 David Beckham's tattoo artist has threatened to
take the player to court if he shows off any of his tattoo's in an upcoming
publicity spot. (30.06.05) |
| Just two days before their financial year end,
Barcelona have made themselves a tidy profit of around €35 million for the
partial sale of land which they bought eight years ago. Ex president Josep
Lluis Nuñez bought the plot of land at Can Rigat as an alternative site
for a training centre which is now being built at San Juan Despí.
(28.06.05) |
| Valladolid have finally come to an out of court
settlement with Audiovisual Sports for them to pay half of the €9 million
claim on television rights, allowing the club to bring their payments to
players up to date. (26.06.05) |
| Although the Spanish clubs didn't have the best
of seasons in the Champions League, they didn't do so badly on the financial
side. UEFA announced that Barcelona (ninth in the rankings) took away €16
million in winnings, Valencia €14.5 million, Real Madrid €13.7
million and Deportivo €10 million. Not quite the €30.6 million that
European champions Liverpool made, but not to be sneezed at nonetheless.
(24.06.05) |
| Elche announced plans for a new "sporting city",
which will include two full size football pitches including one with a running
track, 7-a-side pitches, a gymnasium, a residential centre, a restaurant and
other facilities. The project will be financed by the regional Generalitat
government, and further amounts of around €330,000 a year will be put in
by the local town council, who are a major shareholder of the club. (23.06.05)
|
| Valencia have reached an agreement with ex coach
Claudio Ranieri to pay him €3.5 million in settlement of his contract,
around half of what he would have received if he had seen it through to the
end. (21.06.05) |
| Barcelona made around €5 million profit this
season from their "Sient Lliure" program, where season ticket holders can put
their seats up for resale if they will not be attending the match, sharing the
takings 50/50 with the club. The scheme has been in force now for four years,
and tickets are on sale at La Caixa cash points and also via the club's
website. (20.06.05) |
| Two years after he joined the club, David Beckham
is proving to be a profitable business for Real Madrid. The €25 million
they paid Manchester United for him has already been paid back in income from
publicity, shirt sales etc., and there is already talk of extending his
contract to 2009. Beckham himself is expected to earn around €32 million
next season, taking home €8 million in salary and three times that from
publicity deals. And even the taxman favours him, income tax rates for
foreigners recently resident in Spain dropping from 45% to 25% this year!
(16.06.05) |
| Ciudad Murcia president Quique Pina honoured his
promise to swap his car with the player who scored the goal which kept his side
in the second division. Striker Daniel Güiza was the man who got the
winner against Salamanca, and he was presented with Pina's Mercedes SL 500 in
exchange for what was probably a beaten up old 4x4. (14.06.05) |
| Liverpool's Xabi Alonso turned up at Eibar's
Ipurua stadium yesterday to buy shares in the club he started his career with.
Alonso's support was welcomed by club management, who are launching a capital
increase to raise finance for future development. (11.06.05) |
| The Mexican group Pegaso have announced that they
are pulling out of talks with the Cantabrian regional government over the
possible purchase of their shareholding in Racing Santander. A group spokesman
said they could not accept the rigid terms demanded by the authorities for the
first year, in particular that transfers would be decided out of Santander, and
that Manuel Huerta would stay on as president. A Swedish and an English group
are said to be still interested though, and Huerta himself is trying to drum up
support from local businessmen. (10.06.05) |
| Remarks by Málaga's managing director
Antonio Mendoza that the club is financially ruined didn't go down well with
president Serafín Roldán. Mendoza made his comments to refute
Roldán's statement that they would be able to stop selling players if
they had 20,000 season ticket holders, saying that in his opinion that would
not be the case. Roldán played down the situation though, saying that
Mendoza had not understood what he had said. (09.06.05) |
| Sporting Gijón's players have temporarily
called off plans to boycott the match against Almería after meeting with
the club's management. The players are still due considerable amounts in back
pay, and creditors are taking steps to put the club into legal intervention.
(04.06.05) |
| Ronaldinho and his brother and agent Roberto de
Assis have been required by the French courts to give evidence about a deposit
of €11 million in a Swiss bank account which was made as part of the
agreement to transfer the player from Gremio to PSG several years ago.
(03.06.05) |
| The president and principal shareholder of third
division club Reus has been arrested and charged with laundering money as part
of a wider investigation by Spanish police into an extortion racket involving
East European gangs. The club are currently involved in the play-offs for
promotion to the second division B. (02.06.05) |
| Real Murcia will not be able to sign players in
the new season if they don't settle the €5 million debt they owe to the
other first and second division clubs under an arbitration agreement, as
reported in March this year. (01.06.05) |
| Not much interest from Spanish television
companies to transmit the cup final between Betis and Osasuna. Santa Monica
Sports, who own the rights to the match, are asking for €6 million to show
the game plus the two legs of this summer's Spanish Supercup, but so far nobody
has taken up the offer. (29.05.05) |
| According to the Chinese press, Real Madrid have
bought a 49% stake in Super-league side Beijing Guoan. The reports say that the
club paid $4 million for the shareholding, which would enable them to enter
into the local market. Madrid have not confirmed whether the story is true or
not. (25.05.05) |
| Samuel Eto'o has been fined €12,000 by the
disciplinary committee for insulting chants against Real Madrid during
Barcelona's victory celebrations. The Camerooni striker apologised immediately
to his old club, but it was not enough to avoid the charge. (24.05.05)
|
| Valladolid's poor season following their
relegation to the second division is proving to be a disaster. The club only
managed to sell 17 tickets for their recent game against Málaga B, with
gate money of a mere 270 euros. Their president Carlos Suárez hasn't
lost his sense of humour though, saying that he would put the takings into a
fixed term deposit. (23.05.05) |
| The Cantabrian regional government are still in
talks with Pegaso for the possible sale to the Mexican group of their
shareholding in Racing Santander. With the club now sure of staying up, the
authorities are asking for a price of around. €20 million. Other buyers
are reported to be interested as well though. (22.05.05) |
| Reports appeared in the press once again that
certain clubs would be paying out under the table win bonuses this weekend in
cash (called "maletines" in reference to the suitcases they are contained in)
to players of other teams as an incentive for them to beat their rivals for
European or relegation spots. Such bonuses are completely forbidden under
league rules. (21.05.05) |
| Espanyol have reached an agreement with Spain's
biggest electricity company Endesa for a sponsorship deal over the next four
years. As part of the agreement, the company will pay half of the €20
million cost of the electrical installations at the club's new stadium in
Cornellà, including what they say will be the world's largest
photo-electric installation, with solar panels covering the stadium roof.
