September 23 – São Paulo has had to dip into a loan fund backed by the club’s future income to cover wages due in August, another sign of the cash flow squeeze currently going through the Brazilian club.
The FIDC facility, created under former president Julio Casares, allows the club to advance future revenue from broadcast and sponsorship contracts in exchange for financing expenses.
Brazilian website UOL reported this morning that the club used the fund to help clear August wages earlier this month, with no figure for the latest withdrawal revealed. São Paulo has also been using credit lines from Tricury and Daycoval to meet short-term commitments.
The salary delay is the first time in many years that São Paulo has fallen behind on player wages, rather than image rights payments. The club finally paid August salaries on 11 September, initially prioritizing the lowest paid players before clearing the rest of the squad.
The payment of player image rights remains a financial headache for the club. Some players have reportedly gone several months without payment, while UOL pointed to cases of 2026 signings who have yet to receive any image rights payments this year.
To make matters worse, São Paulo received a transfer ban from FIFA in July after failing to pay Lazio the €1.05 million first payment for Marcos Antônio. About R$6.2 million was eventually paid to remove the restriction and allow the club to register new players.
The club now hopes that a wider commercial deal with Ticketmaster can give some room to the balance sheet. The proposed five-year ticketing agreement includes a significant initial funding element and is due to be presented to São Paulo’s deliberative Council on September 29 after being approved by a special committee with reservations.
São Paulo reported a surplus of R$56 million ($10.97 million) by 2025 and reduced total debt to about R$858 million ($168.07 million), but the current problem is more immediate: getting enough cash out at the right time.
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at harry.ewing@insideworldfootball.com
