FIFA și-a trimis emisari la București pentru a superviza alegerile care vor avea loc în Adunarea Generală a FRF din 18 aprilie 2018. Aceasta este concluzia logică pentru o serie de evenimente petrecute în ultimele zile.
Totul pleacă de la Sesizarea pe care Progresul București a trimis-o la FIFA, în care semnalează numeroase nereguli cu privire la activitatea FRF. Ulterior, pe data de 14 martie, subsemnatul, a trimis la FIFA o prezentare a situației de fapt din fotbalul românesc și un set de 11 întrebări (le prezentăm la final). A doua zi, din câte știm și din câte ni s-a putut spune, FIFA a inițiat corespondența confidențială cu Progresul București. Noi nu am primit încă răspuns la întrebări, dar astăzi le-am retransmis. Și vom continua să le retransmitem regulat până vom obține rezultatul dorit.
SUIS ne-a informat că, acum câteva zile, Casa Fotbalului a devenit gazdă pentru doi emisari de la FIFA și sediul FRF s-a întunecat brusc, cu toate că afară era soare. Cauza? Fețele negre de supărare!
Imediat, atacurile lui Burleanu la adresa lui Lupescu au încetat subit! Toată strategia dezvăluirilor cu contractele FRF semnate de Kaiser, între 2005 și 2011, a rămas fără finalizare. Am pierdut pariul pe jumătate, însă nici Burleanu nu va câștiga al doilea mandat.
Astăzi, toată lumea se aștepta ca cel mult trei candidaturi la funcția de președinte al FRF să fie validate: Burleanu, Lupescu și Pușcaș.
Surpriză! Cu toate că i-au fost prezentate documentele prin care cluburile Fair Play (Bărbăcioru) și Sport Team (Giurăscu) și-au retras sprijinul, candidatura lui Ștefan Drăgan (3 Kids Sport) a fost validată! Mai mult, o a treia adeziunea, cea a AFC Rapid nu era validă, deoarece clubul nu mai participă în competițiile FRF și va fi dezafiliat definitiv pe 18 aprilie. Deci, cu doar două adeziuni valabile, candidatura lui Ștefan Drăgan a fost validată.
Ce poate să însemne această stare de fapt? Un singur lucru. FIFA nu a avizat Statutul FRF din 2014 și procesul electoral se va desfășura în conformitate cu prevederile Statutului din 2011, cel avizat de FIFA!
Altă explicație pentru validarea unei candidaturi susținută cu doar două adeziuni nu există!
Dacă se confirmă, vom mai avea parte și de alte surprize. Cea mai importantă se referă la cluburile de drept public, care nu au și nu pot avea drept de vot în Adunarea Generală a FRF.
În plus, nici FIFA nu dorește să facă acum valuri, dar dacă a intrat în pâine, viitoare conducere a FRF va avea mult de lucru pentru a repara ce a stricat Burleanu & Co.
Iată în continuare conținutul Epistolei expediate la FIFA pe 14 martie:
[…]
Four years ago, Mr. RĂZVAN BURLEANU was elected President of Football Romanian Federation (FRF), member association of UEFA and FIFA. After three months, long before his confirmation by the Bucharest Court of Appeal, Mr. Burleanu convened the Extraordinary General Assembly of the FRF to amend the Statute, stating publicly that he had received FIFA approval for the implementation of proposed modifications. This amendments were approved by the General Assembly and they are now part of the Statute of FRF, 2014 Edition (http://frf.ro/public/images/uploads/files/Statut.pdf).
In 2017, new amendments (http://frf.ro/uploads/file/Propuneri%20modif%20Statut.pdf) were approved by the General Assembly, but they are not yet in force, until their validation by the Bucharest Court of Appeal.
The Executive Committee of FRF was rejected by the Bucharest Court of Appeal (http://portal.just.ro/2/SitePages/Dosar.aspx?id_dosar=300000000574836&id_inst=2) and legally does not represent FRF. Moreover, one of its members, Mr. AURAȘ BRAȘOVEANU, is a convicted criminal for public funds fraud, because he participated in the falsification of documents with the objective of financing of the Danube Galaţi Sports Club by the City Hall. The final decision was pronounced by the Galati Court of Appeal on June 1, 2016 (http://portal.just.ro/44/SitePages/Dosar.aspx?id_dosar=12100000000102657&id_inst=44).
Under these circumstances, the Executive Committee approved every month, including during competitions, amendments of the football regulations.