Construction work is expected to be completed in time for the start of the
2007/8 season. (20.05.05) |
| Xerez have paid an outstanding debt of
€36,000 to Milenium Fútbol to avoid the appointment of a legal
administrator, as reported a month ago in these pages. (19.05.05) |
| Alavés have had their training ground
closed and their bank accounts and tax credits embargoed by the local courts in
order to settle an outstanding debt of around €30,000 due to their ex
manager Pepe Mel. The club could also be deprived of a €1.3 million a year
grant after president Dmitri Piterman criticised members of the regional
Diputación Foral government. (18.05.05) |
| Atlético Madrid are close to reaching a
deal with the mayor of Alcorcón to build their new "sporting city" on a
40 hectare site in the outskirts of Madrid. The club's management announced
plans for the project costing around €50 million, which will include a
stadium, training pitches, residential centres and other amenities. (16.05.05)
|
| Getafe club president and major shareholder Angel
Torres said he was getting tired of the lack of support and was prepared to
sell the club if anybody was interested. Torres criticised fans for abandoning
the ground early to watch the Valencia v Barcelona match on television the day
that the team made sure of staying up for another season. (12.05.05)
|
| It's not only clubs in Spain's footballing world
who are having problems paying their creditors. According to the accounts of
the professional footballers' association (AFE), the Spanish Football
Federation (RFEF) have not paid them amounts of €3.9 million due for the
last three benefit matches against Ecuador, Denmark and England. (09.05.05)
|
| Barcelona are reportedly close to agreeing a
shirt sponsorship deal with the Chinese Olympic committee for the next three
seasons worth €20 million a year, although the club themselves say nothing
is signed and negotiations could take some time. (05.05.05) |
| Many players in second division B sides have had
to look for part time jobs to supplement their income as their clubs have been
unable to pay their wages. Algeciras, Arenas, Arteixo, Badajoz, Barakaldo,
Extremadura, Jaén, Linares, Peralta and Torrelavega have all been in the
news recently after making public protests about financial problems at their
respective clubs. (01.05.05) |
| Real Sociedad's Valery Karpin and Real Madrid's
Michel Salgado have bought up an entire block in the centre of Vigo with a view
to developing a five star hotel, flats and surrounding facilities. The two
players know each other from their days at Celta Vigo, and have spent a
reported €50 million acquiring the buildings, including an abandoned
refuge, in the run down Barrio del Cura district. (30.04.05) |
| A lady police officer has won €9,000 in
damages from Antena 3 television after commentators made "witty" remarks about
her supposed thoughts as she intensely watched David Beckham taking a corner in
a recent match. The policewoman had been receiving jibes from fellow officers
ever since her picture appeared on the screen. (29.04.05) |
| The pay-per-view television channel Digital +
pulled the plug a few days ago on no less than 13,200 bars and cafés in
Spain who were illegally using private subscriptions to show football matches
in their establishments. All but two thousand have now taken out the public
screening subscription, which obviously works out a lot more expensive.
(28.04.05) |
| An agreement was reached between Tenerife, their
players, the professional footballers association (AFE) and the regional
government for the club to try to pay two thirds of the €250,000 due in
back wages in two instalments between now and the end of June. The remaining
third will be paid by the Cabildo in return for certain services, including the
organization of a footballing clinic under the auspices of the AFE. (27.04.05)
|
| Dmitri Piterman's group has been thrown off the
board of directors of Racing Santander. The flamboyant president of
Alavés had retained an indirect 12.5% interest in the Cantabrian club
through the Esfinge 21 group after he sold out a couple of years ago, which the
club said was against the sporting companies law. (27.04.05) |
| The lights went out at Sporting Gijón this
week as the local electricity company cut them off for non-payment of bills.
Players were forced to shower with cold water in the dark as a result.
(26.04.05) |
| The Spanish court has appointed a legal
administrator at Xerez in response to a claim by the company Milenium
Fútbol for outstanding debts. The club owes the company €36,000
dating back three years for the purchase of Antonio Calle, but they will have
to wait in line as there are several other legal claims pending which the
administrator will be obliged to pay off first. To add insult to injury though,
the person appointed by the court is a season ticket holder of Xerez's arch
rivals Cádiz! (24.04.05) |
| Alavés president Dmitri Piterman has told
the Spanish press that he will be charging them €1,000 euros for every
time they interview a player, and €1,500 for interviewing a member of the
management team. The press have boycotted the club as a result, and Piterman
has therefore imposed a "law of silence". (22.04.05) |
| Tenerife's players have decided to lock
themselves in their changing rooms after their next match as a protest about
the club's failure to pay back wages. Eleven players were owed money from last
season, although management said that, as the players were not prepared to
accept part payments, they have now paid off six of them. (17.04.05)
|
| FC Barcelona will be choosing their first ever
shirt sponsor between offers from the Chinese tourist agency and Qatar
Airlines, both of whom are offering five year deals worth between €20 and
€25 million a year for the next five years. (14.04.05) |
| Valencia announced that they had acquired some
one and half million square metres of land in nearby Ribarroja on which they
are planning to build a sports complex as well as commercial developments. The
scheme is expected to be completed by 2008, and will allow the club to clear
their outstanding debts of around €100 million. (12.04.05) |
| The legal administrators of Las Palmas are hoping
to reach an agreement with the club's largest creditors to reduce the debt from
€66 million down to around €18 million, which would then be paid off
over a number of years. (11.04.05) |
| Valladolid's ex coach Sergio Kresic has
denounced the club after failing to reach a settlement. Kresic is claiming the
full amount owing in his contract, which was due to run to the end of the
season. The club are expected to put up a bank aval to guarantee the debt.
(08.04.05) |
| Lleida's town council have helped out their
second division side by agreeing a fee of €120,000 for them to carry
publicity on their kit. They have also said they would be prepared to
participate in the capital increase of €2.2 million, which the club is
obliged to carry out before the end of the season under league rules.
(01.04.05) |
| Deportivo La Coruña are in talks with
foreign investment funds with a view to signing players on "renting" agreements
in the future. This type of leasing arrangement is popular in other countries
such as Italy, Portugal, Argentina and Brazil, but is as yet unknown in Spain.
