Textor formed Eagle Football Holdings between 2021 and 2022 to build a global football network, including a majority stake in Olympique Lyonnais, a storied French soccer club. Iconic Sports invested $75 million for a 15.7% stake, with the understanding that Eagle would soon go public through a merger valued at $1.2 billion.
In a blistering federal lawsuit, John Textor, CEO of Eagle Football Holdings Ltd., has launched legal action against prominent financiers and a sports investment entity, claiming he was duped into a complex $75 million stock agreement tied to a SPAC merger that, he argues, was always destined to fail.
Filed in Florida federal court on Friday, the lawsuit targets Iconic Sports Eagle Investment LLC—sponsor of Iconic Sports Acquisition Corp.—and its high-profile backers, James G. Dinan of York Capital and Milwaukee Bucks fame, and Alexander Knaster, head of Pamplona Capital Management. Textor accuses the defendants of misleading him about their ability to take Eagle public via a SPAC (Special Purpose Acquisition Company) merger, even as Knaster was allegedly burdened with sanctions for ties to Russian oligarchs.
