Dupey Sports Group
 | |
| Private | |
| Industry | Sports Investment |
| Founded | August 12, 1987 |
| Founder | Raymond Dupey Laurence Alemaine |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Raymond Dupey (CEO) Laurence Alemaine (Chairman) Adrian Dillion (President) |
| Subsidiaries | FC Hellingbourg Stade Aubert Dupey Sporting Goods Puckmaster Radix Sports Ts. |
| Website | dupeysportsgroup.com |
Dupey Sports Group, (DSG) is a Midrasian sports conglomerate based in the city of Berghelling.
DSG was founded in 1987 through the partnership of entrepreneur Raymond Dupey and hedge fund manager Laurence Alemaine who together purchased Midrasian sportswear manufacturer Radix. Dupey already owned sports retailer Dupey Sporting Goods which had been founded by his father in 1964 though was looking to expand his portfolio through the acquisition of the floundering manufacturer. The next major acquisition came in the year 2000 as Dupey bought out Cuirpthean tennis supplier Topspin which it has since re-branded as Ts. In 2004 the group purchased then Liga 2 side FC Hellingbourg along with the club's stadium then known as the Stade Aubert, marking its first investment in a physical sports team. The group further increased its reach in 2007 through the acquisition of Newreyan hockey supplier Puckmaster.
Today the group remains one of Midrasia's major sporting conglomerates and shows no sign of stopping its expansion. Rumours of the acquisition of another sporting team, be it rugby, hockey or football have been rife for some time and have not been outright denied by any major shareholder.
Business Interests
Dupey Sporting Goods
Dupey Sporting Goods was a long-established Midrasian sports retailer established by Maurice Dupey, father to Raymond Dupey. The company held a relatively large presence within the Midrasian market and was the primary source of Raymond's inherited wealth which allowed him to create the investment portfolio which established him as one of the country's most successful investors.
Ownership of Dupey Sporting Goods was transferred to Raymond upon Maurice's retirement in 1981. Under Raymond the company underwent considerable expansion becoming Midrasia's largest sports retailer and even established a moderate presence overseas in countries such as Cuirpthe and Newrey. In 1995 Dupey Sporting Goods launched its website and began to take online orders.
Radix
In 1987 Raymond Dupey and Laurence Alemaine teamed up to purchase ailing Midrasian sportswear manufacturer Radix for around Đ300 million. Combining the company with the existing sports retailer Dupey Sporting Goods the duo officially founded Dupey Sports Group as a holding company for their sports investments.
Prior to the purchase Radix had primarily been known for manufacturing football kits for teams within the lower leagues of the Midrasian footballing pyramid and was seen to be a 'budget' option relative to the more established brands such as Caribou and Nasby. Whilst under Dupey Radix was able to secure deals with a number of clubs, including several from Atresca and Renneque, as well as increase sales within its footwear range, it wasn't until Dupey's purchase of FC Hellingbourg that the brand underwent a resurgence.
Hellingbourg's promotion to Liga 1 in 2005 and regular top-half finishes from 2010 onward greatly enhanced the reputation of the brand. Additionally, the introduction of the Radix Classics product line, and ultimately the move to re-brand the company along the lines of the Classic range saw the company greatly increase its market share. A particular highlight of this expansion was an agreement between Radix and the Renneque national football team to manufacture kits for the Copa d'Aeia from 2016 onward. Nevertheless, in spite of the great strides made by the company, Radix continues to considerably lag behind its more established competition.
Ts.
Topspin was previously a Cuirpthean tennis supplier notable for manufacturing tennis rackets, balls, and attire. Dupey acquired a majority stake in the company in the year 2000 and took the decision to remove the company's listing on the Cuirpthean stock exchange, turning it into a private limited company. In order to bolster the reputation of the brand, Dupey sought to sponsor a number of high-profile athletes including Robert West and Alvara Sirera. From 2004 until 2013 Topspin was also the main shirt sponsor of Midrasian football team FC Hellingbourg, itself an entity of DSG.
