Paris (AFP)
Thomas Lombard, director general of the Stade Français, is worried: "The club is extremely impacted" by the health and economic crisis, he said in an interview with AFP. He said he expects the budget to drop by 20%.
Q: What is your assessment of this season?
A: "It will remain very unsatisfactory. There was a first part under the seal of human and internal problems which brought about a change (departure of coach Heyneke Meyer replaced by the duo Sempéré-Arias, appointment of Lombard as general manager This change helped to restore a team spirit. We were fairly irregular. We stopped nine games from the end, including six at home. This is very important because we were undefeated in home since this change. "
Q: Financially, where is the club?
A: "The situation is worrying. We were unable to play all of our home matches: we were entitled to expect more crowds and more ticketing, sponsorship ... returns. The club, like the whole of the Top 14, is extremely impacted. Even if we have government aid, the fact remains that, depending on what will happen at the recovery, in what configuration we can use our stadium, things are going to improve slowly ... or even get worse. The budget will necessarily be lower. Today, we are not able to give it completely because we are still talking. In three weeks -one month, we will go a clearer idea but it will be down, up to 20%. "
Q: How do you prepare for next season when you're in the dark?
A: "This is the great difficulty. The presidents are meeting to consider how to get out. At first we were optimistic. Then a little less. Today, we are considering the worst because we realize the impossibility of fix a course and have a medium-term vision. The worst part is behind closed doors or partial gauging. Because that cuts us off from almost all of our income. We will keep TV rights but that does not weigh that much in the budget. The dry ticketing losses, the inability to operate our boxes ... will have a very heavy financial impact. We will have reductions in our partners, in our sponsors who are or will be impacted by the crisis. It has been estimated around 25% for ticketing and around 30% for sponsorship. This is only on a favorable assumption, that is to say the opening of stadiums in early September. "
Q: A club like yours, which has a patron owner (Swiss businessman Hans-Peter Wild), might seem immune ...
A: "From the moment when all the efforts are borne by the same person, it can also limit things. He has already signed a certain number of checks. For our part, we also have the need to meet expectations, in particular We were 14th, we cannot say that this is the case. We must try to develop what can be: when we are the French Stadium, with its reputation, its image, we must do better in sectors like partnerships or sponsorship. We also have to recreate something around the match. We were forerunners, we have to be up to date and do things up to what people expect ... in a environment that may not be conducive to the return of rugby. We will have to demonstrate that we can come and watch rugby under normal conditions. "
Q: Are the wage cuts implemented?
A: "We are talking. The players are fully aware of the club's situation. We have given them elements, there is a will to participate in the effort. We are not abrupt them. We are on a constructive exchange. In about ten days, we should be able to come up with something concrete. "
Q: Recruitment will also be affected by the crisis.
A: "Recruitment will be limited because the crisis will force us to review things. We are losing five players, we have to compensate them. Transfers, recruitments are rather at a standstill when, usually, everything is already done We are not in an absolute emergency: we must clarify things, know how we will resume the season, how we will be supported by the public authorities ... Then we will see how we can adjust the workforce to be as competitive as possible. "
Interview by Nicholas Mc ANALLY
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