Pierre-Henri Deballon & DFCO: Why Not Donate to Associations?

In July 2024, Pierre-Henri Deballon bought DFCO, the Dijon football club (Côte-d’Or). As the team aims to move up to Ligue 2 this year, we wanted to find out more about the personality of this entrepreneur. Many describe a cash and relaxed man.

In the sometimes strict world of football, his profile stands out. Relaxed, talkative, easy to use, Pierre-Henri Deballon is an atypical president. That morning, the owner of the DFCO welcomed us to the Gaston-Gérard stadium between two meetings.

Arriving the same morning in Dijon (Côte-d’Or) from Paris where he lives, the 42-year-old man received us with a big smile, which he never parted with during our interview.

“I try to be relaxed, yes. The idea is not to take yourself too much for someone else and try to remain simple and accessible”the entrepreneur tells us. Several DFCO employees confirmed this trait of his character to us.

He is a very simple person who stands out in the world of football. It is refreshing

“He is also a very hardworking person, who sleeps little and thinks a lot. He is on all fronts and he likes to be up to date on things,” adds one of our interlocutors. “I’m still sleeping a little!” the person responds with a laugh while confirming the description. “Work is an important value for me. I think that work allows you to accomplish great things. It’s a family value that was passed on to me.”

Another adjective used by club employees to describe their president: “cash”. Opinion of the interested party: “Yes, I like to be transparent and say things. I think that when you explain things and say them clearly, with reasoning behind it, it helps things move forward.”

I tend to say things rather than keep them to myself and ruminate on them

Pierre-Henri Deballon, president of the DFCO

Relaxed, hard-working and cash-flowing, it is perhaps this recipe that allowed Pierre-Henri Deballon to succeed in the business world. In parallel with the DFCO, the man is still at the head of his company Weezevent, specializing in online ticketing. A company created in 2008 and which today represents more than 30 million tickets sold each year around the world.

This hyperactive therefore divides his life between Paris and Dijon, returning to Côte-d’Or every DFCO match day. “I divide myself between the two activities to come regularly to Dijon, because it is important to be able to embody the project, to be present for the partners, for the communities, for the teams. So, that makes me an excellent customer of the SNCF!”

I have discussions all day long with the teams… On the sports side, asking the communication, marketing and sponsorship teams. It’s a lot of remote and on-site work

Pierre-Henri Deballon, president of the DFCO

And when he goes to Dijon, the business manager sleeps… with his parents. “It’s a little Proust madeleine. It has a nice side, it allows me to see them a lot more. I’m lucky to have a close-knit family, it’s an important benchmark for me, so it also allows me to keep my feet on the ground.”

Keep your feet on the ground, of course. But for many years, Pierre-Henri Deballon rather had his hands on the ball. Now involved in the world of football, the entrepreneur has long been a handball goalkeeper, notably playing in the second division for two years.

“When you are a goalkeeper, you cannot hide. You take shots. This role is quite close to that of a business manager, because you are in a collective. But you have a somewhat unique position, a little isolated, with high responsibility and a lot of visibility.”

It’s not insignificant that as a kid I decided to go and put myself in the goals. This is what I like to do: carry out projects, be at the heart of a team. Face difficulties too.

Pierre-Henri Deballon

president of the DFCO

A sport which also forged the character of Pierre-Henri Deballon. “Handball has this simple side. Sometimes in football, we tended to act like divas, that seemed a little too much to me. Handball serves that purpose, to bring me back to simplicity and common sense. At DFCO, we are lucky to have players who are not divas and who are open to the public, to partners. That’s the image we want to give: we want to be accessible people.”

Born in Dijon, Pierre-Henri Deballon studied Economics and Management at the University of Burgundy and was also immersed in the world of football, thanks to his father. “The first memory I have of Gaston-Gérard is of coming to put up partner panels the year of the rise to Ligue 2 (in 2004, Editor’s note) because my father had a sign company.”

It is this local attachment which pushed Pierre-Henri Deballon to buy the DFCO in July 2024. A decision of the heart, more than a choice of reason. “It’s the worst possible financial investment! There’s a cool expression that says ‘how to become a millionaire? You have to be a billionaire and buy a football club!’ I really do it out of passion. I have the opportunity to give back to Dijon what Dijon gave me, by trying to give people pleasure.”

Taking over a club that moved from Ligue 1 to the National between 2021 and 2023, a real bet that some close to Pierre-Henri Deballon did not all initially understand. “My mother said to me ‘why don’t you give all this money to associations that could have an impact, help people? Football, there’s too much money’. I explained to her that there was also a social reason, because there are people whose only pleasure is to come to the stadium”the entrepreneur tells us.

My company is much bigger than what DFCO is today, but when I talk to people, very quickly, the discussion turns around football

Pierre-Henri Deballon, president of the DFCO

Relaunching the DFCO, bringing it back to Ligue 2 as quickly as possible and filling the Gaston-Gérard stadium again is almost a priesthood for Pierre-Henri Deballon. “It’s still a bit of a crazy betconcedes the entrepreneur. I didn’t sleep well, sometimes I regretted it, I don’t know if I’ll make it. I know it’s very hard. But when I say to myself ‘why are you doing it?’ That’s why, it’s to one day have a stadium that vibrates. I want to try to recreate emotions for the people of Dijon!”

A year and a half after the takeover of DFCO, Pierre-Henri Deballon has never been so close to succeeding in his bet. Dijon is currently at the top of the National rankings and is one of the favorites to move up to Ligue 2. Essential for the economic future of the club.