Villas-Boas and Rui Alves criticism: “Reality suits most clubs” | OneFootball

The model for centralizing TV rights sparked a tug-of-war between Rui Alves and André Villas-Boas. The Nacional president put forward an alternative proposal, which the FC Porto leader strongly opposed, even threatening to go to court if the islanders’ solution were approved at the League General Assembly — which ultimately did not happen. In the verbal clash, Rui Alves said Villas-Boas “was ignorant” on the matter. AVB did not respond in kind, but defended the new model for distributing TV revenue.

“The proposal was taken to the General Assembly, and it was approved with around 80% or more than 80%. It is a reality that pleases most clubs and a decisive step in building a good future for Portuguese football. New steps follow. The new steps are to go to the market and aim for the amounts we believe Portuguese football is worth. That distribution key is well designed; it clearly values all the other clubs as well, while also preserving the dignity of the big three and their importance as the economic engine of Portuguese football, because that is undeniable. And without wanting to repeat myself, that is Portugal’s club membership demographic and it reflects exactly that. And that clear demographic was also respected in the field of distribution through the allocation formula,” AVB argued.

“From now on, it is about going to the market, finding the best solutions and, after that, above all tackling the challenges that lie ahead for Portuguese football, namely improving infrastructure, having a greater capacity to attract fans to stadiums, avoiding improper licensing situations, which should not happen when there are clubs filing PERs to escape some responsibilities and debts they owe to others. I think that does not dignify us or add value to us either. So, it is about finding clearer licensing regulations, improving infrastructure, improving VAR technologies, and taking every step that dignifies and improves the product that Portuguese football is — that is what we will be focused on now,” guaranteed the Porto leader.

“Priority is to build a stronger foundation”

André Villas-Boas sent a message of continuity and stability in FC Porto’s build-up for 2026/27, stressing that the club is moving forward without haste or noise in the market. He explained that the priority is to “keep the core of the team” and “build a stronger one,” in line with the coach’s demands. “Now the European Championship is coming, and attention will be focused there. FC Porto is calmly following its plan regarding the options available on the market and our objective, as I said, is to keep the core of the team we have and build a stronger one, in line with what the coach is asking of us. As far as possible, we will always operate in the market in a very discreet way. We have already completed the signings of two players who strengthen the first team, another for the first team and the B team, and that is how we will continue,” he assured.

Membership ‘boom’

On the institutional side, Villas-Boas highlighted the growth in the membership base, which he described as a “boom in members.” He recalled that FC Porto has been increasing its number of members by “20% a year since 2004,” something he interprets as a sign of “a lot of Porto unity” and “a lot of love around the club.”

The president also linked that growth to FC Porto’s digital transformation, which has made the joining process simpler. Villas-Boas also pointed to other positive indicators: rising commercial revenue and successive sell-out crowds at the Estádio do Dragão, which he described as the stadium with the highest attendance last season. From here on, the focus is on raising the bar: “There are countless other areas where we have grown: from the point of view of commercial revenue, attendances at the stadium — Estádio do Dragão was the stadium with the highest attendance last season and those are very good signs for the future. We are now dedicated to improving Estádio do Dragão, its services, hospitality services, and improving services for fans and members when they come to the stadium. Therefore, our concern is always to improve the experience of both the fan and the member as well.”

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