Ineos Adds Swiss Soccer Team to Its Array of Noncore Investments

  • Jim Ratcliffe follows Belstaff buy with deeper tie to sports
  • Ineos: Lausanne will aim to qualify for European competitions

A Swiss Super League match between FC Lausanne-Sport and Grasshopper Club Zurich in Lausanne, Switzerland, on April 2, 2017. 

Photographer: Robert Hradil/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
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Ineos, the Anglo-Swiss chemical company that recently boughtBloomberg Terminal the fashion brand Belstaff, is adding a soccer club.

Although Ineos founder Jim Ratcliffe is a fan of the English Premier League stalwart Manchester United, he set his sights a little lower for his foray into team ownership. Ineos is buying Lausanne Football Club, which plays in front of crowds of 5,000 or so at a stadium that is 30 minutes’ drive from the company’s offices in Switzerland. The price paid to owner Alain Joseph wasn’t disclosed.