Stade Rennais: The Covid and the bankruptcy of Mediapro will cost 40 million this season
The president of Stade Rennais Nicolas Holveck. – VS. Allain / 15 Minutes
With the coronavirus crisis and the sinking of the broadcaster Mediapro , French clubs see their finances fall dangerously into the red. At Stade Rennais , the bill promises to be very steep. According to President Nicolas Holveck, questioned by France Blue , it amounts to approximately 25 millions of euros. These losses, which represent nearly 20% of the estimated budget for the Breton club this season, in addition to nearly 25 million ‘euros lost in ticketing, TV rights and sponsorship with the premature end of the season 1303 / 2019.
According to Nicolas Holveck, the absence of an audience will cost nearly 15 million euros of shortfall in ticketing and hospitality. At the same time, the club which expected to collect 40 millions of euros in TV rights for the season of Ligue 1 is now planning to touch only half, that is a loss of 25 millions of euros.
Clubs forced to sell their best players
Discussions are underway with the Pinault family, sole shareholder of the Breton club, to determine how and over how long to make up for these losses, said Nicolas Holveck, adding that Rennes had “the chance »Not to have debts before the crisis. “But it is certain that the whole of French football will be impacted in an incredible way”, he added, estimating that “a certain number of clubs” were going to be obliged to sell their best players, “s’ they find buyers ”.
Fair before the truce, Nicolas Holveck had launched in front of the press an appeal to
“revolutionize French football” to face the crisis of TV rights. “We have to completely rethink our product since we see that its value is no longer what we had imagined . We will have to redesign from top to bottom, both on governance and on the sporting part, ”he said, referring to the idea of“ thinking of different formats, with interesting matches until the end of the season. “.