SJK plans to transfer ownership to new foundation

SJK, a Seinäjoki football club that plays in the Veikkausliiga, plans to transfer ownership of its club company to a new foundation, Yle reports. The club says the arrangement is intended to secure the future of its football operations.

The foundation would take ownership of all shares in Seinäjoen jalkapallokerho Oy and its two subsidiaries, as well as the voting shares in stadium company Omasp Stadion. SJK would continue operating as a limited company, responsible for sporting activities such as hiring players and coaches and managing the related risks.

The foundation would own the shares in the SJK company and manage the club’s assets. Its founding documents are being reviewed by Finland’s Patent and Registration Office, which is expected to process them before the end of the year.

SJK chairman and majority owner Raimo Sarajärvi said he would not comment until the review is complete. The club says the new arrangement would make its ownership structure clearer and more transparent, and shift public discussion towards football rather than ownership.

Companies linked to Sarajärvi have recently faced scrutiny over their financial situation and bankruptcies. Most of the bankruptcy proceedings are still ongoing, so their possible effects on SJK cannot yet be assessed.

Unusual model in sports

It is not common in sport for a foundation to own a company that runs a sports business, said Antti Aine, a professor of sports law at the universities of Turku and Helsinki. He was commenting on the model in general.

Aine said foundation ownership could bring stability to a company, and the model might become more common. But sports businesses face particular risks, including fluctuating competitive results, attendance and income from player sales. Those changes can affect annual results, making the business risky to operate through a foundation.

Under Finnish law, a foundation must have a purpose set out in its rules, such as an ideological or public-benefit purpose, and use its returns to fulfil that purpose. If it owns a company, the company’s activities must also advance that purpose.

SJK said in a statement on October 13 that the foundation would “serve the long-term development of football and its conditions in the region”. Its formal purpose will become public once the foundation is entered in the register.

If the club company makes profits and pays dividends, those could increase the foundation’s assets, Aine said. Losses could weaken its financial position. The risk depends in part on the foundation’s overall assets: if a significant share comes from a company’s business operations, the risk level is high, he said.

“With the foundation arrangement, we want to ensure that decades of work and the significant private funds invested in it remain permanently in the service of football in Seinäjoki and across South Ostrobothnia,” the club said.

Tags: SJK, football, Seinäjoki