Portuguese football club Benfica faces critical financial decisions tied to sporting success and centralized television rights, issues a presidential candidate is placing at the core of his campaign.
João Noronha Lopes, leading the Lista F ticket, asserts that 30% to 40% of Benfica’s annual revenues are contingent on the club qualifying for the UEFA Champions League. This financial reliance makes consistent sporting success paramount, he stated in a recent interview.
Lopes, who has also submitted candidacies for the club’s Fiscal Council, General Assembly, and Remunerations Committee, emphasized his expertise in both revenue growth and cost reduction. However, he stressed these financial maneuvers are secondary to on-field performance.
“To be clear, growing revenues, I know how. That’s what I’ve done my whole life. Cutting costs, I also know,” Lopes said. “But at the current moment, all these movements of cost-cutting and increasing revenues are worth nothing or very little if Benfica does not have sporting success. Benfica has to qualify for the Champions League and has to have the Champions League revenues.”
He further pledged to personally manage the crucial negotiations for centralized television rights, a dossier he described as fundamental for Benfica’s future. Lopes believes the club deserves a leading role, reflecting its status as the primary generator of audiences and stadium attendance, and its significant contribution to the local economy.
“Benfica doesn’t want more than what it’s entitled to,” he stated, vowing to ensure the club is not disadvantaged, even if it means opposing other entities.
Lopes also criticized the current leadership, including President Rui Costa, for Benfica’s perceived inaction regarding TV rights centralization. He accused the club of being “absent from the main decisions in Portuguese football” on this issue.
He specifically pointed to Benfica’s validation of a stalled project by Pedro Proença for four years, which left the club out of the process. “Benfica cannot be dragged along,” Lopes added, referring to the centralization efforts.
The upcoming elections for the club’s leadership are scheduled for October 25. Six candidates are vying for the presidency, including current president Rui Costa, former president Luís Filipe Vieira, João Diogo Manteigas, Martim Mayer, and Cristóvão Carvalho.
Should no candidate secure a majority of 50% of the votes, a second round between the top two contenders will be held on November 8.