The sporting director of Lazio, the Albanian Igli Tare, sparked controversy by claiming that Juventus, Inter, Roma and Milan “have technically gone bankrupt, but they have been kept alive because the system needs them”.
The former Albanian striker spoke at an event at the LUISS University in Rome on the evolution of the sport and the economic profiles of the clubs.
His lecture raised a few eyebrows, as as Paris Saint-Germain are set to announce a reported loss of €300m for the financial year, Tare aimed his anger at the Italian teams.
“There are only four clubs in Italy that are still owned by families: Udinese, Atalanta, Lazio and Napoli,” Tare initially said, although technically Atalanta are now co-owned by an American fund.
“I am for that type of ownership, because multinational corporations have only commercial interests and the joy of football, that passion and love for the sport is lost.”
“Those funds work with algorithms and do not care about the history of the club or the city. I’m an old school fan. This is my 15th year at Lazio, I’m lucky to work with a club that has a virtuous approach to finances.”
Tare: "Società come Inter e Juventus sono tecnicamente fallite. Restano in vita perché servono al sistema" https://t.co/2yHRNvMJgJ
— FcInterNews.it (@FcInterNewsit) October 15, 2022
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“Today there are clubs, such as Juventus, Roma, Milan and Inter, which are technically bankrupt, but are kept alive because the system needs them.”
“It is important that we have more clubs that look at the long-term plan with projects”, concluded the Albanian director of Lazio.
Juventus recently set a new all-time Serie A record for losses of €254.3 million, beating the previous record set by Inter last year of €245.6 million.