Sporting disappointed by public shaming from UEFA
14 Sep 2012
Sporting Lisbon has expressed its disappointment that UEFA named it amongst 23 clubs who have not complied with financial fair play (FFP) regulations, blaming miscommunication for its involvement and adding that its naming could affect business negotiations.
The Portuguese Primeira Liga giant was on Tuesday listed amongst 23 clubs currently competing in European competition who have been found to have “important overdue payables towards other clubs, and/or towards employees or social/tax authorities”. As a result, UEFA said its Club Financial Control Body’s (CFCB) investigatory chamber has temporarily withheld the clubs’ prize money pending further investigation. “I can’t say I am pleased with the ruckus around this issue,” said Sporting president Godinho Lopes, according to Reuters. “I was sad to see Sporting’s name mentioned, there was a communication error.”
Jose Guedes, the club’s vice-president in charge of financial affairs, said Tuesday’s announcement came despite the understanding that UEFA had set a deadline of October 14 to comply with FFP rules. Sporting added that it is engaged in a minor issue over payments to other clubs, but they are not affected by salary delays and the club’s tax and social security payments are in order. “The case is related to payments to football clubs and the sums are really not too big,” Guedes added.
Speaking in the immediate wake of Tuesday’s announcement, Guedes had stated that UEFA should amend its comments “to avoid bigger damage” to Sporting’s business. Sporting is reportedly seeking new investors to improve its financial situation. The club has made losses in 12 of the past 13 years, including a loss of Eur46 million for the year ending June 2012.
