Espanyol in danger of falling into a “coma” candidate warns

Finances for the Primera Liga club are so bad that the Barcelona-based outfit is in danger of falling into an “economic coma” according to Claudio Biern. Biern is vying for the club’s presidency, running against incumbent Daniel Sanchez Llibre. Biern unveiled his economic plans for the club that he called an “economic football catharsis.” His plans call for reducing the deficit to zero over the next four years without increasing the current debt of EUR 44 million. He also presented a plan to enact a share issue of EUR 6 million. Jose Maria Gay is the club’s financial chief and former board member. He claims the board has ignored his and Biern’s proposals. “The club isn’t in danger of dying but we could be about to enter into a coma,” Gay said. “If we were a normal business I would say that in four years we would no longer exist, although that won’t happen because of the kind of club we are.” Part of Gay’s plans includes reducing expenses in all areas, including money spent on catering and lodging on away trips. He also said the club could cut EUR 2 million a year in expenses by cutting costs with the club’s youth divisions.

Gay and Biern mentioned Portuguese Super Liga club Porto as an example to follow. Porto, formerly in deep financial trouble, contributed just 37 percent of its 2003-04 income to personnel, a contrast to Espanyol’s 70 percent spent on personnel.