Despite not being aired, despite no fans attended and no players trampled the grass on the field, today several important matches were played in Switzerland, more precisely in Nyon where Uefa’s headquarters are set.

Inter and Roma (together with Monaco, Besiktas, Krasnodar, Liverpool and Sporting Lisboa) have in fact been summoned by the Club Financial Control Body to explain their current negative financial situation.

A match that difficultly will be won by the Milanese side, regardless the squad deployed on the field included president Erick Thohir with the support of Michael Williamson (Administration Finance and Control), Marco Fassone (General Manager) and Michael Bolingbroke (CEO).

The Nerazzurri, having actively returned into European competitions automatically fell under Uefa’s magnifying glass and as we explained in May, their balance is nowhere near the break-even rule imposed by Financial Fair Play. The aggregate player salaries has been more than halved since they won the Treble but this still hasn’t stopped Inter from losing tons of money each year, as losses in 2014 are approximated to ninety million euros. Moratti’s former club managed to register a cumulative passive of more than 200 million in the last three years, whilst FFP’s tolerated maximum for the current investigation is of 45 million.

Inter’s managers therefore tried to convince the commission of their efforts and presented their five-year plan to reach budgetary stability (including the 200 million loan underwritten last year with Goldman Sachs and Unicredit necessary to cover pre-existing debts left pending by the preceding administration), but despite their goodwill and efforts CFCB cannot ignore how badly the club’s finances have done in the recent past, leaving the commission with no choice but to act.

On the other hand, AS Roma has been way more prudent in the last seasons and is now starting to blossom thanks to the American management, despite the club’s financial statements at the 30th of June 2014 have actually registered a loss of 38.6 million, as we wrote on this website. Participation in the Champions League, deals with Nike and an approved stadium project are all factors that will increase Pallotta’s incomes in the future and at the same time might save him FFP trouble in the near present.

Formal decisions will be announced by Uefa in February but taking in mind how Manchester City or PSG were sanctioned last spring it is presumable the Beneamata will have to pay a fine and might as well see their squad limit for European competitions be reduced from the standard 25 they have been allowed so far. As mentioned, Roma are in better shape and therefore risk a fine in the worst-case scenario.

 

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