ne-i-tema-t318?&p=153011#p153011

Red Star and Partizan: Debts of the biggest sports clubs in Serbia, will the state react
https://www.bbc.com/serbian/lat/srbija-61796169
https://www.b92.net/sport/fudbal/vesti. ... id=2333522

<...>To put things into perspective, Minister of Finance Siniša Mali revealed two years ago, in June 2022, that the state had provided EUR 130 million in aid to the major clubs—Red Star and Partizan—over ten years, coinciding with the rise of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) to power. Today, two years later, that figure is undoubtedly even higher.

<...>During a TV appearance in late March, Vučić put his foot in his mouth, complaining about the unjustified insults persistently hurled at him by the black-and-white fans, he disclosed that the state had “contributed EUR 3.2 million to Partizan Football Club so they could kick the ball in Europe.” This corresponds to the stated sum transferred for financing the Football Federation of Serbia (FFS).

<...>However, this sports financing from the budget is anything but a one-time aid. It is more accurate to describe it as a systemic arrangement. <...>When you tally it all up, the Football Federation of Serbia has received approximately EUR 12 million from the state budget over a little more than a year.

<...>The treatment of the Basketball Federation of Serbia (BFS) is no worse. <...>When you add it all up, over two years, the state has provided approximately EUR 8.5 million to domestic basketball based solely on these one-time payments for “regular operation”. <...>There are indications that the federation acted merely as a flow-through entity, with the real destination of the funds once again being the club from Mali Kalemegdan [Crvena Zvezda].

<...>“If you pay close attention, these payments from the budget, intended for clubs, are made regularly at the end of March each year. Why? Because on 31 March UEFA requires clubs to prove they have no outstanding debts to employees, creditors, and tax authorities—everything up to 28 February of the current year—as a condition for obtaining licenses for club competitions organized by UEFA. As clubs are not allowed to receive money directly from the state according to the rules, but they can receive it from the Federation, and the Federation can receive it from the state, then the FFS appears as an intermediary, again in a form that is not known to the public, nor to me as a member of the FFS Assembly. What is absurd here is that UEFA is more interested in the financial operations of our clubs than the Tax Administration.<...>

<...>To ensure that state funds paid to federations and clubs are under better control when they arrive, the authorities have made an effort to place the most reliable individuals in leadership positions.