Spain: ownership of players by third parties a solution to clubs debt - Javier Tebas

"Atletico Madrid must pay €17 million each year to a bank. This is nearly enough money to pay for Cristiano Ronaldo’s new contract. We must look for a solution so that clubs have an alternative, do not have to pay this interest," said Javier Tebas, president of Spain's LFP (professional football league), on the 27/11/2013.

"The money clubs pay to the taxman weakens them a lot. This money should be out on the pitch - if that happened then I am sure that three or four of the players who left this year would not have gone. For example, 50% of the fee for Sergie Aguero (Atletico Madrid to Manchester City, on the 28/07/2011, for an estimated €45 million) went to the taxman," said Tebas to the Spanish website futbolfinanzas.com, on the 27/11/2013.

For the president of the LFP, ownership of players by third parties constitutes a solution to help Iberian clubs reduce their debt levels. "We complain when players leave, but when we find a system so that these good players stay we do not like it either. If there is a mechanism that allows teams to have access to good players, we must take…