By Gareth Messenger
July 5 – Spanish Segunda B division side Albacete Balompié S.A.D. have avoided automatic relegation – courtesy of World Cup superstar Andrea Iniesta. Albacete has now paid all outstanding player wages, the money coming via an increase in the capital of the club, rather than as a loan, thanks to its main shareholder, Barcelona, and Iniesta.
The Spanish midfielder – World Cup winner and two-time European Championship winner — grew up in the small town of Fuentealbilla, a province of Albacete, and injected €420,000 into the cash-strapped club two years ago.
At the time, president Rafael Candel said: “It’s such an honour to have a member like him. On top of that he signed all the shares personally and not in the name of a business. It shows his love for the club once again.”
Albacete Balompié owes over €10 million and back in April 2011, the club filed for bankruptcy. Iniesta owns over 7,000 of the 20,000 shares in the club, making him the majority shareholder. Albacete are hoping that his name will attract new investors.
Iniesta and his family have pledged to meet the club’s financial commitments in order to keep it afloat. “I was an Albacete supporter,” he said. “Many stories have been told, but that is the reality; my father was an Athletic fan, and I liked Albacete and Barcelona, my second team.”