Invoice does not pay: Stadt turns away from Gerard Lopez the electricity
Gerard Lopez is currently rushing from one construction site to the next. While the Luxembourg businessman has to take care of the bankruptcy of the traditional French club Girondin Bordeauxthere are also problems in Portugal. As the newspaper « A Bola » reports, the first division club Boavista FC, who is also owned by Lopez, did not pay for its electricity invoices. As a consequence, the electricity supplier of the city of Boavista decided to turn off the juice last Wednesday, the Estadio do Besa.
The team, which is currently the penultimate of the Portugal league in the relegation battle, had to move to Esmoriz, which is around 30 kilometers south of Porto. The derby against leader Sporting next Sunday (9:30 p.m.) was also on the brink. The club even had to dodge for ticket sales because there was no light on the premises of the stadium.
Gerard Lopez might have to call around until the current was back. Photo: Getty Images
In the meantime, however, the situation has apparently relaxed. As the Portuguese newspaper continues, Boavista Sad, Football GmbH behind the association, paid for the invoices and the power supply in the « Besa » was restored. However, the situation for the highly indebted club is worrying.
« It almost seems like stand-up comedy, » comments « A Bola » journalist Fernando Urbano. « Boavista FC enjoys greater social support than most clubs in the league, he has history, he benefits from one of the stadiums of the EM 2004, he is located in a privileged area of the second largest city in the country and yet he is in the news every year because of salary residues or debts. »
Club destroyer Gerard Lopez? The dark sides of his empire
Boavista’s financial problems are not a news. As early as August 2024, the club, in which Lopez holds 66 percent of the shares, were Transfer revenue seized and a transfer lock imposed. The case is part of a long list of football clubs with financial difficulties in which the Luxembourg has his fingers in the game. In addition to Boavista and Girondins Bordeaux, the OSC Lille and Royal Excel Mouscron also got into financial problems.
