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View Full Version : CD Tenerife - a look at where we are



Fred Perry
03-12-2011, 12:25
The release this week of all the facts & figures involved with the blanquiazules has set alarm bells ringing. This is how we stand at present, feel free to add ideas/opinions.

CLUB FINANCES
CD Tenerife are now 38 million€ in debt. Of that amount 21 million€ is short term debt and needs to be paid off before next June (2012). One hope was the sale of land owned by CD Tenerife, valued at 15 million€, but this was sold finally for 11million€ due to the crisis and the need of quick revenue. The club recieved 4.2 million of this amount last July to save themselves from going into administration. The rest (7 million€) will eventually come off the 38million debt when paid.
It was quite obvious at the time playing in Primera that the signing of a couple of players(atleast a half decent center half) could have saved the club from relegation. Trying to stay up on the cheap doesīnt cut the mustard in any league these days, we should have risked spending another 2-3million€. It may not have worked but being 38 or 41 million in debt for me doesīnt make much differance when it is so much. The loss in TV money is staggering; 14 million in Primera down to 2.5million€ in the 2nd Division. Letīs not talk about this season`s tv money:o, 70,000€!

Season ticket sales dropped from 6million to 3million (which was still a fantastic amount in the 2nd it must be said)
Match ticket sales dropped from 1.4 million to 500.000€. Remember there were only 3,500 tickets available per game in Primera due to season ticket sell out.

The club shop took 330,000€ in the Primera season down to 132,000€ in the 2nd. Now it is closed down completely whilst the club offices make the move from the center of town to the stadium.
Next April CD Tenerife have a court case pending with ex-manager Amaral for unfair dismissal. According to reports the club are likely to lose.


BOARD
After taking power back in 2006 things slowly but surely improved for the club. Great results led to the glorious promotion in 2009. Infact, all round the club enjoyed a revival and I was impressed with the initiatives and felt that the club were really going places. At a Fan Club meeting a few weeks before the promotion in 2009 the President Concepcion promised to organise charter flights for fans to travel to Girona. But in the end there was nothing, it appeared to be a case of "we are practically up now and we donīt need you anymore". Fans were forced to hand over 300€ just for a day trip or donīt go to see the promotion. In the excitement of the promotion Concepcion was hero as he danced with fans in the fountain in Santa Cruz, the away day farce was largely forgotten.
The lack of signings that summer produced the first murmers of discontent but it was a case of "letīs see".
The rest is history, two relegations and the rise in debt. Relations between the fans and the board can only be described as "frosty". There is no alternative to the current board, that is the BIG problem. The AGM held soon will be attended by few. Concepcion made a new rule that any fan wanting to attend now needs 115 shares minimum(ruling out the average fan) Also the AGM is midday on a Friday, a working day, to make it harder for fans to participate incase they complain about anything. Mein Fuhrer would have been impressed.

Added after 54 minutes:

TEAM

Results wise fantastic, 8 wins, 5 draws and just 2 defeats. The play has not be so good it must be admitted, we have ridden our luck at times and thanked the ever superb Sergio Aragoneses in goal(the best by far at this level). I would say only twice this season, Vecindario 3-0 win and Rayo B, 3-1 with 10 men, that we have left the stadium thinking "that was brilliant". Still, the points are on the board and we are set for a play-off position. The new players brought in(16 of them) are in a way still paying for disspointment of last season. Nerves spread from the pitch to the stands and vice-versa. Somewhat unfair on these players, we need to change the "chip" and get right behind them. Manager Calerdon is a cautious type manager & sometimes he does not help himself but the pressure of a over demanding public/ media I feel is causing some of this. You should hear the radio pundits during the week, you would think we had been bottom 3 all season not top 3!
A settled team is a must as he stills seems to be experimenting. With Pablo Sicilia back soon and the promised signing of a new striker we can only improve I hope.

FANS
Basically the heart and soul of the club, the attendances have engulfed every other in the 2nd B and many in the 2nd division. There is still hope for CDT to return to the big-time thanks to itīs loyal support. The CLUB says it is proud on itīs website of the amount fans at home games and away. Well, the fans are there DESPITE the CLUB. Itīs annoying that the CLUB take pride when they have done nothing to help attendances home or away. Lets not talk about the marketing/public relations of CDT, simply they are not good or bad - THEY DONīT EXIST.
Looking at the way clubs in the UK/Germany are run, working with the local community, iniciatives to put bums on seats etc. it is a great shame that they do not take a look outside their comfort zone of Santa Cruz. I say Santa Cruz/La Laguna as for the club the whole world is based in this zone. Despite the south being the motor of the Island, and where roughly a third of the residents of Tenerife live they never venture down here for anything(it would be like going to the moon for most of them). When I quizzed one well known director about this his reply was "I go to the South once for a swim every summer". That is what we have to put up with, small minded people. Okay, CDT play every August in Las Americas against CD Marino but it is a case of "get in, get out". The players do hang about for signings etc and they are all very down to earth, infact that side of things is very good. Things you do not see in the UK. One player when injured watched the away game on tv with a Fan Club in their house! That takes some beating.

The fans are lacking a leader to take the protests on to another level. Fan Clubs have to be careful in what they publicy say as the CLUB can cold shoulder you quite easily. To recap, they have never been nasty to me and I honestly do not think our Presi & board are totally bad people as such but we want more. We demand more. We deserve more. CDT could easily maintain a half decent team in La Liga with this support and potential here on the Island. Someone save us!


