When Aleksandar Vučić came to the Red Star stadium one November evening, now long ago in 2012, and with a retinue of socially-political-sports-business and sub-business workers of various profiles and fields, held the famous late-night conference where he presented a plan for the salvation and revival of the most trophy-laden Serbian club, even then, at the dawn of his reign, it was clear that sports held a very high position on his list of priorities.
18.04.
2024.
We will sooner see flying taxis taking to the skies above Belgrade than subway trains running through the tunnels underneath its streets.
18.04.
2024.
Being the opposition in Serbia is not easy, but it is easier when you free yourself from some misconceptions early enough
11.04.
2024.
The ruling Serbian Progressive Party has dug in and declared - there’s no turning back.
Today, twelve years later, the hundreds of millions of euros that have swelled the coffers of sports federations and clubs from state sources during this period clearly speak to the strength of this perception. And it is no secret— the president almost never misses an opportunity to boast about these contributions during his guest appearances on TV shows, especially when he wants to highlight the ingratitude he receives in return. Owing to these millions, “state projects” have emerged, as they mockingly call the clubs and federations that were first saved from bankruptcy and then flourished owing to state funds.
To understand this story, one must first understand the connection between Vučić and sports. This connection is far more complex than his fanatical past on the Red Star north terraces and any potential future as a basketball club coach. The connection is similar to Vučić’s connection with politics—our current Serbian president has been intertwined with both areas for decades, deeply interested in both, and approaches them with equal passion.
Guided by the experience from the DOS (Democratic Opposition of Serbia) era, during which Red Star was brought to the brink of bankruptcy while Boris Tadić, sleeves rolled up, celebrated the successes of Partizan basketball team in the Arena, Vučić realized that neglecting not only Red Star as an institution but sports in general could boomerang back in the political sense. At first, in the form of unpleasant chanting in stadiums, where the electoral will often found expression and to a certain extent was even created, and later, during elections themselves—something Tadić experienced firsthand. Vučić was well aware that Slobodan Milošević’s downfall symbolically began in stadiums, even though he himself had no personal affinity for sports beyond a casual mention of “swimming in his youth”.
By rescuing and simultaneously conquering Red Star, a status symbol and one of the unofficial pillars of Serbian identity, Vučić aimed to swat away an entire swarm of flies - to present himself as a sincere friend of the club and a sports enthusiast (which he genuinely is) and thus prevent any negative associations with his name in the context of stadium chants, but also expand his marketing and propaganda machinery across the entire sports domain.
Thus, the news published recently, first in the “Official Gazette” and later in numerous media outlets, that the Serbian Government through its General Secretariat, transferred around EUR 5 million to the accounts of the Football and Basketball Federations of Serbia, should not be surprising. A recent announcement in the “Official Gazette,” dated 30 March, highlights how this money, originally allocated for entirely different purposes, has been redirected to sports. The announcement specifically states that “RSD 378 million, initially earmarked for land expropriation, are being transferred to the budget reserve and allocated to the Government’s General Secretariat as financial aid to the Football Federation of Serbia”. Although the exact fate of this money remains officially unknown to the public, it is no secret that it is intended to service the obligations of Partizan FC in order to secure the club’s license for participation in European competitions. During a TV appearance in late March, Vučić put his foot in his mouth, complaining about the unjustified insults persistently hurled at him by the black-and-white fans, he disclosed that the state had “contributed EUR 3.2 million to Partizan Football Club so they could kick the ball in Europe.” This corresponds to the stated sum transferred for financing the Football Federation of Serbia (FFS).
However, this sports financing from the budget is anything but a one-time aid. It is more accurate to describe it as a systemic arrangement. This is also indicated by the fact that the Football Federation of Serbia has regularly received consistent support in recent years. In November 2023, the Federation received RSD 211.5 million (approximately EUR 1.8 million), followed by another RSD 235 million (around EUR 2 million) in September of the same year. Last April, an additional RSD 298 million (about EUR 2.5 million), and by the end of March 2023, another RSD 295 million from the current budget reserve were deposited. When you tally it all up, the FFS has received approximately EUR 12 million from the state budget over a little more than a year.
NIN / Aleksandar Dimitrijević
The treatment of the Basketball Federation of Serbia (BFS) is no worse. According to data published in the “Official Gazette” on 12 April, RSD 177 million, which is approximately EUR 1.5 million, were transferred from the budget reserve to the BFS. These funds were subsequently, according to unofficial but quite reliable information, redirected to the Red Star basketball club. However, this payment occurred just a few months after the Basketball Federation received a whopping RSD 462 million (around EUR 3.9 million) in the same manner back in November. There are indications that the federation acted merely as a flow-through entity, with the real destination of the funds once again being the club from Mali Kalemegdan.
Of course, those aren’t the only payments from the budget to the BFS. At the beginning of 2023, this Federation received RSD 88.5 million from the current budget reserve, while in 2022, it received RSD 256 million from the same source. When you add it all up, over two years, the state has provided approximately EUR 8.5 million to domestic basketball based solely on these one-time payments for “regular operation”.
