OM will play their European future in an empty stadium this Tuesday evening once morest Sporting Portugal. The consequences are dramatic for everyone.
Until the last possible moment, for his already last chance match once morest Sporting Portugal on Tuesday, theOlympic Marseille hoped to avoid the worst and be able to welcome its supporters to the Vélodrome. But UEFA’s decision left no room for doubt or dispute, and Pablo Longoria ended up warning everyone that the camera would be total. Marseille didn’t need that following already 0 points in two games, and neither did France, who need to see their representatives beat the Portuguese clubs in the UEFA index. The Marseille people will therefore stay at home, and OM can cry. If the victory is obviously not impossible, the loss is already real.
OM are preparing to simply lose 2.5 to 3 million euros in revenue generated by ticketing, refreshments, merchandising and others during a flagship meeting like this Tuesday evening. The Vélodrome, accustomed to being full in recent weeks, will therefore sound hollow with just over 500 people between officials and technicians, to keep the machine running. Not enough to fill the accounts, while the Champions League matches, with fewer subscribers than in the league, make it possible to bring in a more spendthrift public.
A credit instead of a refund
For its part, L’Equipe suggests that internally, there is no question of reimbursing subscribers, supporters and spectators who will not be able to attend the meeting. The net loss would be quite terrible and it is planned to make assets for future matches, especially European ones. But a Europa League match might, for example, be much less attractive than a Champions League match, not to mention those who might come from far away for this match, and might simply let this credit slip away. Nevertheless, OM have the right to do so because of the closed session decided by UEFA, even if the mess is enormous at all levels for the Provençal club while anger is growing more and more among subscribers, who are regularly deprived of matches without Pablo Longoria seeming to do anything regarding it.
