The Black Sea Storm are operating with a tight budget under the directions of club president Ahmet Agaoglu.
Turkish Super Lig heavyweights Trabzonspor have managed to lower their outstanding debt for the first time in 19 years, according to the club’s president Ahmet Agaoglu.
Like almost all Super Lig clubs, Trabzonspor are struggling to balance the books due to mounting debt. Years of mismanagement and reckless spending has hit Turkish football clubs hard in recent times causing the Turkish government to step in and throw them a lifeline.
Speaking to the club’s official magazine, Agaoglu pointed out the fact that Trabzonspor are back in Europe after a lengthy absence and have managed to lower their debt to UEFA.
“We reduced player expenses down to 16 million euro from 38 million euro yearly and are actively recruiting players from the club’s youth teams instead of signing expensive transfers. UEFA told us that we could compete despite the fact that we recorded a loss of 55 million euros and that we could continue our administrative and sports policies on the condition of giving up half of our income to the competition,” Agaoglu explained.
The wealthy businessman also said the club are working on how they can put an end to the 50% income reduction sanctioned by UEFA.
“This is a big amount and restricts our spending. We filed for a trial in the Court of Arbitration for Sports and even though it appears that we cannot have it entirely removed, it can be reduced to 25 percent,” he added.
Turkey’s traditional powerhouses — Besiktas, Fenerbahce, Galatasaray and Trabzonspor — have a collective debt of 10.6 billion Turkish Lira, according to financial reports from last season. Yet, the clubs continue to stretch their finances despite the financial hardships they face.
In total, 51 new players joined the four clubs last season for a total cost, excluding agent fees, of 716 million Turkish Lira, according to the figures published by Anadolu last month.