Vålerenga, the elite series | The Trøim decision was postponed. Now he has given Vålerenga an answer

VALLE (Nettavisen): In April, Nettavisen reported that Vålerenga’s owner Tor Olav Trøim from 2020 had to resign by 1 July whether he also joins and supports the club next year. He has committed himself to support 2020. From the documents for the annual meeting of Vålerenga Football Elite, it emerged that Trøim has guaranteed NOK 13.9 million this year in the form of operating grants or loans.

In July, general manager Erik Espeseth in Vålerenga informed Nettavisen that this decision was postponed until over the holiday.

On Thursday, Espeseth informs that the decision has now been made. The club held a board meeting on Monday, before informing the members of the club at a meeting on Wednesday night.

– The agreement has not been terminated and it continues. Trøim is with us and it was informed to the members yesterday (Wednesday, editor’s note), Espeseth says to Nettavisen.

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The agreement is not terminated

The VIF manager explains that the cooperation agreement between Vålerenga Fotball Elite and Vålerenga Fotball AS, where Magni Sports AS is one hundred percent owner and where Tor Olav Trøim again owns one hundred percent, applies until 31.12.2028.

– It is a 10-year agreement that was entered into in 2018. This agreement can be terminated by the AS’s side before 1 July. This has been submitted and approved by the members. If the agreement had been terminated before 1 July, it will only apply for the rest of the year. It has been decided in Vålerenga Fotball AS that the agreement will not be terminated, Espeseth continues.

Espeseth elaborates that Trøim himself has naturally been involved in the process and that a joint board of Vålerenga Fotball AS agrees that this agreement will not be terminated.

Espeseth has himself been listed as general manager of the owner company Magni Sports AS, where Trøim is the owner. Espeseth was recently removed from this position.

– I am the general manager of Vålerenga Fotball AS and Vålerenga Fotball Elite. I was also previously the general manager of Magni Sports, but I think that being the general manager of the first two is a big enough job. Being the general manager of the owner company as well may be a little strange, but there is no drama in it. It is only a formality, he explains.

– Is it the case that Magni Sports will be closed down because Vålerenga Football will stand on its own two feet?

– What I can say today is that you almost have to ask the company yourself, is the short answer.

– And since you are no longer the general manager there, are you not now the right man to ask?

– Just. It becomes clearer in relation to the media and handling related to the ownership issue, that I as the general manager of the AS can refer to the owner company to answer these questions. It is a formal and no change.

The online newspaper has tried to get a comment on this case from Tor Olav Trøim. He has not been available.

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Good player sales give hope

In the conversation at the general manager’s office, he is clear to Nettavisen that he has not been concerned about thinking about the agreement with the owner company. The reason for this is that “he has not imagined that it would happen”.

Due to several good player sales in recent years, Vålerenga is now significantly better equipped than they did only a short time ago.

The resale of Sander Berge and Chidera Ejuke from Genk and Heerenveen, respectively, to Sheffield United and CSKA Moscow, has contributed to the Oslo club now looking very brightly at the future.

– We end up in the green zone on the latest reporting to NFF. This is a somewhat special report due to the corona situation. The primary reason for this is the Berge sale from Genk to Sheffield United. Regardless of when the money arrives, we keep all the income for accounting purposes at the time the sale was made. That was in the first half.

Vålerenga also negotiated an agreement with Genk which gave them a one-off payment, so that they had the opportunity to bring in Icelandic Vidar Örn Kjartansson on a longer agreement recently.

– How far away is it that Vålerenga can stand on its own two feet without an owner company that can guarantee the operation?

– It can happen already this year or next year. There is a short horizon on it now. It’s a lot because of good player sales. We have very good figures on net player logistics. Although we have had quite a few replacements in the stable from year to year, we have not spent a lot of money on purchases. It is our business model that we will develop, sell and generate positive numbers to build the club further, Espeseth concludes to Nettavisen.

The online newspaper wrote in May that player sales could be the salvation for Vålerenga’s finances. It has proven to be a recipe for success for the club and last week Aron Dønnum confirmed to Nettavisen that the Oslo club had accepted an offer for him from Italian Lecce.

On Thursday, he trained with the rest of the team at home at Intility Arena, but it is expected that the 22-year-old will make a decision about his future soon.

Sports director Jørgen Ingebrigtsen also confirmed to Nettavisen that Vålerenga is no longer working to bring Rafik Zekhnini to the club.

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