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Home , Fortuna Sittard, Mark van Bommel

“ CAN BECOME A MAGNET FOR INVESTORS” Originally appeared in Voetbal International on 19.08.2020

Four years ago, Isitan Gün took over 85 percent of . The takeover was in line with the trend that more and more clubs are exchanging hands alongside players. We present the results of our research to the Turkish economist.

By: Tom Knipping

Isitan Gün encountered skepticism four years ago when he landed in Sittard. There were in previous years a lot of potential “rescuers” of all sorts prior to his arrival. For example, Egyptian investors once emerged who preyed on the shares of poor Fortuna. It didn't sound completely unbelievable. Mediator was Jan Gisbers, former leader of the PDM and Festina cycling teams. All sections were mobilized, the commissioners turned the lights green, and fans were already informed when the whole plan turned out to be a mirage.

Later, Sittard was for some time under the spell of a Moroccan who, in his own words, was operating on behalf of a Brazilian party, which was going to boost Fortuna in lightspeed. He screened with sponsors in Qatar and the arrival of seven Nigerians. For weeks, the desperate club management chased the Brazilian dream. Only when payment deadlines were missed and the intermediary stopped answering the phone, the Board gave up. It turned out that they had gone into the sea with a notorious fibber who had once reported at Telstar as co-owner of a player who was suddenly dead, but just seemed to be alive.

With a fictitious bus line from Hong Kong, an Australian dreamer, a Turk who retired and an American fake investor, the sales attempts in the neighboring municipalities of Kerkrade and Maastricht did not turn out much better. South seemed like a Bermuda triangle for gold miners, attention seekers and dubious types. So yes, when some Isitan Gün from Istanbul came forward, it was still a matter of “seeing is believing”.

Four years after his admission, the conclusion is that it could still work in South Limburg; with a foreign owner. Fortuna Sittard is experiencing a spectacular revival under the Turk. The Limburgers were promoted to the Eredivisie and now survive there two years in a row. For the 1 first time since the era, players are again being sold for amounts with six zeros before the decimal point. , and Amadou Ciss brought in millions. With the arrival of a second investor, the Turkish TV tycoon Acun Ilicali (see box), the club aims to take the next step up. " The idea is that he becomes a co-owner", says Isitan Gün , "so that we can further develop the club.”

Takeovers such as Fortuna Sittard are in vogue, because more and more Dutch clubs are falling into the hands of shareholders, although the type of investor and the constructions they choose differ widely. "There are many possible models and structures " , says Gün. “If you follow international developments, it is striking that ‘sports washing’ has been added as a popular model. These are the owners from China and the Gulf region who buy clubs for public relations purposes. The motive is to polish their image through football.”

During the survey in the Eredivisie and Kitchen Champion Division, it was noticeable that the predominantly positive attitude towards investors is at odds with the negative attitude after the takeover of Vitesse ten years ago. “It is not surprising that more and more clubs are exchanging their traditional structure with a place for shareholders. Football has become a business. The question is: who pays the price if something goes wrong in the end? It's all about accountability and the capacity to ensure continuity. Administrators in associations often only sit there for a short time and mainly for their own honor and glory, without running any economic risk themselves. Their only interest is instant sporting success. So, they keep the credit with sponsors and fans, or so they can win elections. They will not necessarily care about the development of the organization or financial structure. As long as trophies are earned, they are celebrated, no matter what burden they may leave behind. That leads to populist directors in football and dramatic numbers. Until 2012, European clubs lost more than a billion per season. That could no longer be sustained. As a result, many clubs became privately owned. Meanwhile, the red numbers have been turned into black. These two are closely connected.”

Gün also teaches at the Football Business Academy based in Genève. Although there are enough success stories, there are also quite a few mistakes to note. Various clubs went bankrupt abroad and in their own country the Chinese and Georgian owners became involved in lawsuits against their own clubs at both ADO Den Haag and Vitesse. At Roda, a film-worthy script unfolded starring a Russian ex-diver and a Mexican charlatan. It often seems like a gamble. “That does not have to be,”, says Gün, formulating some checks that increase the chances of a happy marriage. “Every club should ask itself four questions.”

