After almost two decades of participating in the Promotion Tournament, Valledupar Fútbol Club will leave and leave the capital of Cesar -at least until now- without professional football.
The decision to take the team to another city was made by the club’s top shareholder, Luis Baena, and this will be exposed at the extraordinary meeting of the Board of Directors that will take place this Thursday virtually.
This was confirmed to EL PILÓN by the president of the institution, Nicolás Baena, who pointed out that everything is in advance for Valledupar FC to change its sports headquarters and company name.
Nicolás, son of the club’s majority shareholder, also said that they have already agreed on everything so that the municipality of Soacha, in Cundinamarca, is their new home.
Baena announced that the only thing missing is confirmation in the Dimayor Extraordinary Assembly -to be held on July 6- but that they already have the approval of the new stadium by the entity that governs Colombian professional soccer.
WHY ARE THEY LEAVING?
According to Baena, the “last straw that broke the camel’s back” -in addition to the lack of support, both from the private and public sectors- was the way in which financial support was offered from these same sectors to the club Águilas Rionegro of the highest category, while ignoring to the vallenato painting.
“The trigger for this is when we see that the people who do not want to help us, who tell us that they do not have a way, that they do not answer us, that they do not receive us, then go and look for a team like Águilas Doradas to bring them, offering them sums of money. to which we did not even come close, it seemed very strange that they do not want us in the city. So, as a result of that, we have been looking for options to improve the club, that is the reality. Nobody has received us, they have not sought us out, we have sought meetings, a year and a half ago, you know that the people who make determinations have not wanted to receive our calls, we are now going for a year and a half, it has become something that We are not happy with that and we are looking for options to improve the club”, said Baena.
Nicolás Baena, president of Valledupar FC./ PHOTO: JOAQUÍN RAMÍREZ.
“UNSUSTAINABLE TO BE WHERE YOU ARE NOT WANTED”
At the beginning of the season, EL PILÓN interviewed Nicolás Baena and he had stated that they did not plan to leave the city. However, his speech is different now and he assured that, although they wanted to stay, “it was untenable to be in a place where one is not wanted.”
“For us it is very uncomfortable wanting to give everything, that on the other hand nobody answers us and they look for another team, which as you well stated was a reality, they went looking for another team trying to get us out; We wanted to stay, we think it is a spectacular square, but it is untenable to be in a place where you are not wanted. The same people who told us that they can’t help us, went after another team. We as a club have to make determinations”, stated Baena.
THE PROMISE OF THE THREE YEARS IN THE CITY
In an interview with Radio Guatapurí, the former president of the club and minority shareholder, José Antonio Larrazábal, had indicated that “when the agreement for the sale of the majority stake was signed, it was established that the new partner undertook to maintain a minimum permanence of the team in the city for three years, which have not yet elapsed (…)”.
In this regard, Baena said that: “We promised to stay three years in the city as long as we received some help from the private or public sector, realizing that nobody wants to collaborate with us, and nobody wants to collaborate with the team, the Government has not wanted to neither did the Mayor appear, no one has communicated with us, when that happened we made the best determination we believe and the decision will be made on Thursday, with all the members of the Board of Directors”.
Finally, Baena thanked the fans and the Valledupar press for their support during his stay in the capital of Cesar. “We are very sorry for the fans, for the support they were giving us, but it is unsustainable to be where you are not wanted,” he pointed out.
By: José Alejandro Martínez Vega / EL PILÓN