SAFiel to take over Arena, lift transfer ban if Corinthians agree | OneFootball

SAFiel presented a new proposal to the board of Corinthians this Tuesday. The project creators promised to settle the Neo Química Arena and pay the FIFA transfer ban if the club agrees to sign the memorandum of intentions delivered in October of last year.

The team's debt with Caixa Econômica Federal for the stadium financing is around R$ 550 million. SAFiel commits to settling the debt within up to six months. The transfer ban was caused by a debt of R$ 40 million with Santos Laguna, from Mexico, for the acquisition of Félix Torres. The project guarantees to pay the amount immediately and permanently lift the punishment, in effect since August 2025.

The funding would work as an advance and would be made even before the possible transformation of the club into SAF. In the future, if the project is approved, the amount applied would be converted into shares. In case of failure, Timão would need to return the amount.

SAFiel published on its official Instagram account the email sent to President Osmar Stabile and Romeu Tuma Júnior, President of the Deliberative Council, Miguel Marques, President of Cori, and Haroldo Dantas, President of the Fiscal Council.

See below, in full, the post:

“Today, in a letter sent to the Presidency of Corinthians, SAFiel proposed to help the club get rid of the most urgent debts, even before the SAF actually exists. They are:

1.⁠ ⁠Transfer ban (FIFA): after signing the proposal, we offer a loan to settle the debt of athlete Félix Torres and release Corinthians.

2.⁠ ⁠Arena + Caixa: after audit and internal approvals, but even before public fundraising, we propose a conditional advance funding to settle Arena debts, release guarantees, and clear the path.

* Item 4.2 of the letter: After signing the Proposal, completing an audit without obstructive risks, SAFiel's approval by the competent bodies of SCCP, but even before the public offering of shares to raise the necessary resources for the effective implementation of the SAFiel project, a conditional advance funding will be made, of the necessary amount to settle the financial debts related to Arena Corinthians with Caixa Econômica Federal, with the release of guarantees, which will allow the resumption of SCCP operations and the constitution of SAFiel, without any contractual impediment;

Courage is this: making it happen with responsibility.”

  See this photo on Instagram   A post shared by SAFIEL (@safiel1910)

What is SAFiel?

Conceived by Carlos Teixeira, Maurício Chamati, Eduardo Salusse, and Lucas Brasil, SAFiel envisions the transformation of Corinthians into a SAF, with professional management, run by the fans. Corinthians fans could buy shares at affordable prices and vote for the council members.

The club would be composed of four Councils: Administrative, Fiscal, Cultural, and Governance. The members of each would be chosen by the shareholders. The bodies would be responsible for oversight, as well as promoting periodic external audits to prevent any irregularities.

According to the project, the administration would be the responsibility of professional executives, who would be “hired or fired based on ability and goal achievement.” The football department would be separate from the associative club.

How would the funding work?

There are three possibilities for shareholders to make the financial contribution: a popular reserve, where each fan can buy a maximum of ten shares; a broad retail, aimed at Corinthians fans with greater purchasing power; and a third group intended for professional investors.

Carlos Teixeira, Maurício Chamati, Eduardo Salusse, three of the SAFiel creators (Photo: André Costa/Gazeta Press)

To acquire the shares, the interested party must prove their association with Parque São Jorge or enrollment in the Fiel Torcedor program. No shareholder can buy more than 1.8% of the shares, to avoid concentration of power. Those who wish to invest must also prove the origin of the resources.

The goal is to raise R$ 2.5 billion to settle debts and invest in football and the social headquarters of Corinthians. The creators claim to base their plans on studies and believe that the shares tend to appreciate over time.

Internal resistance

SAFiel gained strength among fans in mid-October of last year, but faces significant internal resistance. The Corinthians compliance department analyzed the proposal and identified ‘red flags’ (a term in English to indicate “warning signs”), recommending the board not to proceed with the project.

Subsequently, the SAFiel creators issued a note to respond to the questions raised by compliance.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.