(30.03.05) |
| The four Spanish sides who have not been
incorporated as "Sporting Limited Companies" (SAD) are asking the LFP to drop
the requirement for a bank guarantee from the governors of the respective
clubs. The "aval", covering 15% of annual budget income, was required in order
to avoid conversion when the SAD law was brought in some years ago. Only Real
Madrid, Barcelona, Athletic Bilbao and Osasuna were able to put up the
guarantees at the time. (28.03.05) |
| The Tarragona city council approved plans for a
new 12,000 seater stadium, which will be built alongside Nàstic's
current "Nou Estadi" ground. The old pitch will be replaced by a "sporting
city", which will house a range of sporting facilities. No name has been given
to the new development as yet, but presumably the "Nou Nou Estadi" is a
non-starter? (25.03.05) |
| The Spanish football federation (RFEF) announced
today that they had a net surplus of €94,000 for the accounting year 2004.
(22.03.05) |
| Valencia's Carboni is still going strong at 40
years old, but even he is planning for the retirement. The popular Italian full
back wants to become a players' agent, and sat the FIFA exams recently
(19.03.05) |
| Under a ruling by the arbitrating body, Racing
Santander and Real Murcia will have to pay €2.5 million and €5
million respectively to the so-called G-30 group of first and second division
clubs for unilaterally opting out of an agreement with Sogecable over
television rights. In the case of Racing, the fine will have to be paid by the
old owners of the club, under the sale agreement with the Cantabrian regional
authority. (16.03.05) |
| Espanyol have agreed a €42 million
syndicated loan with local banks to enable them to complete the construction of
their new ground in Cornellà. The 15 year credit is being headed by La
Caixa and the Catalan Credit Institute (ICF), and has been approved now that
the €9 million capital increase has been fully subscribed. (15.03.05)
|
| As expected, Real Madrid and Barcelona head the
table of the number of viewers who pay to watch football matches on Spanish
Pay-Per-View channels. Television companies confirmed that both sell around
30,000 "pinchazos" a week, well ahead of third placed Atlético Madrid.
Valencia are fourth followed by Sevilla and Betis, Deportivo and then Espanyol,
who get around 10,000 viewers for their games. (11.03.05) |
| Football club presidents are not in it for the
money in Spain, at least not directly! Only three of the first division bosses
are on the clubs' payrolls, Deportivo's Lendoiro, Mallorca's Alemany and Real
Sociedad's Astiazaran. The rest do it for the love of the game, and of course a
chance to get their photos in the papers every week!. (11.03.05) |
| Real Sociedad announced that they have lost 2,000
season ticket holders this year, the current 25,500 being the lowest since
1998. The drop means a fall in takings of around €600,000 a year, a matter
which will no doubt be the subject of debate in the upcoming presidential
elections. (08.03.05) |
| Real Madrid and Banesto have launched a VISA card
with a difference. The card carries the club logo, and cardholders will be
credited on a sliding scale (depending on how much they spend) with up to two
euros for every goal that Real Madrid score during the month. (01.03.05)
|
| Ronaldo has been fined €4,200 euros by Real
Madrid for turning up late for training two days in a row (the club fine
players €600 for every quarter of an hour). The fact that he had just got
married a couple of days ago and had also injured his toe (some say the two are
related) was not accepted as an excuse. (25.02.05) |
| More speculation about who will be Barcelona's
new shirt sponsors, with the Chinese Olympic Games organizing committee denying
that they have made a bid worth 18 million euros a year. (21.02.05)
|
| Tenerife defender Dmitri Del Gobo is in a bit of
a pickle after returning to his native Brazil for a winter break and finding he
didn't have enough money for a plane ticket back to the Spanish island. The
player told local press that he had not been paid by the club for several
months. (20.02.05) |
| Racing Santander's stand-in president Manuel
Huerta said that talks were going on with a view to selling the club to a
Mexican buyer. Huerta was appointed after former president Santiago Díaz
was forced to sell his majority stake for a symbolic one euro to the Cantabrian
regional government, who stepped in temporarily to save them from bankruptcy.
(16.02.05) |
| Terrassa president Guillermo Cabello is fed up
with the lack of support from fans and says he will probably be putting his 85%
of the club up for sale. Cabello has reportedly been contacted by a group of
businessmen from Granada who want to buy the club and move it to their home
town, although he says he would offer his shares to local investors first.
(15.02.05) |
| Málaga could be in for €480,000 bill
if they include César Navas in their line up this weekend. The young
defender was signed from Real Madrid to play in the Málaga B side, but
with a clause that the extra payout would be made if he plays ten games for the
first team. Furthermore, under league rules he will not be allowed to return to
the second team this season once he has made ten first team appearances.
Manager Antonio Tapia has a big call to make. (14.02.05) |
| Barcelona's finance director Ferran Soriano
announced that the club had a made a net profit of €5.4 million in the
first six months of the financial year 2004/5, and that they were forecasting a
final figure of around €16 million for the full twelve months. Turnover
was up by 18% on the same period last year, with income from ticket sales in
particular increasing by 75%. (11.02.05) |
| CD Leganés, who were relegated from the
second division last season, have been taken over by a group of local
businessmen. New president Rubén Fernández, a 34 year old real
estate promoter, company advisor and local politician, said that he wanted to
modernize the club and get them back up as soon as possible. (10.02.05)
|
| Athletic Bilbao are working with the local
authorities on plans to move their San Mamés stadium to a new location.
The club said that the New San Mamés stadium (as it will probably be
called) should take two to three years to build once a suitable site has been
found. (09.02.05) |
| Espanyol's capital increase has been a complete
success, according to a club spokesman. Of the €9 million on offer, some
€8.2 million has already been taken up, and the rest has already been
guaranteed when the second phase opens next week. Local banks have agreed to
put up long term loans of €42 million to help them pay for their new
stadium if the issue is fully subscribed. (08.02.05) |
| Pontevedra's shareholders meeting approved a
motion to raise the €4.5 million capital needed to convert the club into a
sporting limited company (SAD), as required by league rules. The new issue will
be open to existing shareholders for the first two months, and will then be
thrown open to the general public. Failure to raise the required amount will
mean the club will be automatically relegated. (07.02.05) |
| Tenerife are having problems with squatters, who
are occupying the offices in Santa Cruz where the club hope to set up their new
foundation. It appears that the illegal occupants not only moved in themselves,
but also "rented" the space out to others during the recent carnival
celebrations. (05.02.05) |
| Atlético Madrid have launched a publicity
campaign informing fans and other interested parties of the various options
available to the club regarding a possible move to a new stadium, and inviting
them to take part in discussions to decide on the eventual outcome.
