Compostela's trail of tears

By Borja Bilbao

Jaime de Olaso was president of the Bilbao club, Sociedad Deportiva Indauchu, who played in the Spanish second division in the 1950s and 60s. He wrote a book called 'When the ball is not round' - a title which could apply to the present situation in Spanish football, where all that glitters is not gold.

Trouble in paradise
Behind the European successes of Spain's top clubs and the 'best league in the world' tag, a serious economic crisis is affecting several first and second division teams. Most notably, SD Compostela. Until last weekend, players at the Galician club had not been paid for five months. They had taken the field for one match wearing T-shirts demanding their president's resignation. Then they threatened to strike.

Untenable situation
The plan was to refuse to travel south for the game against Córdoba CF last Sunday, a relegation dogfight. "We must carry on fighting as the situation is untenable," club captain Adriano said. The team wanted a guarantee that they would be paid all overdue wages and, in a gesture of solidarity, insisted that the rest of the club's employees - who are facing similar problems - be paid at least one month's salary.

Threat of dismissal
The industrial action would, however, entail risks. Compostela president José María Caneda warned that he could "use the strike to carry out a clear-out of the team". One player, the Brazilian André Luis, had already been sacked for demanding his salary.

Council support
Meanwhile, the players, backed by the Spanish footballers' association, the AFE, sought help from Santiago de Compostela city council - which they consider the only body capable of ensuring they receive what they are owed and guaranteeing the club's future. To ensure the players travelled south to Córdoba, the council had to raise more than €108,000 - no small amount in a region suffering the effects of the oil slick from the sunken tanker Prestige.

Brotherly love
However, frantic efforts to find the money were rewarded three hours before the midnight deadline last Friday. Antonio Rama, brother of the Compostela local authority's director of sport, promised to pay the €108,000 in wages that the players had demanded. The agreement was reached after a hard day's negotiations and although the money only covered one month of the five months' pay owed, it was a starting point.

Save the day
"We are very happy to have been able to save what was a situation on the edge," AFE president Gerardo Movilla said. "This has been the hardest day in Compostela's history and now we can all look forward to the future in which we will all work together."

Common problem
The Compostela case has not been an isolated one in Spanish football. Many clubs with serious economic problems have dropped into the lower divisions. Among them Burgos CF, a modest team who performed well last season in the second division. However, last summer a financial crisis saw the club fall into Segunda B - the third tier - a fate which befell Málaga CF in the 1990s and Compostela two years ago.

Loan deals
The crisis also affects the Primera División. The relative inertia in the transfer market is a clear sign of the financial difficulties facing top-flight clubs. Loan deals are now seen as the only viable means of replenishing squads and ensuring clubs do not end up with long-term salary commitments that, as the unlucky few who have taken the dip into the lower leagues have already proved, they can ill afford.

Dubious dealings
Málaga and Real Racing Club Santander have both had to change their shareholders due to recent economic crises, and with many clubs still left with debts to players hanging over from previous seasons, and a recent documentary on Spanish television having exposed some dubious dealings in the nation's clubs, confidence is hardly high. Spanish sides may be flying in the UEFA Champions League, but back at home, the glamour of European football seems a long way away.