Spanish Football League (LFP) clubs have reduced their collective debt to Spain's tax authorities to €317M ($355M), according to Carlos F. Marcote of EL PERIODICO. The figure has decreased by €115M ($129M) from a year ago, according to figures revealed by Spanish Superior Sports Council (CSD) President Miguel Cardenal and LFP President Javier Tebas. Since a protocol agreement signed by the CSD and the LFP in April '12, the collective debt has dropped by €333M ($373M) in the last two-and-a-half years. The prediction is that by Sept. '16 the debt will be down to €275M ($308M), and will be reduced to €50M ($56M) by Sept. '20. Tebas: "Not only are we the best league in the world, but we also have the best directors, who have been able to maintain the competitive capacity while significantly reducing the debts." He also pointed out that of the current collective debt of €317M, €182M ($204M) belongs to Deportivo La Coruña, Atlético and Espanyol (EL PERIODICO, 9/18). In Madrid, F.J. Díaz reported Atlético has made "considerable inroads in reducing their outstanding debt" with the Spanish Tax Agency, reducing the total of €205M from four years ago to a current debt of €45M ($50M). The club's objective is to "completely clear the debt" by the '17-18 season, when it is expected to move to its new La Peineta Stadium. As part of the agreed re-payment plan the club makes a "monthly payment to the tax office" which it anticipates will be at zero come the end of the '16-17 campaign (AS, 9/21).