(03.02.05) |
| Real Sociedad president José Luis
Astiazarán confirmed that the club are currently undergoing financial
difficulties after a proposed capital increase failed and the rescheduling of
part of a €15 million debt with local savings bank Kutxa was turned down.
Astiazarán admitted that they have been struggling to make ends meet for
some time, and that some recent wage payments have been delayed. (01.02.05)
|
| Real Madrid's managing director of sports Emilio
Butragueño revealed a couple of days ago that the club had cash deposits
of €169 million, much of which will be available to buy new players in the
summer. (30.01.05) |
| Espanyol's management announced that the
construction of their new stadium in Cornellà would cost around €58
million, including €39 million for the stadium itself and €19 million
for the surrounding urbanization. Part of the cost will be paid though by LAR,
the company which will be exploiting the commercial zone which has been
included in the project. (29.01.05) |
| Atlético have signed a protocol with the
local authorities in Madrid stating their mutual interest in freeing up the
Vicente Calderón stadium for development of a local motorway, with the
club possibly moving to the 57,000 seater Peineta stadium and also securing up
to 120 hectares of land to build a sporting centre which would contain a
mini-stadium, training pitches, a residence centre and many other facilities.
(28.01.05) |
| Lleida are appealing against a decision by the
sports council (CSD) that the club must increase their share capital from
€2.2 million to €5.4 million having returned to the second division A
this season. (28.01.05) |
| Zaragoza's players and management have finally
reached a compromise on their bonus payments. The agreement incorporates the
wishes of both sides, one amount for reaching the European spots and another
based on points and position in the league. (27.01.05) |
| The legal administrator of UD Las Palmas has
taken steps to place an embargo of €30 million on the assets of the
Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) for not allowing them to register new
signings, which he says impedes the court's efforts to save the club from
bankruptcy. The RFEF imposed the ban under internal rules as the club owes back
wages to players, but they may be forced to grant a temporary licence to new
players to avoid further problems. (24.01.05) |
| More problems for second division B sides in
keeping up wages payments, with Gimnastica Torrelavega players following in the
footsteps of their colleagues at Badajoz with a changing room lock-in, despite
the freezing cold and the presence of "rats the size of rabbits", and
Barakaldo's squad calling a press conference to denounce that they have not
been paid in three months. Meanwhile Badajoz themselves are out of difficulties
for now after selling Guzmán to Mallorca. (22.01.05) |
| Las Palmas are in serious financial difficulties,
but at least their travel costs will be covered this season after a local
savings bank agreed to set up a €3.3 million credit line to cover costs.
(21.01.05) |
| Foreign shareholders may have to wait until 2009
if they want to buy up Deportivo La Coruña. The club have received
enquiries from the UK and Russia about the ongoing capital increase (rumoured
to have included Chelsea owner Roman Abramovic), but under the current
regulations nobody will be allowed to hold more than 1% of the shares until the
issue closes in four years time. (16.01.05) |
| Cádiz-mania continues to grow. The second
division leaders announced sales of more than 5,000 shirts during last year,
more than first division sides such as Espanyol, Málaga or Zaragoza.
(11.01.05) |
| The players from cash strapped Badajoz have
decided to lock themselves in the club's dressing rooms until they are paid the
three and half months wages which they are owed. The Extremadura club, who are
celebrating their centenary this year, have been in financial difficulties
since being relegated to the second division B a couple of seasons ago. A
recent capital call failed to raise the funds required, and management are in
talks with local businessmen to try and find a solution. (07.01.05)
|
| The LFP's first division teams have decided to
introduce a system of compensation between clubs when players move on at the
end of their contracts. However the decision was taken without consulting the
players' association (AFE), who have said they will have to study the proposals
before deciding on what action to take. (04.01.05) |
| Following in the footsteps of some of the
league's biggest clubs, Cádiz have issued a supporters card (carnet de
simpatizante) for fans who don't want to take out season tickets. With the team
riding high at the top of the second division, sales have been booming, with
the 3,500 fans taking up the offer in the first month even including unborn
children and a dog. (03.01.05) |
| As usual, the winter break has seen a round of
annual shareholders meetings, which have to take place within six months of the
30th June financial year end. Deportivo La Coruña's shareholders
approved their accounts which for the sixteenth year in a row showed a net
profit, albeit only of €278,000. The club has an accumulated debt of
€162 million, which president Lendoiro said he hoped would be reduced once
the ongoing capital increase had taken place. (31.12.04) |
| Sporting Gijón's AGM approved a motion to
sell the re-purchase option they are holding over their old Mareo training
ground in order to reduce debts which, although €2 million less than last
year, are still around €30 million. The club are also launching a new
capital increase of €15 million to coincide with their centenary year,
although they hold out little hope as the previous issue which has just closed
only managed to raise €5,000. (29.12.04) |
| Recreativo Huelva closed their financial year
2003-4 with a one million euro deficit, the first loss they have made since
they converted to a SAD at the beginning of 2000. The shareholders had no
problem approving the accounts however as over 98% of the club belongs to the
municipally owned company Huelva Deporte. (29.12.04) |
| Elche's president confirmed that the club will be
building a new sports centre outside of town which will contain training
fields, living quarters and a "centre of excellence". The club sold their old
training facilities alongside their Martínez Valero stadium recently for
€9 million, and will be putting €3 million of that back into the new
centre, together with funds obtained from the Valencia regional authorities.
(29.12.04) |
| Valencia's board of directors have given the
green light to a move to a new stadium in three or four years' time. The
decision has been taken with the collaboration of the local city council, who
will allow the Mestalla ground to be reclassified for the construction of
housing and businesses. The deal is expected to bring in €300 million to
the club, allowing them to clear their outstanding debts of around €120
million and build a new multi-purpose stadium to house up to 70,000 fans.
(29.12.04) |
| The Osasuna foundation have decided to a sponsor
a child in an underdeveloped country every time that the team scores a goal.
Since the agreement was signed a month ago, the club have had a new lease of
life, with Chengue Morales in particular scoring seven times in as many games.
