Turkey's TL 12B football economy on verge of transformation

With the summer transfer window closing soon, a new era will start in Turkey's football economy, which has reached around TL 12 billion in size. Turkish Football Federation (TFF) President Nihat Özdemir said the federation will put spending limits on top-tier Süper Lig clubs as of Sept. 2. Transfer fees, payments for footballers and coaches and travel expenses will be within these limits. The clubs will be allowed to exceed their spending limits by 30% in the first year and by 15% next year. "There will be no flexibility in the third year. The period of high fees and expensive transfers is over, they have all been disciplined," said Özdemir.

He warned that clubs exceeding the spending limit will face sanctions in the form of warnings, staff limitations, transfer bans, banning licenses to be given to transferred players and point subtractions.

Özdemir added that he believed that the financial structures of the clubs that are in debt to the tune of TL 14 billion will get out of difficulties in three years.

"The License Registration Board examines the balance sheets of our clubs, especially of those in the Süper Lig," the TFF head said and added, "We will determine how much money they can spend throughout the year and will announce it on the internet. Clubs will be given spending mandate, including expenditure on transfers, payments for footballers and coaches and travel expenses. Those without debt will have a higher spending limit. The aid money will also appear on the balance sheets." The TFF will collect and examine the balance sheets again in November. Penalties will be imposed on those who exceed the spending limit. Speaking of the terms that the clubs need to comply with, Özdemir said. "Our football clubs will be first warned and then will be obliged to limit their staff. For instance, they will be ordered to play with only 22 footballers. We can bring transfer bans; transferred players will not be given a license and will not be allowed to play. The heavier penalty will be the subtraction of points. One, two or three points can be deducted. Champions have been determined by one point," he added.

"Banks are in talks with the clubs on restructuring their debts. Ziraat Bank and Denizbank, in particular, are the main negotiators. We believe the financial structure of the clubs will get out of troubles within three years if we can set spending studies," he said.

About the impact of the currency volatility on the financial outlook of the clubs, Özdemir said, "The fluctuation in exchange rates has had a 30% effect on our clubs. The debts soared to TL 14 billion from TL 8-10 billion immediately. Since the salaries of players and the purchase prices are always paid in euros, there is a problem. Advertising revenues have declined." The soaring in the debt has led the clubs to redesign their expenditure framework, according to Özdemir.

"Our clubs have also restricted their spending. They do not transfer football players with great amounts of money. They are looking for free agents. In the past, they could take the license of a footballer for 6 million or 10 million euros. Now they cannot," he explained.

Talking about Turkey hosting international games, Özdemir referred to the recent English Super Cup final, which was held in Istanbul on Aug. 14 and fascinated everyone, with 42,000 spectators watching the match.

"Nearly 20,000 of the spectators were British. For the first time in the world, a trio of female referees took part in a final. On May 30, 2020, the Champions League final will be held. It will be a very important event in terms of attracting the interest of the world. The Super Cup was broadcast live in 212 countries and 2 billion people watched. According to the Turkish Travel Agencies (TÜRSAB), the advertising return for Turkey exceeded TL 1 billion," said Özdemir.

"The Champions League will be much bigger than this. Nearly 3 billion people from all over the world will follow the championship, which will bring great yield. For this, the capacity of the stadium should be minimum 70,000 people," he added.

He also noted that some renovations at the stadium must be completed before the game.

"The Atatürk Olympic stadium is very old. Around 500 journalists will be there with their IT systems. There are limitations on the number of connections for broadcasting. So, we will lower the floor slightly to increase the capacity for lighting, IT, electronic systems and seats. We will remove the athletics track and lounges. We have had the project built by a British company that UEFA deemed appropriate and now we have started construction. This stadium will be ready by March and we will make it ready for the match to be played on May 30. In the first stage, we will spend about TL 150 million."

To improve the stadium, Özdemir said the federation will also raise the surrounding area and the audience capacity will exceed 80,000.

"We will cover it completely and make it the national stadium of the Turkish national football team just like Stad de France in Paris and Wembley Stadium in London. The roads and the subway leading to the stadium have been built. The atmosphere will be very nice. We plan to make it one of the most beautiful stadiums in Europe in the next one-and-a-half years," he said.
*Hazal Ateş