Behind the scenes work continues at Panathinaikos despite COVID-19 pandemic

Behind the scenes work continues at Panathinaikos on a wide variety of fronts during the unprecedented Coronavirus pandemic.

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Overturning UEFA suspension

Panathinaikos were optimistic that they would be successful in overturning their UEFA ban to allow them to participate in continental football as of next season. This was before the virus, and the club’s stance has not changed.

Chances are not on the Greens’ side, but this will not stop the club from continuing to try. Obtaining a licence to participate in Greece’s top flight is a key metric, and the club had no issue in achieving this, as the finances are in order. There is no debt owed to any past or current player, and staff is getting paid on time. On top of this, Giannis Alafouzos was prepared to illustrate a clear path on the improvement made by the club by showing financial statements such as balance sheets.

However, realistically speaking, the Coronavirus pandemic, which has plagued football, will make it difficult for the Trifylli. UEFA will have more pressing concerns to deal with, but all hope is not lost.

Licence to be obtained with minimal fuss

For the first time in three years, Panathinaikos will successfully obtain a licence to play in the Greek Super League next season. This should be a given for a club the size of Panathinaikos, but it was a major issue in recent years.

The standard penalty for failing to obtain a licence was automatic relegation, and this is what the Greens’ flirted with in previous years. However, the majority of top-flight clubs agreed to relax this penalty in 2018 to keep Panathinaikos in the first division.

The issue stemmed from the club’s poor financial management under the leadership of Alafouzos. The debt, which had previously piled up, has now been paid, and the club is in a position to obtain this playing licence.

The grant of this licence does not directly impact the UEFA suspension, but it will show favourably upon the club as there is tangible evidence of significant progress. It should also be noted that Alafouzos has begun investing in the club again.

Ceiling on new contracts

The club appeared to be on an upward trajectory, but the impact of the Coronavirus will be felt. As a result of lost income from ticket sales and television revenue, a tough economic policy will be applied in the summer.

It was only a few months ago where the Greens expected to hand Xavi Roca a relatively big budget to work with, but those plans are gone. Instead, the maximum new contract he can hand out to a new player will be 350,000 EUR (this also includes existing players in negotiations with the club such as Emanuel Insua).

Despite the stricter approach, Alafouzos will continue to play an active role unlike 2017, and in positive news, all current contracts will be honoured. This means all players who agreed to contract extensions in recent months, will be paid in accordance. The likes of Dimitris Kourbelis, Yassin Ayoub, and Carlitos will not be affected.

Furthermore, negotiations about the club’s new television contract are expected to begin shortly as the current deal comes to an end. Novasports will have the first right to discuss a renewal.

Sponsorship

Negotiations with existing sponsors are also underway. In more positive news, the Trifylli’s highest-profile sponsors have already agreed to stay on board for next season. In the case of Panathinaikos’ biggest sponsor, OPAP (on the front of the team’s jersey as the primary sponsor), has an existing agreement in place to remain on board for next season. OPAP also has an option to extend this for another two years after next year.

Smaller sponsors such as Chipita SA, owned by Spyros Theodoropoulos, have concluded agreements to remain on board. Kappa has also guaranteed that they will remain as the team’s clothing sponsor.

Coca Cola, Cosmote, and Piraeus Bank are all significant sponsors who have agreements to remain as sponsors. Renovations began at the club’s headquarters in Koropi through negotiating such deals with sponsors.

Alafouzos remains as majority owner

Alafouzos will remain as the club’s majority owner moving forward into next season. According to the balance sheet, he officially owns 51.87% of Panathinaikos. Even though there is no major change from a fan’s perspective, Alafouzos has continued to restructure his ownership where the majority of the club is in his name personally.

For instance, according to the 2017/18 balance sheet, the majority owner was Sortivo International (Alafouzos’ company) as it owned 52.42% of the club. Back then, a percentage of 23.845 was in Alafouzos’ name personally. In last year’s balance sheet, Sortivo International owned 34.82% of the club, and this figure continues to fall.

As a result, Alafouzos owns 86.69% of the shares in the club (both in his personal name and company name). The figure has increased in his personal name as he has been investing funds through his name, instead of his offshore company. The Amateur Department of Panathinaikos, run by Dimitris Giannakopoulos, owns a stable 10% of the shares. This only solidifies Alafouzos’ hold on the club as the man calling the shots.

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