(28.12.04) |
| Real Murcia and Racing Santander are facing
charges of €5 million each in compensation after breaking a contract to
negotiate television rights on a collective basis with 28 other clubs. The case
relates to the 2003-4 season, where the two teams decided to go it alone
despite signing the agreement with the so called G-30 (comprising the smaller
clubs in the first and second divisions). Both could be prohibited by the LFP
from making transfers this winter if they don't pay up. (27.12.04) |
| Valencia have reached an out of court agreement
to pay Auxerre one million euros for training rights related to Momo Sissoko,
who joined the Spanish club a year ago. (24.12.04) |
| Racing Santander president Santiago Díaz
has resigned and handed over control of the club to the Cantabrian regional
government, who have promised to find new owners by the end of the season. A
spokesman said that the regional authorities would put in a participative loan
of around €6.7 million to ensure the financial future of the club, and
have paid a provisional figure of one euro for the 53% of the president's
shares, pending onward sale to what they hoped would be a large number of local
shareholders. Foreign investors are however known to be interested. In the
meantime, Manuel Huerta, former Racing president and ex mayor of Santander,
takes over as the new chairman of the club. (23.12.04) |
| Tenerife will not be able to register new players
in the winter transfer window until they settle amounts owing to current and
past players, the most prominent of which are César Belli and Pier. The
club are in financial difficulties though, with debts amounting to some
€52 million, and their only real hope is the commercial development of
their sports centre at Geneto, which is currently going through the planning
permission stage. (20.12.04) |
| Deportivo La Coruña president Augusto
César Lendoiro has warned that the club may be forced to move from their
home town if the local community do not back the ongoing capital increase.
After a period in which the new shares are only available to existing
shareholders, the offer opens to the general public in the summer, with an
initial limitation of 1% per buyer. Should this not produce the necessary funds
however, the club may have to lift the 1% limit and throw the offer open to all
comers, including outsiders who may want to relocate to another town.
(18.12.04) |
| Valladolid's financial problems were eased when
they sold their residential centre to the Pucela town council for € 5
million. The young players who live their will stay on though under a rental
agreement. The club are also developing plans with the local authorities to
open a commercial centre and hotel alongside their Nuevo Zorrilla stadium.
(17.12.04) |
| Second division B side Peralta could disappear if
their financial problems cannot be solved with immediate effect. A group of
local businessmen from Navarra are putting forward a rescue package, but the
players are not prepared to accept a 25% drop in salary as part of the plan.
(17.12.04) |
| Pontevedra fans shall go to the ball! A local
businessman has agreed to pay for the coaches to take the maximum possible
number of supporters to the crucial derby game against Celta Vigo next Sunday.
(16.12.04) |
| Espanyol's shareholders have given the go-ahead
to a €9 million capital increase which will help pay for the club's new
stadium in Cornellà. Some €6 Million will be available in a first
stage to existing shareholders, and another €3 million will be offered to
other club members in a month's time. President Daniel Sánchez Llibre
also confirmed that work will begin on the new ground on 22nd December.
(16.12.04) |
| Osasuna have sold land which had been earmarked
for part of their new sports centre at Tajonar. The move was approved in an
extraordinary shareholders' meeting, and brings in over €5 million to the
club's coffers. (13.12.04) |
| Zaragoza's squad have decided to take a series of
actions in protest at the lack of agreement over bonus payments. The club want
to change the system to only pay out if the team finish in the top half of the
table, whereas the players want to keep the old plan whereby the remuneration
is based on points. As from now on, the players refuse to attend official club
functions (including the Christmas lunch), and will not turn up to pre-match
call-ups. (07.12.04) |
| Racing Santander's promotion winning squad from
the 2001/2 season have decided to take the club to court after failing to reach
an agreement over bonuses. The then club president Angel Gutiérrez made
a verbal promise to pay out if the side made it back to the top flight, but no
payment was ever forthcoming. (03.12.04) . (03.12.04) |
| Atlético Madrid's Enrique Cerezo confirmed
in a radio interview that the club are still studying the possible sale of
their Vicente Calderón ground and a subsequent move to the Comunidad de
Madrid stadium. The club president added that it could depend on whether Madrid
are awarded the 2012 Olympic Games or not, and what facilities they would
require if successful. (01.12.04) |
| Mixed reports about the possible sale of Racing
Santander to a group of Mexican businessmen. Whilst the Mexican press says the
deal is close to going through, the club deny any such agreement. If true
though, Hugo Sánchez could be the next manager at the Cantabrian club.
(29.11.04) |
| Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona have both decided
to carry publicity on their shirts for the first time in their history.
Athletic will be carrying ads for the region of Euskadi, albeit only on their
shirts for UEFA cup games, and Barça (who turned down a huge offer from
a betting organization recently) have decided for the time being to wear a
small badge from Catalan TV company TV3 on their sleeves for some matches.
(23.11.04) |
| A judge in Galicia has made a Salomonic decision
which could have ramifications in the world of football. His honour decided
that second division B side Arteixo should only pay half of the €19,500
back wages they owe to their ex player Javi Fuentes, as in his words "it is
only a modest little club and the player doesn't make a living entirely out of
playing football". His novel interpretation of contract law with be appealed by
both sides. (18.11.04) |
| Real Murcia deny they owe Rayo Vallecano
€600,000 for the second of three instalments related to the purchase of
Michel last summer. The club stated that the amount was paid under a court
order to the tax authorities against an embargo on the Madrid based club. Rayo
meanwhile had endorsed the payment over to a third party, who is making a claim
for collection. (16.11.04) |
| Almost half of Spain could be deprived of
watching the derby match between Barcelona and Real Madrid if a dispute is not
resolved between FORTA (the owner of the television rights to Spanish football)
and the national TV company RTVE, who broadcast the Saturday matches in all the
areas not covered by a regional channel. The former are asking for an annual
fee of around €9 million, the same amount as last season, but the latter
only want to pay half as much this year. Meanwhile a threatened strike by
workers at Telemadrid could also leave the capital without televised football
this weekend. (15.11.04) |
| Sevilla's success over the last two years is
having it's effect on the crowds. The club announced that the 36,000 available
season tickets have been sold out, and that they are starting a waiting list
for the 2005/6 campaign. (11.11.04) |
| Ciudad Murcia president Quique Pina has strongly
denied that he is currently in talks with newly created Granada Atlético
about the possibility of selling the club's place in the second division for a
reported fee of 10 million euros. (09.11.04) |
| Leganés president Jesús Polo is
close to selling the club to local businessman Arturo Fernández. After
three failed attempts with other potential buyers, the last to Argentine
entrepreneur Daniel Grinbank which ended in disaster, it appears that the offer
is close to going ahead. The price is thought be around €2 million.