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1. Do the interests match? Gün: "The key question is whether the interests of the owner parallel with the interests of the club. This is often the case, but there is currently a worrying trend: the multi-club ownership is on the rise. Several clubs under one owner or interest. Is that desirable? I do not think so.”

The City Football Group and Red Bull are well-known examples. But AS Monaco also opened a branch, for example, by buying Cercle Brugge. “If an owner has several clubs, his interests deviate from the interests of the supporters. After all, the goal is not to get the maximum return from all clubs. In fact, it must be prevented that they all reach the top and compete with each other. Take an investment group that owns clubs in the Premier League and at the highest level of Belgium, but also one in the second division of . As a fan of that Belgian or Spanish club, I wouldn't be happy about that. Their clubs serve the flagship. This development does not seem to me to be good for football.”

Until last year, it was prohibited in the to sell control to investors who already had clubs elsewhere. In the meantime, the KNVB has adjusted the rules and super groups are also allowed to buy here. "All the more reason to understand their intentions. I've met some owners of such groups and they are very open about their intentions. The fans don't interest them at all. It is purely business, where the head office will always be central.”

2. Does the owner study the culture? Every fan's nightmare is that the owner changes the club colors and adds a dragon to the logo, as happened at Cardiff City after a Malaysian takeover. “It still happens regularly that an owner thinks he can start with an empty page and rewrite the history. Of course, it doesn't work that way. Especially in the lower divisions of England that went wrong a number of times.”

Thus, Portsmouth became a hub for eccentric owners. First landed in the port city a controversial Israeli Russian who in no time after the acquisition left. Afterwards, the club fell into the hands of successively a sheik from Dubai, a Nepalese from Hong Kong and a Russian banker who was arrested. The club now plays on the third level.

In addition to the extreme examples, considerable cultural differences also came to the surface at Manchester United. The American owners see the club mainly as an investment object and run it ultra-business. They are concerned with the prices of the shares and that has been causing

3 friction with the supporters for fifteen years. This American culture is increasingly gaining a foothold in European football. They already own twelve clubs in the five top leagues. Gün: “The United States is a saturated market. There are four major sports. All shares are taken already, so they end up in Europe, where you can become the owner of a sports team with a smaller investment. In the United States, the minimum check you need to write to own a club is more than 250 million. In Belgium, you can find a football club for ten million. I suspect that the Netherlands will also come into the picture in the coming years.”

In there are regulations to safeguard the culture. An investor may buy up to 49.9 percent. Although some clubs are privately owned, foreign parties and vague fortune seekers are kept out. Red Bull is the only international player in the . “There is no right or wrong. That 50+1 rule is easy to defend. But I don't think it's wrong in the Netherlands, either. It's liberal, but with controls. As a result, a number of owners have already been rejected. The checks also force the owner to immerse himself in the culture. This seems healthier than for example in Belgium, where it is extremely relaxed. It leads to dubious competition, because there are scandals every year.”

3. Does the owner have knowledge and experience? Club bosses regularly appear who have earned their money in a completely different industry. Think of the Indian chicken producers who bought Blackburn Rovers, but also of a regional investor such as crane operator Frans van Seumeren who lost a lot of money in his first years because he had no experience in the football jungle. “Before selling your shares, I would like to know if the new owner has relevant knowledge and experience," says Gün , who worked at Galatasaray. “There I was part of a group that was looking for parties in lower divisions to work with and carried out due diligence and accountancy work for clubs. It was precisely because of this that I began to realize that taking over a club could be profitable. If you can resist the temptation to overspend, it is not that difficult at all. It is mistakenly believed that you have to be a bit crazy to buy a club. 99 percent think buying a club is a risky investment, but the opposite is true. However, you must have some knowledge and experience, because you often see things go wrong when the owner comes from a completely different business and wants to achieve success just as quickly.”

