School football returns this weekend after Christmas with the future of the Lakua Sports Club in the air. A schism between … families and the board headed by Mohamed Akbache threatens to leave 800 children in limbo. The origin of the disagreement is in the economic hole suffered by the club, of which they accuse each other, and in the dismissal for non-sporting reasons of a coordinator (Santiago Brieva), which was followed by the voluntary departure of several coaches.
The goodbye of one of the historic members of the organization of this Vitorian club with almost 40 years of history has strained the present and conditioned the future of many teams in its structure, which do not have technicians with whom to train, according to what the players’ entourage warns. They allege helplessness and lack of information in a situation that they describe as “critical.” From the board, meanwhile, they point out that the matches will be played and that the situation will be resolved quickly.
In this context, the families have mobilized and have contacted the Alavesa Federation and the institutions to see how they can solve this mess. They have also demanded transparency from the board to know the real status of the club’s accounts. In parallel, they have created a working group to gather information and are studying filing a complaint against those responsible for Lakua.
Claim to families
Meanwhile, the board, which took over the reins of the club in March, has asked families for peace of mind throughout Christmas, has stated that the club’s viability is guaranteed and has indicated in its statements that there are no debts pending payment by the current meeting with suppliers, supplies, insurance and coaches. “The climate of uncertainty experienced in recent weeks has caused many families to stop paying their fees,” said the club president in a letter on social networks.
In the same statement he stated that the families have an “accumulated debt of more than 100,000 euros” with the club that “represents a very serious impact on the treasury”, demanding that they catch up on their payments. An extreme that is categorically denied by the parents of the footballers, who blame the poor economic management of the current board for Lakua’s “critical” situation.
Sources from the board affirm that of the 684 families in the club, 420 owe one or two installments, which are often paid in three installments and are a significant 450 euros in federated football and 420 in school football. From Lakua they attribute the current problem to an “intoxication” of “false data” by some coordinators and coaches who have left the club towards the families.
They also point out that they had a meeting with the Provincial Council (Ana del Val and Juanjo Rojo) and the Alavesa Federation (Kepa Arrieta) on December 30 to explain the situation to them and they assure that in the next few days they will sit down with them and with the coaches to find a meeting point.
