French professional football will receive a loan of more than 200 million euros to overcome the corona crisis. But it is highly questionable whether that loan is legally justified and whether the most ailing clubs benefit from it. Several large clubs would fall over, writes the French research site Mediapart.
The LFP met yesterday and agreed to take out a loan of 224.5 million euros which state guarantees. That amount will compensate for the losses of TV rights. No football since March has resulted in loss of TV income. But the loan is being queationed whether the most ailing clubs benefit from it. Several large clubs are may even fall over.
At the end of June, the clubs in the First League are in a deficit of 438 million euros, the LFP calculated. But, the financial problems are much greater it suppose. Some clubs were already in the red and the damage from corona is much greater than that of missed TV rights. Not only did TV revenues disappear, advertising money, revenues from ticket sales and transfer fees were also lost. Several clubs are on the verge of bankruptcy, such as Marseille, Bordeaux and Saint-Étienne. Even in the 2018-2019 season, the accumulated losses of the clubs amounted to 160 million euros.
The loan being taken is intended to absorb the corona loss, But in reality the amount of 200 million is too low. And the money mainly goes to the clubs that suffer the most from unpaid TV rights, which may not be the clubs with the biggest problems.PSG which is not in the red, for example, gets the largest amount.
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