Furthermore, the implementation of the amendments requested by the FIFA and UEFA Joint Committee through the recommendation letter addressed to FRF in 2010 were almost totally ignored. Also, the decisions of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne requiring amendments to the FRF Regulations in accordance with European law, in particular with regard to labor law, were ignored.
On April 18, 2018, elections are organized and the FRF General Assembly will elect the new leadership. There are three candidates for the position of President: Mr. Răzvan Burleanu (in office), Mr. Ioan Angelo Lupescu (former UEFA’s chief technical officer and former general manager of FRF) and Mr. Marcel Puşcaş (FRF regional and commercial development manager).
The first two candidates are credited with the best chances of winning the election, as they both enjoy important political support.
Mr. Burleanu lost the support of the ruling party (the Social Democratic Party) and its leader (Mr. Liviu Dragnea) in favor of Mr. Lupescu but still enjoys political support in the territory, where the influence on the leaders of the FRF members is stronger.
This is particularly important because, through the amendments to the FRF Statute, the FRF General Assembly is composed of 70% of public law clubs and massively funded clubs by central and local government, represented by politicians.
But much more important is the support given to Mr Burleanu from the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) and intelligence services, which are in open conflict for power with the Social Democratic Party.
Four years ago, Mr. Burleanu escaped from the main contra-candidate, Mr. Gheorghe Popescu, the former captain of the Romania national football team, due to a DNA investigation, resulting in a criminal conviction.
Now the same scenario is staged. Mr. Burleanu has publicly disclosed FRF confidential contracts (http://razvanburleanu.ro/) proving alleged frauds committed by Mr. Lupescu (between 2008 and 2010) and the DNA has responded promptly (http://www.prosport.ro/fotbal-intern/breaking-news-dna-a-descins-la-sediul-frf-ce-cauta-procurorii-anticoruptie-update-ce-spun-federalii-17064006) / (http://www.gsp.ro/fotbal/nationala/ultima-ora-procurorii-dna-au-descins-la-sediul-federatiei-romane-de-fotbal-534961.html)
On the morning of March 14, 2018, DNA prosecutors descended to the FRF headquarters to pick up the documents. Instead, for months, several criminal complaints involving Mr. Burleanu, including at the DNA, in which members of FRF claim serious crimes were forgotten and investigations have not even begun.
This is the place where Mr.Burleanu administration led the football association in Romania: a battleground for tens of millions euros from public money and political power.
That is why we ask you for concrete answers to the following questions:
- Does FIFA, by Statues, accept the political mix in football association?
- Does FIFA accept the affiliation of public-law clubs (public schools, high schools and universities, town, municipalities and central governmental departments structures, military units) in ranks of its member associations?
- Does FIFA accept the affiliation of clubs with other sports disciplines (e.g. handball, basketball, rugby, judo, etc.) alongside football? (This is a real problem from financial fair-play point of view)? Or just football clubs?
- Does FIFA accept decision-making control of the clubs through public funding by the local and central government?
- Does FIFA agree with European Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, who stated as follow on July 4, 2016: “Using tax payers’ money to finance professional football clubs can create unfair competition. Professional football is a commercial activity with significant money involved and public money must comply with fair competition rules.”
- Does FIFA consider the uncontrolled public funding badly affect the integrity and fairness of the game and represent a threat to the very existence of the private funded clubs?
- Does FIFA accept in management of the member associations or clubs a convicted criminal offender or a person under prosecution?
- Does FIFA accept forced labor in football association? By forcing the minors and young players to sign contracts with their forming clubs, in the conditions imposed by the clubs (Article 14 of the FRF Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Football Players (RSTJF) – http://frf.ro/uploads/file/RSTJF%20actualizat%2012_2016.pdf)?
- Does FIFA accept the double legitimation of players, directly or under masked form? (http://frf.ro/uploads/file/Asocierea%20cluburilor%202017.doc)
- Does FIFA accept the violation of procedural rights of the clubs and other stakeholders by subordination of jurisdictional bodies to the interests of FRF leaders?
- Does FIFA consider that discrimination for financial reasons is a restriction of free access to justice?
These are just 11 questions that we need an authorized response. We are at your disposal at any time and can provide you with extensive documentation on the issues raised above.
Finally, we would like to confirm us if some of the football association problems in Romania have already been reported by FRF members made (such as the AS Progresul Bucharest FC) and complaints have been officially made.