The extent of investment in sports became evident when Partizan basketball club coach Željko Obradović, in February after a Cup final defeat, lamented that his team was labeled a “state project.” He quickly received a response in the form of a report, revealing that the state had contributed a staggering EUR 27 million to the black-and-white club over seven seasons, accounting for over 40% of the club’s revenue.
To put things into perspective, Minister of Finance Siniša Mali revealed two years ago, in June 2022, that the state had provided EUR 130 million in aid to the major clubs—Red Star and Partizan—over ten years, coinciding with the rise of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) to power. Today, two years later, that figure is undoubtedly even higher.
“Let’s start with basketball,” Mali said, providing precise analysis. “Red Star BC received EUR 26 million from state institutions over the last decade. Partizan BC received 24.4 million, and there is also a sponsorship deal with NIS,” said Mali at the time, and then presented precise data for the football sections of the eternal rivals:
“Red Star received EUR 17.6 million from the state, and including the sponsorship agreement with the Russian Gazprom, the owner of NIS, the total reaches EUR 63.4 million. On the other hand, Partizan received EUR 14 million from the state, while they do not have a sponsor at the rank of the Russian oil company.”
Mirko Poledica, former footballer and current president of the Independent Professional Footballers’ Union, says that when the state invests 130 million in sports clubs, it initially sounds like good news. However, it raises a series of questions.
“This information sounds nice until you ask why such a large sum is being invested in sports while, in my hometown of Čačak, people cannot undergo basic health check-ups due to a lack of medical equipment?! Furthermore, you wonder how it’s possible that in such a profitable sector as football—accounting for two percent of the world’s GDP—clubs still need state subsidies. In December 2023, the general director of the Red Star FC publicly announced that the club had generated revenues of EUR 227 million since 2014. But where is that money, why is the club still in debt, and why does the state need to provide additional financing? I am not referring only to the Red Star FC, I am citing them as an example, although the situation is similar in most clubs. It is true that football, and sports in general, has never received as much money from the state as during the SNS rule, but the problem lies in monitoring those funds. We don’t know how they’re spent or the actual extent of club debts. Instead of monitoring the funds, it’s more important to monitor what’s heard in the stands,” says Poledica.
Regarding the frequent one-time aid transferred from the budget reserve through the FFS to clubs, Poledica explains why this happens in such a manner.
“If you pay close attention, these payments from the budget, intended for clubs, are made regularly at the end of March each year. Why? Because on 31 March UEFA requires clubs to prove they have no outstanding debts to employees, creditors, and tax authorities—everything up to 28 February of the current year—as a condition for obtaining licenses for club competitions organized by UEFA. As clubs are not allowed to receive money directly from the state according to the rules, but they can receive it from the Federation, and the Federation can receive it from the state, then the FFS appears as an intermediary, again in a form that is not known to the public, nor to me as a member of the FFS Assembly. What is absurd here is that UEFA is more interested in the financial operations of our clubs than the Tax Administration. And those operations are such that it’s clear that people who run the clubs do so in a non-transparent and suspicious manner. The interests involved are enormous. That’s why, when Nemanja Vidić wanted to return to our football at the end of last year and offered a team of people, a plan, and a program, the entire machinery was mobilized to prevent him from doing so. Without reforms, we will quickly become a third-rate football nation,” explains Poledica.
According to him, clubs can be saved only by privatization:
“Clubs are now everyone’s and no one’s property, and that’s the most fertile ground for various machinations, but also for control by the authorities. Privatization would address this, but the draft of that law has been untouched and forgotten for seven years.”
To ensure that state funds paid to federations and clubs are under better control when they arrive, the authorities have made an effort to place the most reliable individuals in leadership positions. Thus, Zvezdan Terzić, a man who was on a wanted list and then in prison due to transfer fraud has been appointed as the general director of the Red Star football club. He remained on trial until about ten months ago when he was acquitted in the first instance in July 2023. Another individual of similar background is Dragan Džajić, a football legend, who has held important positions throughout the years. He was detained by the previous government, also due to alleged transfer fraud, but was absolved in November 2012 by then-President Tomislav Nikolić, just two days after he was reinstated as the head of the club following a late-night conference at the “Marakana” stadium. Last year, Džajić emerged as a surprise candidate against Nemanja Vidić in the elections for the president of the FFS. When he won, he handed over all power to Branislav Nedimović, a prominent SNS official, former Minister of Agriculture, once again to a person who had legal issues related to a traffic accident. The key figure in the government at Partizan FC is the Secretary-General of the Government, Novak Nedić, whose father Vojislav, a well-known lawyer was the club's vice-president for many years, as well as a close associate of Vučić. Officially, the club is led by Milorad Vučelić and Miloš Vazura.
Nebojša Čović has been at the helm of Red Star BC for a long time, although Vučić's brother Andrej was also involved in some form of control within the club. Finally, at the helm of Partizan BC is Ostoja Mijailović, a successful entrepreneur, who assumed this position in 2017, two years after becoming a member of the SNS.