– Rude to ask for a sponsorship compensation – VG

The debate started on Tuesday when Culture Minister Abid Raja barked with odd leader Einar Hand on the NRK program “The Debate”. Raja made it clear that he will not make up for lost sponsorship revenue in the sport.

He urged several soccer leaders to respond, but on Thursday the Minister of Culture repeated the message.

Now he is receiving the support of a large football club in central Oslo: Frigg leader Geir Hustad believes that the club’s healthy operation is a foreign word in much of Football Norway.

– Let’s say you have a budget of NOK 15 million, which will continue to rise from the third division: so it’s about raising a lot of creative revenue, and you say “we certainly get so much money on that and that.” There are many creative variables. At the same time, only one team advances. So this is a strange way to buy. It goes against all healthy business operations. In business, people had gone bankrupt with zero-point-zero, but in sports you got away with it over and over, because someone always collects the bills, Hustad tells VG.

– sorry

Traditional frigg has 1,145 paying players, the vast majority of whom are children and youth. The President is aware that he represents a development club.

The club, which once housed player Egil “Drillo” Olsen no longer aims to win the country’s first division.

– A teams in Norwegian football devour enormous resources. It’s rude when soccer requires the state to cover lost sponsorship revenue, Hustad says.

Strange director Einar Handlicken has said that Abid Raja does not “understand how the club operation works.” He was supported by Sarpsborg 08 CEO Espen Engebretsen, who thinks that sponsorship revenue should be offset.

Geir Hustad does not sympathize with the hard hitting clubs that are now in trouble:

– No, you will be completely wrong. Just as the state should not operate airlines, it should not save soccer clubs that are not sustainable. There is very little focus on how clubs operate.

– We want to appear as a country where everyone can do what they want. But as soon as it shrinks, you call the state. At Frigg, we operate professionally. Those who train the children have experience and are paid according to the operational level. When there is activity at the academy, they are paid per session. So we don’t have expenses we don’t have control over when something goes differently than planned, Hustad says.

– How is the situation in Frigg during the crown crisis?

– We are fortunate to have low fixed costs compared to others. I understand that those who have large expenses, because they have to manage large plants, face challenges. We are so fortunate to have an operating agreement with the city of Oslo. We fired some coaches early, but most are back now, says Frigg’s manager.

The strange boss answers

VG has faced Odd’s leader Einar Håndlykken with criticism from Hustad. The wives have in recent days faced frustration from Norwegian football clubs over government aid efforts.

He does not agree that Norwegian football is generally unsustainable, although he believes that some are obviously beyond their capacity. However, according to Hand Luck, this does not apply to Odd.

– Sponsorship funds are an important source of income for both the top and the breadth of Norwegian football. But the main point is that help must come. Whether this is in the form of loss of income compensation or expense coverage is not the most important thing. It was Abid Raja, not us, who initially mentioned the sponsorship money. We just said that it is an important and totally legitimate income for many people, he says.

See Hand Luck and Raja after a meeting in Oslo on Thursday:

The handshake emphasizes that he has no desire to fight a local club manager.

– We have all our problems right now. Odd is not the club that is struggling the most right now. But we must agree that what surprises us these days has nothing to do with the club’s malfunction. Some balance a thinner egg than others, but all are affected, he says.

Norwegian Top Football Managing Director Leif Øverland emphasizes that Frigg is doing a great job, like many other wide clubs.

– It is a complete misunderstanding that the best clubs ask for compensation crown by crown. The clubs are companies with almost two billion in sales and 1,800 jobs. Soccer and other sports represent a cure for health, joy of living, inclusion, patriotism and cohesion. The authorities have now closed the possibility of earning income. We understand that. So the important thing now, regardless of industry, sport, and culture, is getting help to deal with the situation. There are some fixed running costs that must be offset. The Minister of Culture said today that the first packages did not fully achieve the intention and that this will be adjusted according to the contributions of football, among other things. We are happy with that, Overland says.

VG notes that Einar Håndlykken is the brother of VG’s news editor Tora B. Håndlykken.