Rayo owner turns down sale offers, but stadium stays in Vallecas

Rayo Vallecano owner and President Raul Martin Presa is not interested in selling the club as things stand, despite widespread outrage from the fanbase at his management of the club. This season he has received strong criticism from across Spanish football, including his own players and manager.

Last week Rayo were forced to play at Butarque in Leganes instead of Vallecas due to their pitch not being in fit condition, and Presa was met with loud ‘Presa, get out’ chants from the 5,500 fans that did attend, while protests took place back in the neighbourhood of Vallecas. The prior week, Rayo’s home clash had been called off, with the players and manager complaining of unfit and unsafe working conditions.

Presa not considering club sale

Despite the strife between himself and the fanbase, Diario AS say that he has no plans to sell the club. There has been interest from China in the past, and Presa turned down an offer of €100m for the club. More recently there has been interest from the Middle East, while Catalan investment fund Strategic Value Partners were willing to pay €150m for the entity, but Presa has been clear he has no interest in selling. Presa purchased the club for €961.55, taking on around €62m in debt at the time.

‘Stadium stays in Vallecas’ – Madrid Government

One of his main points of disagreement with the fans is his desire to move the club to a new stadium, and away from Vallecas, where the club is well-rooted in the community. There is a suspicion that Presa is keen to sell the land for lucrative real estate development. Isabel Diaz Ayuso, President of the Regional Madrid Government, told the media at the end of January that it was going nowhere though.

“The stadium will remain in its place; what we will do is renovate it to ensure maximum safety, expand its seating capacity, and allow it to be used for a wide range of other events. This is good for the district, and it’s a decision we’ve made because we believe it’s the most appropriate,” she told Cadena Cope. Mariano de Paco, Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism, has echoed her thoughts.

New stadium can fit in Vallecas

One of Presa’s primary arguments for doing so is that the Estadio de Vallecas is in need of reform, but the President claims it is impossible to do so in its current location. However a study by architectural firm AGAS, solicited by the Rayo Federation of Supporters’ Clubs, has concluded it would be possible to do so. Diario AS also report that a renovated stadium could be constructed at a cost of €40-50m over a 1.5 year period, and would add around 10,000 seats to the ground, making the capacity, 25,000.

Their plans would involve changing the orientation of the pitch, and adding a roof around the stadium. Rayo would also be able to hold concerts in the stadium, although this has caused problems in densely populated areas, as Real Madrid found out with the Santiago Bernabeu.