Today at the headquarters of the Bulgarian Football Union in Boyana was presented a project for the separation of the professional league from the BFU and its administration by the clubs. This happened during a discussion where the representatives of the professional clubs were introduced to the project and the mechanisms for action in this direction. The presentation was made by BFU Deputy Executive Director Dobrin Goenov in the presence of Federation Executive Director Andrey Petrov. In the set plan, the unbundling should be implemented in 2026, with the aim of achieving greater results, and the BFU will mainly assist during the transfer process. A meeting is also to be held with representatives of the Second League, after which working groups will be formed to administer the whole process for a year and a half.
"In the implementation plan we have set the best European practices and together with the European and World Leagues we have outlined the framework and steps to be followed for the separation of professional football from the Bulgarian Football Union. This is the beginning of the separation of the administrative management of the football process from the BFU, which has been commented for years. We are also negotiating the digitalisation of the Second League. The clubs were active at the meeting, there is a willingness from both sides," said BFU deputy executive director Dobrin Gjonov during the press conference held immediately after the event.
He added that a key element in the process is the structuring of the League, with the format and revenue sharing, once implemented, to be primarily and solely in the hands of the clubs. Gjonov also stressed that the BFU must be sure that the League is ready for this transition and has the financial, legal and organisational capacity for this project.
"The BFU is a big organisation that has to treat all types of leagues equally at all types of levels. The PFL will have much greater opportunities to organise, there will be positives with the right management, in Europe everywhere the League is the factor - you have to chase financial and sporting success. The league will be able to implement and chase those goals. The programme has been made in conjunction with the European Leagues and the World Leagues. The clubs have to make the decisions on how the league, the calendar, etc. is formed. We need to make sure that the first steps are done properly and the management of the League will be ready," added the BFU Vice President.
"The truth is that there may not be the personnel at the moment. The developed cadres should go to the clubs. There were no points in my presentation about the format of the leagues. The PFL needs to find the right format to run the championships. The PFL is up to the clubs - they will decide how much of the revenue should be distributed to the clubs. The ball is in the clubs' court. This is an important project for professional football. The next step is to do two meetings with the League Two teams and then set up working groups. We need to make a framework - statutes, rules, then have a vote, people, responsibilities, flexible management, etc. The BFS has too many competences, we are responsible for too many things, we don't have that flexibility and speed to make decisions. We need to make sure that the League will work. Then on the third day the League can start making changes. The point is to make sure that there will be competent people to do the job. We are not following a European model, we are taking practices and adapting them to our reality," Dobrin Gjonov added.