(08.11.04) |
| Athletic Bilbao's new president Fernando Lamikiz
has fought off an attempt by the LFP to execute the personal guarantees which
were given by the previous board of directors. The LFP were taking steps to do
so after the recent members meeting rejected the annual accounts.
(05.11.04) |
| The board of UD Las Palmas have decided to file
for protection from creditors, putting the club into the hands of a legal
administration committee made up of lawyers, auditors and creditors. (05.11.04)
|
| Ex Real Madrid and Zaragoza striker Juan Eduardo
Esnaider has been fined €600 euros by a Spanish court for insulting a
journalist last season whilst he was playing for Real Murcia.
(04.11.04) |
| The two Murcia based clubs Real and Ciudad have
complained to the local council that they should be able to train at the
Condomina stadium, which both teams share. The authorities have only allowed
the clubs to use the ground for their official matches, apparently to protect
the state of the pitch. (03.11.04) |
| Getafe's defeat at the hands of Real Madrid could
cost Sánchez Broto a lot of money. The ex Málaga, Livingston and
Celtic keeper said that if his side lost (which they did), then he would give
away a new pair of gloves to the goalkeepers of all the sides in the second
divisions A and B and the regional third. But he has picked up some money sense
in his stay in Scotland, as to get hold of their prize they would have to order
them through his website, www.soloporteros.com. (01.11.04) |
| Zaragoza are facing another dilemma at the
weekend, whether or not to pay a €200,000 penalty clause to
Atlético Madrid to allow on-loan Javi Moreno to be able to play in the
fixture between the two teams. Moreno is so keen to play against his old club
though that he has offered to pay half! (01.11.04) |
| Athletic Bilbao's members rejected by three votes
the annual accounts which had been modified by the new president and board to
reflect a debt with the local tax authorities of €7 million and to cancel
an amount of €3.3 million which had been included as a valuation of
players who have come up from the junior sides to the first team. The accounts
will have to reformulated, but there is now a possibility that the bank avals
presented by the former directors will be called in by the LFP. (28.10.04)
|
| Osasuna are hoping to reduce their debts through
the sale of a plot of land at Tajonar which has been put up for sale at a
valuation of 3 million euros. (28.10.04) |
| Ciudad de Murcia president Quique Pina is going
to give the representatives of Lleida a cold welcome when they turn up for next
weekend's fixture. The Catalan club apparently owe Pina some €54,000 in
agent's commission for a deal which he brokered three years ago, and the case
is currently going through the courts. (28.10.04) |
| One good thing at least came out of Espanyol's
first round elimination from the Copa del Rey by Terrassa. The club are sure of
saving some €360,000 in bonuses which the players would have received if
they had won the competition! (27.10.04) |
| The squad of regional third division side
Logroñes produced a new angle on the nude calendar scenario in this
week's issue of the Spanish magazine Interviu, appearing with their bodies
painted from head to foot (and some delicate parts in between) in red and white
stripes. The players of the financially struggling club were protesting about
the lock out by the council which prevents them from playing in their Las
Gaunas stadium, and the hard up (no pun intended) situation which they are
going through in general. (25.10.04) |
| Mexican businessman Jorge Vergara has apparently
given up his attempt to buy Atlético Madrid. Vergara, who already owns
Chaves in his own country, made the announcement after being told by
Jesús Gil's son and heir Miguel Angel that the club was still not for
sale. (22.10.04) |
| Xerez gradually seem to be putting their
financial problems behind them. New president Joaquín Morales announced
that the club had agreed with the local council of Jerez de la Frontera to
increase the annual subsidy to €2 million a year for the next four years.
(20.10.04) |
| Getafe are reaping the benefits of their first
ever appearance in the top flight. The club have already sold 2,000 shirts
since opening their new boutique a couple of months ago, with takings of over
€120,000. (19.10.04) |
| Cash strapped Las Palmas are in trouble again
with the local authorities. The department of social security told the second
division B club that they are carrying out a judicial embargo of their assets,
and intend to turn up at their offices in the near future with the police to
take away furniture, computers, trophies and anything else they can find.
(16.10.04) |
| Atlético Madrid's directors admitted that
they are considering the sale of their Vicente Calderón stadium to help
clear their debts now that they are free of the legal administration. According
to some sources the ground has been valued at €225 million. (14.10.04)
|
| Albacete's players stand to earn a €1.5
million bonus between them if they achieve the club's only declared objective
this season, staying in the first division. (13.10.04) |
| Spain's international match against Belgium in
Santander worked out well for regional side Gimnastica Torrelavega. The club
boosted their coffers charging €2 to fans for them to watch the Spanish
squad in training. (11.10.04) |
| Tenerife have been given the green light to go
ahead with their "sporting city", a development which is expected to raise some
€24 million for the hard-up club. Meanwhile some players are considering
taking action against the club for non payment of wages. (09.10.04)
|
| Real Madrid's shareholders approved the 2003-4
accounts in their recent AGM. The club made a profit of around €8 million
for the year, and reported a positive treasury position of €169 million.