In 2011 the decision was taken to re-brand Topspin to simply Ts. in preparation for the launch of a new line of clothing from the brand, unrelated to its origins in tennis. Ts. is now well known for its production of T-shirts, sneakers, hats, and jackets as well as its continued production of tennis attire and equipment.
FC Hellingbourg
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Dupey Sporting Group officially purchased FC Hellingbourg in August of 2004 when the team in Liga 2, having finished 7th in the previous season. Previously Hellingbourg had experienced considerable money trouble due to their regular promotion and relegation from the Midrasian top flight leading many of the team's top players to depart to more successful or stable teams. Dupey however, recognised the team's brand value within the region of Vaellenia and believed that with the right investment the team could become a regular top-half finisher within Liga 1 and could even play within the Asuran League attracting a global fan-base.
Immediately after purchase Dupey set about writing off over Đ20 million worth of debt that the club owed to the National Bank of Midrasia. The club's main sponsor was also changed from Metayer to the Dupey owned Topspin brand. Despite initial reports that the new owners were looking to replace existing manager Finnian Gourcuff, Dupey stated that they would stand by the manager and provide him with the necessary resources to fight for promotion. Acquisitions such as striker Perez Le Cam and midfielder Jean Hamon did little to improve the team's prospects, with Hellingbourg lying 9th in the table. By the winter break, Dupey announced that Gourcuff would leave the club with immediate effect to be replaced by Louis Darnique an up and coming manager who had previously held the reins at FC Bastile. The team's results improved considerably after this with the team finishing 5th and ensuring promotion to Liga 1 though the play-offs.
In Liga 1 Hellingbourg initially struggled, finishing 16th, 14th and 17th. Yet the club continued to stand by its manager Darnique, gradually investing into the squad in a responsible manner. The next season the club secured its best-ever finish for some time placing 8th. Dupey would eventually leave for FC Ibbené only to be replaced by Jordan Badeaux who was succeeded by current manager Marcus Melgaard in 2015. In 2020 Hellingbourg won the Copa de Mydra after beating Olympique de Lotrique by one goal to nil thanks to an 88th minute penalty converted by then 36-year-old striker Hugo Hunstad.
Stade Aubert
As part of the group's purchase of Hellingbourg, Dupey also sought to acquire the team's stadium the Stade Aubert which had previously been sold to the local council in order to help service the club's debts. Dupey purchased the stadium for the relatively low fee of Đ15 million on the agreement that it could still be used by the city for athletic events, thus requiring the retention of the athletics track which surrounded the pitch itself.
In 2009 Dupey Group announced they were looking to modernise the stadium with the introduction of more hospitality facilities as well as a general increase in capacity to 40,000.
In 2014 a sponsorship agreement was reached with Hellingbourg's new sponsor NorteBanque to rename the stadium to the Stade NorteBanque. This move was initially met with considerable hostility from the fan base, though an agreement to freeze ticket prices for the following five seasons saw most opposition die down.
In 2016 an agreement was reached with the city council to host concerts within the stadium.
In 2018 reports emerged suggesting that Dupey Group were considering the possibility of building a new stadium for the club with a reported capacity of around 45,000. Rumours suggested that an impasse had been reached between Dupey and the local council over the status of the athletics track which poses a considerable barrier to further development of the stadium. It has been suggested that Dupey will seek to sell the Stade NorteBanque back to Berghelling council whilst building a new stadium within the Gwennpark district on the outskirts of the city. Dupey Group has since denied these rumours.
Puckmaster
In 2007 Dupey Sports Group expanded its portfolio by purchasing Newreyan hockey supplier Puckmaster for around Đ150 million. This marked Dupey's first foray into the hockey market and led to them being linked with the purchase of a number of professional hockey teams, akin to the group's previous purchase of FC Hellingbourg.
Since it's purchase the Puckmaster brand has endured little growth remaining relatively stagnant with many critics suggesting that Dupey's primary focus has been the development of the Ts. brand along with its ownership of FC Hellingbourg.