A positive wave begins

(published in Slovak Sport Daily and on sport.aktuality.sk)

Back in May, the SFZ’s Appeals Committee for licensing procedures fully upheld the first-instance decision to deny MFK Košice a license for the 2015/16 season. The club had failed to meet the minimum financial licensing criteria, even during the appeals process. What drew attention to this case was the fact that, for the first time, a mid-table team was relegated from the top division not for sporting reasons, but due to licensing issues. But could the independent body have acted any differently?

A glance at the detailed justification by the licensing authorities makes the answer clear. The club not only failed to prove settlement of debts owed to players Bašista, Novák, and Korijkov, but also defaulted on acknowledged obligations to Kavka, Ostojić, and Tofiloski. According to the licensing body, “it is evident that contracts with these players were backdated.” Since agreements with them were reached only in April 2015, the obligations still existed as of March 31—grounds enough for denying a license. The committee also identified deficiencies in the club’s audited financial statements. A declaration from the club’s main shareholder was deemed insufficient to guarantee the club’s continued operation into the new season. Proposed solutions were aimed more at reducing liabilities than securing actual funding, and parts of the club’s projected income were considered unrealistic.

The key shareholder’s public statements hardly found a sympathetic audience: “We could have paid those three players—it’s not even a big sum. But doing so would have undermined all the others who agreed to settle.” He then offered an unexpected twist: “For me, it’s a better situation, we’ve cleared the table. This situation has kicked off a positive wave.”

Last week, an unusual press conference drew attention. Players Bašista and Novák spoke out about the club’s internal practices. They described how players were hit with arbitrary €15,000 fines and offered two months’ pay, only if they signed “documents needed for the license.” Some were in such difficult circumstances that they accepted the offer. Others forfeited half of what they were owed just to end their ties with the club. Those who refused, they claimed, were threatened with demotion to the B-team. Déjà vu. Similar tactics were reported in the past at Dunajská Streda and other (not only football) clubs.

This time, the club’s last-minute scramble to cover its tracks failed. But was losing a top-flight license really worth €50,000—an amount the club still owes anyway? The reputation of a club from Slovakia’s second-largest city is surely worth more—not just in the eyes of fans, but also to the city government, potential sponsors, and future investors. Any new backers will need a lot of courage... Or perhaps the situation is being framed differently. After all, the independent SFZ body has launched a “positive wave.”

Will that wave wash away the 28 payment schedules owed to players—due in full on July 15? You can probably guess how this ends. And who will end up being “responsible.”