End of the legend: FC Wacker Innsbruck threatens to go into the ninth division
Small castles in the air are still being painted, but the overall picture is bleak: When FC Wacker Innsbruck invites you to an external general meeting on Wednesday evening, the future will be voted on. It’s about the fans’ struggle for transparency and the question of who should eliminate the current shambles in the second division forced relegation. Because it is still high and opaque.
The Tyrolean League started on July 30th. But whether the prominent newcomer will be a participant in the fourth league, as planned by the Tyrolean Football Association, is still open. The prerequisite for FC Wacker to be able to play is to save the indebted club. The figures range from 830,000 euros (Club) to 970,000 (Tiroler Tageszeitung).
The club is in danger of being swept away in the wake of the insolvency of the professional department, namely FC Wacker GmbH (debt level allegedly 1.9 million euros). The liquidator recently tried to unravel the entanglements between the GmbH and the association. Creditors’ claims must be registered by July 13, the first examination will take place on July 27.
“Any financial cross-connections between the club and GmbH should further deter possible rescuers,” wrote the “TT” recently. If the club also goes bankrupt, the legend FC Wacker would have to reinvent itself in the ninth and last league, the 2nd class. A fate that the club was spared after bankruptcy in 2002.
Club top is still standing
The current top of the club plays the ball over the hope gang to the end. The money, for example from the Stuttgart investor Thomas Kienle, can trickle in at any time, according to President Kevin Radi. He has so far tapped sources in vain, but gambled away a lot of credit. An application by the “Initiative Wacker 2022” calls for the dismissal of the board and full information about the activities and financial management of the association. Radi was not available for the APA.
The name Mikhail Ponomarev – after an interlude as an investor, a damaged man in the Wacker environment – was recently haunted again. The Russian is said to be at the door with a golden lifebelt. It has been open since January 19, 2020, when the members’ association voted out its principles for dazzling promises. And an innovation at the time called core membership was approved with 93.1 percent approval.
Core membership costs more than regular membership dues, but promises a much larger share of votes. It is currently worth 1,500 normal votes and is therefore more important than all of the almost 1,000 eligible voters on Wednesday.
BlockRock GmbH holds that voting power. Its managing director is Kevin Radi, which makes it clear that only the 34-year-old club president can pave the way for a new start, including in terms of personnel. Only when insolvency actually occurs would BlockRock GmbH leave as a core member. If Radi can be voted out, a commercial law firm is likely to take over. According to a club spokesman, there is no expected opposing candidate.
political dimensions
Of course, the collapse of the large Tyrolean club also has a political dimension. The commitment of politicians, whereupon the club’s amateur division, including women’s and youth departments, is to continue to exist is documented. And in Tyrol, state elections are coming up in three months. The question remains whether a rescue operation just before closing time can be used to catch political votes, or whether the FC Wacker brand is already too damaged.