Fans of "Spartak-Nalchik" FC hold protest demanding not to disband football team

In the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria, about 100 fans of the "Spartak-Nalchik" Football Club (FC) held a protest action demanding not to disband the football team.

Because of its financial problems, the "Spartak" FC from Nalchik will not participate in the championship of the Football National League (FNL) and will cease to exist in the status of a professional football club. This was announced on January 9 by Aslan Afaunov, Acting Minister for Sport and Tourism of Kabardino-Balkaria.

Murat Mizov, a participant of the protest action, has noted that the football fans treats the "Spartak-Nalchik" FC not just as a football club.

"It represents the football team that passed to us from the Soviet era. In the next year, the football team will be 80 years old. To lose this football team will become an indelible stain on the republic's reputation," Murat Mizov says.

Aslan Afaunov, Acting Minister for Sport and Tourism of Kabardino-Balkaria, told the fans that earlier, Arsen Kanokov, the main sponsor of the FC, allocated to the football team the sponsorship in the amount of 450,000 US dollars per month. However, later, he cut funding to 100,000 US dollars per month.

In their turn, the FC's fans have offered their help. They have stated that they are willing to transfer funds to an account that they intend to open.

Meanwhile, fans of the "Anji" and "Terek" FCs appealed to Yuri Kokov, the acting leader of Kabardino-Balkaria, and asked him to preserve the "Spartak-Nalchik" FC in professional football, the "Championat.com" reports.