The budget for the current season foresees a turnover of over €300
million. (07.10.04) |
| Valencia president Jaime Ortí has resigned
and handed over the reins to majority shareholder Juan Soler, who becomes their
sixth president in twelve years. (06.10.04) |
| In a historic ruling, the Spanish supreme court
has condemned Racing Santander to pay €30,000 compensation to their former
striker Bestchastnykh for leaving him out of the squad and thereby denying him
"effective occupation" and causing damage to his "public image and professional
dignity".(05.10.04) |
| Espanyol are proposing a €7 million capital
increase to help finance the construction of their new stadium, which is being
built in Cornellà, on the outskirts of Barcelona. (03.10.04)
|
| Two months after launching their capital increase
Deportivo La Coruña president Augusto César Lendoiro announced
that some €2.4 million had already been raised, representing a 52%
increase in share capital. (27.09.04) |
| Levante's players decided to renounce any bonus
payments at all after club president Pedro Villarroel turned down their request
for a bonus if they stay up this season. Villarroel said he would only be
willing to pay out if they qualified for Europe. (20.09.04) |
| Whilst Spain's big clubs are paying out
multi-million euro bonuses, Pontevedra's players have received their reward for
winning promotion from the second division B, 28 large steaks provided by a
local supermarket! (16.09.04) |
| Fernando Lamikiz, a 45 year old lawyer, was the
easy winner of Athletic Bilbao's presidential elections. Lamikiz won 55% of the
vote against a combined 38% for his two opponents, and will be in charge for
the next four years. (10.09.04) |
| The superior court in Madrid has annulled Real
Murcia's conversion to a Sporting Limited Company (SAD) due to certain
procedural irregularities dating back to it's incorporation in 1998. The action
had been brought by one of the club's ex directors and could result in them
being relegated, although president Jesús Samper said there was no
chance that this could happen. (04.09.04) |
| Spanish first division clubs spent around
€230 million on the transfer market this summer, almost double the
€125 million paid out the year before. The biggest spenders were Barcelona
and Real Madrid, who both forked out just under €60 million, with Valencia
(€30 Mio), Atlético (€17 Mio), Sevilla (€15 Mio), Betis
(€12 Mio) and Villarreal (€10 Mio) behind them. Athletic Bilbao,
Albacete and Numancia didn't lay out a cent between them though, all their new
signings coming from loan deals or promotions from their junior sides.
(02.09.04) |
| External auditors Macua have qualified Athletic
Bilbao's annual accounts, as management have included a valuation of €3.3
million for seven players from their youth team. The issue came to light during
the run up to elections for a new president, which are due to take place later
this month. (01.09.04) |
| Levante's loan signing of Sergio García
may turn out to be expensive. Barcelona wanted their under 21 international to
play as many games as possible and so agreed a penalty clause of €10,000
with the Valencia based side every time that the striker wasn't in the starting
line up. But manager Bernd Schuster left him out of the squad for the opening
game and said that at the moment he wasn't up to the level of his other three
forwards. (30.08.04) |
| The RFEF legal committee ruled that Valencia have
to pay their ex manager Rafa Benítez around €2 million in bonus
fees for winning the league and UEFA cup last season. The claim by the club
against the new Liverpool manager for €3 million in compensation of breach
of contract has still to be resolved though. (26.08.04) |
| Three candidates have come forward to take over
from Ignacio Ugartetxe as president of Athletic Bilbao in the forthcoming
elections, which have been set for 10th September. The favourite is Fernando
Lamikiz, who presented twice as many signatures as the other two candidates put
together when registration closed yesterday. Juan Pedro Guzmán and
José Alberto Pradera both presented their avals only half an hour before
the midnight deadline. (22.08.04) |
| Tenerife and Villarreal have reached an agreement
for the settlement of an amount of €340,000 still owed by the Canary
Islanders for the transfer of Bruno Marioni a couple of seasons ago. Once
payment has been made, Villarreal will lift the embargo which has prevented
Tenerife from registering new signings this summer. (19.08.04) |
| Logroñés will continue in the third
division after a new company stepped in to buy out the club. The new owners,
Tanako Corporation, are from Alicante, and will be represented by football
agent Vicente Cutanda. The club are still in legal administration though, and
may not be allowed to play in the "Las Gaunas" stadium until they come to an
agreement with the Logroño town council over unpaid invoices. Meanwhile
local rivals Recreación have offered to change their name to include
Logroñés in the title. (12.08.04) |
| Pontevedra will have to convert to a Sporting
Limited Company (SAD) and raise around €3.2 million by 31st July next year
if they are to stay in the second division. Under league rules, clubs new to
the division are set a share capital objective based on the entity's own debt
and the average budgets of their second division colleagues, which this year
are particularly high due to the addition of the likes of Celta and Valladolid.
(11.08.04) |
| Salamanca's latest capital increase has been a
success, with share capital reaching over three million euros when the issue
closed at the end of July. Local constructor Manuel Campos is the largest
shareholder with around 25%, and he will take over from outgoing president Juan
José Hidalgo later this month. (07.08.04) |
| Logroñes are very likely to disappear
after being relegated to the third division for failing to pay debts to
players. The club was only short of around 150,000 euros, but couldn't raise
the money in time. The La Rioja based side's managing director said that they
have already laid off all their players, and that their 70 year history was
coming to an end. Compostela too may wind up their first team and just continue
with their B side in the lower regional divisions. (04.08.04) |
| For the first time in three seasons, all of
Spain's clubs from the first and second division "A" met the payment deadline.
Only Logroñes from the second division "B", and Compostela and Yeclano,
who were both relegated from the second division "B" to the third division at
the end of last season, failed to clear their debts. All will be relegated down
another division. (03.08.04) |
| Tenerife are safe from relegation after local
authorities came to their aid to help them play off back debts to their
players. The "Cabildo de Tenerife" approved an extension to the 600,000 euros a
year subsidy up until 2010, thereby allowing them to offer an aval to back a
loan from a group of local businessmen. (02.08.04) |
| Spain's first division clubs can now take out
insurance against relegation. Local insurance companies offer this option, and
have specialists who evaluate the risk and consequent premium based on a number
of factors, including whether the team has made any big new signings to their
squads. (01.08.04) |
| The 2nd August (midnight) deadline is fast
arriving for clubs to be up to date with their payments to players. At the time
of writing, all first division sides are up to date, but four of last season's
second division clubs still have unsettled debts, Xerez (€2.9 million),
Tenerife (1.2), Rayo Vallecano (0.8) and Las Palmas (0.4). Some 14 second
division B sides are still under threat, including Compostela (€0.7
million), Logroñes (0.4), Badajoz (0.3) and Playas Jandía (0.3),
plus Yeclano, Palamós, Mérida and Avilés, all with debts
over €50,000. Clubs failing to reach an agreement with their players will
be relegated down a division. (31.07.04) |
| Deportivo were surprised to learn that their
captain Fran has denounced the club to the AFE after failing to reach an
agreement over the extension to his contract. The deal was extended by two
years in summer 2003, but whereas the club understood that image rights were
included, the veteran midfielder understood otherwise. A spokesman for the club
said that they had presented the relevant documentation to the AFE, who had
accepted their explanation and turned down Fran's appeal. (30.07.04)
|
| Betis president Manuel Ruiz de Lopera and his
vice-president Angel Martín have been accused of tax evasion and will
have to appear in court in the near future. Fiscal authorities have been
investigating the case for some time, and are accusing the two men of having
defrauded the tax man to the tune of ten million euros in their dealings with
the Andalucian club. Lopera says it is only a question of interpretation and
that he is innocent of any wrong-doing, and in a surprise move, Sevilla
president José María Del Nido called him to offer his support.
