By Ricardo Setyon
October 23 – Santos, one of the world’s most iconic football clubs and the home team of Pele and more recently Neymar, is facing the battle of its life, perhaps even for its life. Expensive player acquisitions, dwindling attendances and 2015 TV money already spent, the club is in a desperate financial position despite currently sitting 7th in the Brasileirão.
Monday mornings bring new headaches for the management of Santos as they struggle to pay their weekly bills. Reliant on match day revenue, their income is below their expenditure and it is eating into their financial reserves. This is an area where their legacy can’t save them.
Santos to a degree are paying the price of overpaying for players. Having bought Argentinean midfielder Montillo, from Cruzeiro, he was quickly sold to China for a lot less than what was spent in the first place. Striker Leandro Damião cost more than €11 million, and on an inflated European salary has barely scored more than 10 goals,in almost a year.
Even bringing the beloved Robinho back from Milan, to be the club’s main attraction, has not worked.
On September 23, playing in its home stadium of Vila Belmiro, against Figueirense, Santos had a deficit of $3,000. Just 5.571 fans bought tickets generating $35.000. Match day expenses were $38,500. The economic reality is painful for a club of Santos’ fame and wage bill.
A Corinthians Vice President described Santos FC as “poor people….having to pay to play…”.
Against Goiás, the match day deficit was £11.500. Against Flamengo, in a very important game against Brazil’s most popular team, Santos set a record of close to £20,000 in the red. And it continues with another £5,000 loss against Criciuma.
If the World Cup this year was meant to invigorate Brazilian football, for Santos the opposite happened. With no play there was no pay. Vila Belmiro, Santos FC home ground, was used for a month by the Mexican national team. Meanwhile the club saw its accounts dive deeper into the red..
In a desperate attempt to try and curb the losses, tickets for matches in Sao Paulo, were reduced to an absurd £2.50 Discounted tickets for students, elders and children, could be bought even for a mere £1.50. But it did not work: against Flamengo, only 7.182 tickets were sold. Of those, 1.523 tickets were sold to Flamengo fans.
A key issue for Santos is that it has more fans in Sao Paulo, than in Santos itself. Santos has on-going internal arguments, as for where it is more profitable for Santos to play: at home, in Vila Belmiro, or in stadiums in Sao Paulo, such as Pacaembu.
But even playing away has not turned the revenue picture around. While playing at Vila Belmiro has its own difficulties. Santos FC President, Odílio Rodrigues, said: “Vila Belmiro is stadium with very bad access. there is no place to park, you have no comfort, people do not feel safe. I am ashamed, as I would like to welcome the presidents of other clubs, in Vila Belmiro, but I know they will placed in a spot where they will be in the open, being cursed and shouted at by supporters. That is very bad for us, for football!”.
Without a main sponsor for two years, and with expenses increasing, Santos faces the most serious threat in its history. Elections in the club take place next December 6. So far none of the six candidates seem to have a magic formula, or a lot of money to spend.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1734896630labto1734896630ofdlr1734896630owedi1734896630sni@n1734896630oytes1734896630.odra1734896630cir1734896630