Massive earnings in the Croatian Football Federation are officially a secret, although the Federation operates as a public body.
The key move by the Croatian Football Federation (HNS) leadership ahead of the qualification cycle finals was to replace the team selector. Even if this decision results in Croatia traveling to Russia for the World Championship and earns HNS 12 million USD from Fifa, the firing of Ante Čačić will be remembered as the priciest departure in the history of HNS, Večernji List reported on November 4, 2017.
Unofficial reports state that HNS president Davor Šuker decided, while Croatia was leading its qualification group, to increase the former selector’s salary to an unreal 60.000 euros per month. In addition, the new contract contained a clause which would secure Čačić, in case he was relieved of duty, 12 monthly salaries, which brings the total to 5.4 million kuna! So how can anyone say Čačić left the bench as a loser…
Večernji List attempted to verify this information in HNS, registered as a public body in Croatia (whose data should be public), but it was classified by HNS as “business secrets and classified personal data.” But we did learn the new selector Zlatko Dalić has no contract, and thus currently has no earnings from HNS, and that HNS has 52 employees and around 15 part-time workers. The annual budget for 2017 is 136 million kuna.
One of the signs of the weakening of Šuker’s presidential discipline in HNS is the increasing leakage of confidential information. Besides the astronomically high compensation for Čačić, information on Šuker’s earnings in HNS was also procured. A source for Večernji List denied Šuker’s claim from an interview for Goal.com from March of 2015 that he “works in HNS for 0 kuna.” Unofficial information reveal that President Šuker is not a volunteer, but an HNS employee with monthly net earnings between 50 and 55 thousand kuna, equal to HNS Executive Director Damir Vrbanović.
Večernji List also attempted to confirm this information in HNS, with this public body responding that individual contracts are a business secret and classified personal information and not up for individual comments. We will never learn why Davor Šuker hides his status from the public eye, since his position as a professional president is not in conflict of interest or even ethical misdemeanour. In fact, it is not even out of the ordinary for the lead person of a football federation to be employed.
In comparison, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković earns 21.000 kuna net monthly, while Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović earns 37.000 kuna. Šuker’s close associate has disclosed to Večernji List that the current HNS President is full of confidence ahead of the coming elections within the football federation. His propellant for a new mandate should be the qualification of Croatia to the Russian championship.
Translated from Večernji List.