(29.07.04) |
| Valencia CF and the local city council have
signed an agreement for the construction of a new 70,000 seater stadium, which
will primarily be used by the club but which will also have a running track and
other facilities. The council are bidding for the 2009 World Athletics
Championship, and hope that the games can be staged in the new ground.
(28.07.04) |
| Xerez finally have a new owner. After lengthy
negotiations, local businessman Joaquín Morales and his partners have
bought out president and major shareholder Gil Salgado for a reported fee of
€1.5 million, and will be injecting new funds into the club to enable
debts of around €10 million with players and other creditors to be brought
up to date or rescheduled. (22.07.04) |
| Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez
announced that the club expects to make €138 million just from marketing
income this year, equivalent to the total turnover of four years ago.
(19.07.04) |
| Barcelona president Joan Laporta unveiled plans
to renovate the area around the Nou Camp, opening up the stadium compound to
the general public and replacing the B team "Mini-stadium" with a covered
sports hall, flats, a shopping centre and a hotel. Plans are at an initial
stage though, and if approved will not commence until 2006. (15.07.04)
|
| Atlético Madrid are considering putting
their Vicente Calderón stadium up for sale and moving to a new ground in
the district of La Peineta in 2007. Initial enquires suggest that the ground
could be worth up around €200 million, as against an accounting book value
of only €29.5 million. Most of the funds generated would go towards a new
sporting centre. Ironically, the announcement comes only a few days after the
Madrid council agreed to change the name of the closest tube station,
"Pirámides", to "Vicente Calderón". (14.07.04) |
| As expected, the new owner of Alavés is
Dmitri Piterman after he was revealed as the mystery buyer behind the sale of
shares belonging to Gonzalo Antón. The club president offered his shares
at first to fans, but after only 2.4% were taken up, Piterman stepped in to buy
a stake which gives him 51% of the share capital. The controversial
Ukraine-American businessman is expected to take over as president with
immediate effect. (11.07.04) |
| Cádiz are being forced by the Superior
Sports Council (CSD) to increase their share capital by around €1.7
million by the 6th August to enable them to stay in the second division A. The
ruling follows an audit after the club was promoted last season, and requires
them to meet minimum capital requirements within a certain time frame under the
sporting limited companies act. The increase represents around 40% of share
capital, and management are appealing for fans to take up the offer to avoid
the club falling into foreign hands. (10.07.04) |
| Betis have been condemned by a local court to pay
their ex striker Angel Cuéllar €75,000 instead of the €360,000
the player was claiming for wages and bonus payments. In another case, the club
will have to pay Joey Gudjonsson's agents €195,000 in settlement of four
promissory notes which were apparently "lost" in 2001. (09.07.04) |
| The supreme court in Spain has reduced the prison
sentences handed out to Atlético Madrid's directors, and has allowed the
Gil family and their partners to recover the shares which had been impounded.
Club president Enrique Cerezo has been absolved and managing director Miguel
Angel Gil, son of deceased ex president Jesús Gil, has had his sentence
for fraud reduced to18 months, which he is not likely to have to serve as a
first offender. Jesús Gil's heirs will still have to make good the
€16.2 million hole in the accounts arising from the time the club was
incorporated as a limited company in 1992, although a spokesman for the family
said that this was just an accounting issue, and would not require funds to be
put into the club. The charges of embezzlement were dropped, as the
investigation by the fiscal authorities took place outside of the five year
maximum time period established by Spanish law. (07.07.04) |
| Zaragoza have announced together with the local
city council that they will be building a new stadium on the site of the old
Romareda ground in two years' time. Construction is scheduled to begin in the
summer of 2006 and will last 18 months, and the development will include a
commercial centre, offices, two tower blocks and an underground car park. The
club will not have to move in the meantime though, as temporary stands will be
erected to enable them to continue playing while the development work is going
on. (05.07.04) |
| The pressure group "Alternativa Atlética"
is trying once again to buy Atlético Madrid out of the hands of the Gil
family. The group's president Alfonso Camba said that they had raised €100
million to invest in the club, €30 million to buy out the current
shareholders, €30 million for new players and the rest to subscribe to the
new capital increase and as working capital. President Enrique Cerezo and
managing director Miguel Angel Gil said though that the club is not for sale,
and they will be turning down the offer. (05.07.04) |
| There is continuing speculation as to whom is
behind the €3.5 million reserve bid for Alavés, although due to a
half million euro penalty clause the outgoing president Gonzalo Antón is
keeping his mouth tightly shut. Whether it will be Piterman, Abramovic or even
ex Alavés and Real Madrid player Jorge Valdano remains to be seen, but
all will be revealed on 10th July, always assuming that the previous share sale
to the club's fans has not been fully subscribed. (04.07.04) |
| The latest joke by Mono Burgos has turned out to
be very costly. Atlético Madrid's eccentric keeper has been fined 2,000
euros for disorderly conduct after his phone call to Racing Santander's
Regueiro a couple of months ago asking him to let Celta win, as some of his
best friends played for them. (03.07.04) |
| Pontevedra's promotion to the second division A
for the first time in 27 years brings with it new problems. Under LFP rules,
the Galician side will have to raise around four million euros in share capital
to covert to a sporting limited company (SAD), and their ancient ground will
have to undergo a complete renovation. (02.07.04) |
| At last there is a ray of hope for Xerez. The
Ubrique group, headed up by Sevilla businessman Joaquín Morales, have
made an offer to outgoing president Gil Salgado to buy up the club, and are
currently talking to the local council to find a way of clearing the debts and
saving them from being relegated. Salamanca meanwhile have been granted a
€1.2 million loan by the Caja Duero which will enable them to pay off
their back debts to players. (02.07.04) |
| A leadership battle appears to be on the cards at
Espanyol after current president Daniel Sánchez Llibre failed to reach
an agreement with the "Espanyol 3.0" opposition group. The group's leader
Alfred Torres is expected to call an Extraordinary General Meeting to ask for a
change in the management team. (01.07.04) |
Cover page