Now that the transfer market for football clubs is increasingly taking shape, Gün believes that the Netherlands will become attractive to buyers in the coming years. “The Eredivisie can become a magnet for investors. There is still enough stretch in it. The Netherlands is a business environment

4 with a lot of transparency. The rules are clear and objective. There is a history in football and the reputation in the world is good. For years, the Eredivisie was the top player-exporting league in the world, there is no language barrier, because almost everyone speaks English.” Yet it is not the case that offers from international consortia are pouring in. “What holds back many investors is the salary rule for non-EU players. They assume that Belgium is a better market because you can develop it cheaper talents. If that rule were to be abolished, it would rain offers for all 34 clubs tomorrow.”

According to Gün, the leaders in the national football world are still insufficiently aware of the potential of the Netherlands as an investment market. “The Eredivisie should claim the best position behind the Big Five much more aggressively. Assuming that the BeNeLiga - an insanely bad idea - will not be there, sixth place is achievable. Everything is here. The organization, the knowledge, the talents. Only it is not sold well enough. After the top five have to make with competitors such as Russia, Turkey, Portugal, Belgium. In Turkey, football is in a downward spiral, Belgium is Belgium, and Russia is not interesting internationally. It is not difficult to be the best of the rest. We have to think bigger.'

In recent years, however, revenue growth has lagged behind almost all other countries. “We have to take that into account. One of the ways to achieve increased growth is by more solidarity to pursue a stronger league. I got tired of constantly having to discuss the distribution of TV money, but the fact remains intact: the more attractive and exciting the competition, the easier it is to sell.” The opening up of the gambling market could also provide a significant boost. “When I arrived in 2016, that market would open at any time. It still hasn't happened now. I never understood. There are everywhere in the Netherlands casinos and arcades, but football betting is not allowed. Except for state-owned Toto. Toto has a monopoly and in anticipation of market opening, they are now going to sponsor football clubs. That is unfavorable for the clubs, because the price is always lower than when there is competition. If there is an ethical question about betting on football, it is in my opinion: why is the state allowed to make money and advertise it by appearing on the shirts, but a football clubs are not free to get the best deal?”

4. Is the owner present? In the Hague and Arnhem, when the owner flies in it makes the news. At Manchester United, the Glazers are not frequenters, either. “I have missed about five games in four years. I think it's normal to be there and show my commitment. It's not a biscuit factory, football clubs are living

5 social organisms. You can only fathom it by being there. It is not really possible to make Fortuna a success from Turkey or alone.”

"As a director or a supporter of a club, I would ask these four questions when it is made a bid for the shares. If you can tick all four green, I would say: Why not? There are never guarantees, but you do not have them if the shares remain with the club and a director is appointed, who usually disappears again within a few years. Often with a huge financial burden for which he bears no responsibility. In that respect, it does not seem strange to me that the tide is turning in the Netherlands.”

New Fortuna investor undergoes KNVB check

Fortuna Sittard's new investor - Turkish TV tycoon Acun Ilicali (51) - is currently undergoing checks by the KNVB. This means that the entrepreneur wants to buy at least 25 percent of the Limburg club, because with a smaller interest, does not perform any checks. Or Ilicali also the major shareholder, wants Gün not say. “I don't think that's a good thing to report while the process is still running." With the arrival of the Turkish celebrity is the Premier League soon a colorful investor richer. The former sports reporter is the owner of several TV stations, producer and creator of TV formats. A kind of John de Mol, who also own the stage as a presenter. In Turkey he produces The Voice and Dancing with the Stars, among others. Last month, Ilicali called on Turkish TV to follow Fortuna Sittard online, after which the legion on Instagram suddenly increased fivefold to more than 100 thousand followers. Fortuna now has more Instagram followers than AZ and FC Twente. Gün is hopeful that the deal with his popular friend comes around soon. ”A lot of paperwork has to be submitted to the football association, but it is good that the rules are there.” In the case of FC Den Bosch, it took a year before the licensing committee reached a decision. ”But that was because the KNVB did not agree with the information provided and had additional questions. It doesn't have to take that long. I have good contact with the union about the plans and the steps we are taking. It's not like I'm going to make an exit from the club. I just stay active.”

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