French businessman Bernard Tapie — also a former politician and  chairman of soccer club Olympique de Marseille — died of cancer at 78-years-old on Sunday, his family announced.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Tapie's former club led the tributes to the controversial sports personality who owned German brand Adidas and was a government minister for a time.

Tapie became best known outside France after he was sent to prison for corruption in a match-fixing scandal in the French first division.

He was also involved in scandal over a compensation payment linked to his sale of the German sports brand Adidas in 1990. That affair also ensnared current European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde.

What has been said about him?

The French president expressed his condolences to the Tapie family, saying he and his wife "have been touched by the news of his death."

Macron revealed that Tapie's "ambition, energy and enthusiasm were a source of inspiration for generations of French people" on finding out of his passing.

Olympique de Marseille, the soccer club Tapie owned from 1986 to 1994, tweeted "with great sadness" that his absence "will leave a great void in the hearts" of the people of Marseille.

Tapie had been suffering from stomach cancer since 2018.

Who was Bernard Tapie?

Tapie was born in occupied Paris on January 26, 1943,  and became a household name in sport and politics. He led a number of successful business ventures, specializing in recovery for bankrupted companies.

He is credited with reviving German sports company Adidas from 1990 to 1993 and also served as minister for urban affairs under Francois Mitterand from 1992-93.

Tapie also led the La Vie Claire cycling team to success before becoming the chairman of soccer team Marseille. The side won four league titles during his time there — and, in 1993, the only Champions League trophy to have been won by a French club.

However, a fifth consecutive league championship was chalked off when investigators found club officials had paid bribes before a clash with Valenciennes.

Tapie went to jail as a result, and he was more recently tried for misappropriating government funds.

In 2008 when a government arbitration panel agreed Tapie had been the victim of fraud when he sold Adidas. He was awarded a compensation payout of 404 million euros ($450 million).

However, the case was appealed and a court ordered him to hand back the payout. The saga also led to an investigation of Lagarde, who was France's economy minister when the panel ruled in Tapie's favor.
jc/rc (Reuters, dpa)