ARMADA SUR
If you had said 10 years ago that we would be filling coaches week in week out in the 2nd B I would have thought you were drunk. We have come along way. This season we have released a new match day programme(the only one of any kind in the Heliodoro these days) we have had a good presence at away games(Toledo & Real Madrid Castilla) and we will run a coach all the way to the South of Gran Canaria for the Vecindario game in January. Back in September Armada Sur raised on one trip 440€ for Giovanny a sick baby in need of an operation and soon we will start for a Christmas Charity event collecting toys for children and food for the needy. Enough back-slapping for now before the sick-bag is needed.
Next year sees the 20th anniversary of Armada Sur. Plenty of events will be planned to make it a memorable year.

FinnKris
04-12-2011, 15:47
Thanks for the information, a very interesting if depressing read.

The amount of debt is extremely worrying, especially the amount of short term loans, 21 million Euros that needs to be paid June 2012. Given that the amount received for TV rights is that small there is no way to receive anything close to the amount needed from within the club. Who is the money owed to, one or more banks or private persons?

Unless the debt can be re-arranged somehow things look most bleak indeed, bankruptcy/folding a real concern surely?

As much as I loath these Arab/Russian/Indian/American sugar daddys that play around in the Premier League I'd take one of those over the club folding of course. But we are hardly an attractive proposition currently with that much debt & a team in the Segunda B from where it is rather hard to achieve promotion.

Do we have anything in terms of assets to put up as collateral, who owns the Stadium/training ground(s) btw? Didn't Real Madrid a few years back get a gigantic amount from selling some property they owned to the City?

Very worrying times indeed, such a shame for a club with such a support from the fans. All the makings of a decent La Liga team except that crippling amount of debt...

Fred Perry
04-12-2011, 18:57
Most of the debt is owed to banks (as far as I know mainly Caja Canarias). Paying off the 21 million before next June is ofcourse impossible so somehting will have to be worked out so we gain more time. Assests? Yes, the training ground area in La Laguna but that has been sold already. Due to the crisis it only sold for 11 million when it is worth over 15. As I said 4.2 was paid in June to stop the club from going into administration. The rest (7 million)will eventually come off the whole debt amount. The CDT club officies in town will be sold when the CLUB move everything to the stadium, that should earn 1 million€ or so.

The council owns the stadium so no chance of anything there. Change the name of the stadium like Newcastle? Possible I suppose but it would be very unpopular and we would not get anywhere near the 10 million€ they do.

Some supporters were talking about reforming FC United/AFC Wimbledon style and slightly change the name of the club. Infact CD Tenerife did change their name for a brief period in the early 70īs to Tenerife Atletico for financial reasons. Really canīt see that happening.
The financial problems are worrying but when you see the amount of debt almost every club has in Spain it is quite normal. Real Zaragoza owe 120 million€ and counting for example. The Spanish League cannot relegate 20 clubs.

Perhaps we should fold and go and play in the Portugese league debt free! LOL

Itīs an important couple of seasons. Either we can get straight back and go on from there or if we donīt we could be in the 2nd b for many years.

bonitatime
04-12-2011, 21:33
ARMADA SUR
If you had said 10 years ago that we would be filling coaches week in week out in the 2nd B I would have thought you were drunk. We have come along way.

I think this is outstanding and the effort Chris puts into organising is very impressive.


Itīs an important couple of seasons. Either we can get straight back and go on from there or if we donīt we could be in the 2nd b for many years.

My big fear is if we don't make it within the two years banking grace they have negotiated then the team may well go under. As long as the Cabildo are pushing the club and the bank it will probably be ok but the biggest difficulty is that Caja Canarias is now part of Banca Civica and control is somewhere else. That said there are only guarantees for about a third of the debt and I would guess as long as the bank is seeing money they will continue. There were complaints that they hadn't paid their sponsorship money but against the 4,5 million debt that is still outstanding from June 2011 I guess it is not so important.


The AGM held soon will be attended by few. Concepcion made a new rule that any fan wanting to attend now needs 115 shares minimum(ruling out the average fan)

This was voted from 8 shares to 115 two seasons ago and with 8 shares lots of people could have gone to vote but at the time no one seemed very interested. As many of the radio and press journalists have mentioned recently it is no good complaing now when the time to fight this is past.

As for the fan clubs demanding more I am in 2 minds here. It is all well and good demanding things but very little is given in return. I was impressed that the Instinto Blanquiazul offered to run the stall in the Expo Saldo for the club, this is the sort of thing I mean about giving back. The club has very little in the way of money and is great with schools on the island visiting training and meeting the players. Also they are good about tickets for sports groups to see games. There are often groups in San Se Alto of local youth teams visiting.


The loss in TV money is staggering; 14 million in Primera down to 2.5million€ in the 2nd Division. Letīs not talk about this season`s tv money, 70,000€!

This doesn't include the money the team would get if they make the play offs. It sounds like it has been loaded for the play offs as then Canarian TV didn't need to pay such high amounts to Vecindario




soon we will start for a Christmas Charity event collecting toys for children and food for the needy.

The shop Soy del Tete in Playa Faņabe will be a collection point for food or toys for anyone who doesn't want to take these things with them to the game.


Didn't Real Madrid a few years back get a gigantic amount from selling some property they owned to the City?

Property in downtown Madrid is worth quite a bit more than land on the way to Teide.

redarrow
10-12-2011, 14:22
The property deal R Madrid put in place was a very shrewd. But, the only way they could make it work was offering free office space to the local council in return for rezoning the ground as building land. Some would say it was a bribe, but legally sound, although the EU Commission did investigate.