet 100 percent secured.
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