Allsvenskan hockey clubs are hiding signed contracts until their players receive unemployment benefits, according to several independent sources.
Cheating caused a rift between the two Allsvenskan hockey teams.
– We pay a lot of money in the summer when many other clubs don’t have to pay any money at all, says Västerås sporting director Patrick Zetterberg.
In recent years, more and more Allsvenskan clubs have chosen to sign contracts of only nine months, or in some cases only eight months, with a number of their players. This is the time when the players train and play on the ice.
During the summer months there are big holes in many teams, but when July turns to August, suddenly a lot of players are introduced.
The Sportbladet compilation shows clubs submitted 75 new acquisitions or contract extensions in two weeks at the start of the month.
According to Sportbladet info, from several different sources with good transparency, it’s mostly a show game.
According to information confirmed by several independent sources, it happens in many cases that players and clubs reach an agreement and sign the contract in the spring. But the concluded agreement will not be announced until the end of July and will enter into force from August 1.
– What matters to us is that when you sign the contract, the unemployment fund must be notified. If there is a system for submitting misinformation, that is unfortunate of course, says Annette Bennacer, director of insurance at the Unionens unemployment fund.
What happens if you do not provide the correct information?
– It depends on the individual case. However, those who did not provide correct information to the unemployment fund may be liable for reimbursement and also subject to penalties such as exclusion and denial of compensation for a certain period of time. Bennacer says there will be an assessment of whether it was an intentional action.
So-called seasonal workers are entitled to stamp between two jobs, but this does not apply to an ice hockey player between two decades, something for which there is precedent. If you have entered a job (you signed a contract in April or May), according to the Social Insurance Agency, you will not be allowed to receive compensation until the new contract takes effect.
It becomes a bit of a weird situation when you set up a system to build your business this way. It’s actually tax money being used, says Patrick Zetterberg of Vasteras.
“this is not true”
During the summer months of May, June and July, many players have to seal instead and receive a stipend from the unemployment fund. This applies to both new acquisitions and players who are going to extend their contracts – precisely because clubs don’t announce contracts.
That it is only a verbal agreement between the two parties that is rejected by several sources with good transparency:
– this is not true. No player or club wants to sit down and verbally agree and not sign any papers. Then both the player and the club can risk choosing the other side to grab something else, says one of the sources.
For clubs, the nine-month contracts have to do with the fact that they don’t feel they have the financial resources to pay salaries all year round – not least the lack of cash during the summer months when income is meager.
For the player, it is about getting his monthly salary over a shorter contract and then stamping it to get the remaining amount. A higher monthly salary for fewer months also means that they are entitled to higher Social Security contributions the next time it is time to seal.
It becomes a form of economic doping
Today, there are only a few clubs in Allsvenskan that operate directly through contracts over a period of twelve months. Västerås and Björklöven are two of them. BIK Karlskoga, Djurgården and Modo also have nearly exclusive year-round contracts.
The fact that many clubs in the Allsvenskan allow players who have signed contracts to have them stamped is internally known.
We and a few other clubs with 99 per cent of them on 12-month contracts pay a lot of money in the summer when many other clubs don’t have to pay any money at all. Because there are several (contracts shown in August) ready anyway. Personally, I don’t like it, says Patrick Zetterberg of Västerås.
Zetterberg agrees that the nine-month contracts have become a form of economic stimulus:
– Of course it will be. We’re basically paying millions over the summer, which of course we could have spent on another top signing if we did it the same way.
Purclovens Sportchef, Bear Cantat:
I understand that everyone has different circumstances, but this is a problem that we have to address in Swedish hockey. A challenge that we must solve in the near future. Both the Swedish league and hockey will be satisfied with that.
When clubs are responsible for writing contracts, sports director and Västervik coach Martin Gudmundsson respond that it is a necessity.
“Unfortunately, we as a club and federation would not survive in purely financial terms if we did not have this arrangement,” says Martin Gudmundsson, sports director and coach of Västervik.
Read the entire clubs’ answers here.
