THE EUROPEAN FOOTBALL CLUBS ARE ON THE VERGE OF BANKRUPTCY

The forecast, voiced by the former vice president of the “Milan” sports club Adriano Galliani, about the prospect of an imminent bankruptcy of the main football clubs in Europe, looks rather convincing. The clubs that had recently been making decent profits by receiving money from television broadcasts, advertising and stadiums are now forced to incur serious losses.

We should recall that previously, many sports clubs made an attempt to get out of the crisis by lowering their own expenses and cutting the wages of players.  However, according to Galliani, such measures are not enough for today.

“Barcelona” Football Club receives € 50 million profit exclusively from the sale of the souvenirs in its official store.

Another example, noted by the football manager, is the stadium of the Camp Nou club, the museum of which is one of the most visited museums in Spain.  It is clear that now these incomes are depleted.  The UEFA (the Union of European Football Associations) is suffering from the multi-million dollar losses, postponing competitions to a later date.  But what to do in this situation, is not clear yet.  Galliani calls this problem the one that could not be fully understood.

The experts previously noted that a pandemic could deprive the European top leagues, which are forced to “pause” the entire football sector, of about € 4.33 billion. The proceeds from the matches at stadiums, the sale of rights to television broadcasts and the sales revenues were taken as the basis of the capital.

One of the leading factors in the impact of the pandemic on football is the fact that sport involves the mass action.

It is not a coincidence that many people now cite the statement of the German professor of virology, Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, who stated that the fans should forget about the return of mass events.  Holding matches without spectators will also not be able to change the situation, because in this case, fans will still be forced to gather to watch the match, even on the television screens.

Many experts also point to another risk factor that could make football clubs bankrupt - the so-called non-payment crisis.

“Buying” of the leading players on the installment terms, which clubs have often practiced in recent years, may not be the most successful way of financial support in emergency situations.

The transfers might be frozen, while their volume is about € 9 billion. The UEFA drew attention to the possible negative consequences of such practices even before the crisis.  However, the fair-play rule system, introduced about 10 years ago, made such installments more profitable than paying immediately.  The practice that did not make any serious threat in a normal situation, turned out to be an additional risk factor, when the clubs quarantined and ceased to receive the incomes.