The president of the BFS Georgi Ivanov – Gonzo spoke about the most pressing topics in Bulgarian football.
The national team performed below expectations. We also saw it in the World Cup qualifiers this year. But again, we must note that the opponents who were there were very strong. We have to understand that the national team is the tip of the iceberg and it is a projection of the whole system. This is what Ivanov said in exclusive interview for BNT.
“We see the reason in children’s and youth football. And that is why we have concentrated all our attention there, so that we can have a foundation, and we know that if the foundation and foundation are sound, success is a matter of time,” Ivanov pointed out.
He also focused on the work of the BFS with the Ministry of Youth and Sports and expressed his satisfaction with what was achieved.
“We have signed a memorandum with the Ministry of Sports, the Ministry of Education, so that we can enter the schools. We are working on a FIFA project, which requires us to build 10 playgrounds in the schools according to the programs we have,” commented Ivanov.
“You know that the football union does not receive any funding from the state. Our funding is based on projects from UEFA and FIFA. We work with Double Pass – a world-renowned company that is, perhaps, one of the best in the world, the biggest federations work with it. It determines the environment, the training of the coaches, the development of the club itself, of the players. How to improve things. The categorization does not measure results, ranking, goals, but they show what level the school is at, how it should develop, they give recommendations, follow the processes. The second year they give feedback, what needs to be improved. So, I think that this is the foundation that we have to lay in youth football,” noted Georgi Ivanov.
“It will be positive that we will now work on a uniform methodology in all children’s and youth schools that fall into this category. Guidelines are given to the coaches, guidelines are given to the club itself, based on infrastructure, based on the training process, based on workload. These are very important things for the development of Bulgarian football. 130 federations work, big clubs work with this company. So we, as a football union, have judged that this is extremely important, for to change the basis, because in recent years we have turned the pyramid upside down. For us, men’s football is important, and we have forgotten the development of players,” said Ivanov.
“I want to see desire, positivity, for everyone to give their best, for the team to win, because we know that success unites the nation. We see it in other sports as well. I can mention volleyball, which came second in the world championship and what euphoria was in the country itself. So it is important for us to lay the foundations so that we can build on and in the near future have successes that the Bulgarian people will be proud of,” he added he.
The president of the BFS commented on the draw in the League of Nations tournament.
“Equal teams. It depends on us whether we will be in first place. We know that there are no weak teams in football anymore, but we will do everything possible to present ourselves in the best way. The goal is to become first in the group, before this is the step, to build a team that will attack qualifications for the European championship,” he emphasized.
According to Ivanov, the home championship is extremely interesting.
“There is serious intrigue, both in the top places and in the relegated teams, which when we changed the format, which we made from 16 to 14 teams, it also becomes interesting, because three teams are relegated, one plays a play-off. In the first four teams, which give the right to participate in the Euro tournaments, the battle is also quite serious. We see that now there is a change, there is already another leader and the championship is becoming quite interesting,” said Georgi Ivanov.
He also noted how the BFS helps with the qualification of native judges, stressing that they undergo a number of trainings.
“We do everything we can with the broadcast that we do with the mistakes of the referees, with the body cameras that the referees wear. Last year we put in two more extra cameras, the so-called goal lines, so the Football Association shows that it is fighting and wants the refereeing to be impartial. We do a lot of seminars, gatherings of the referees, tests that they do constantly and to be in the best physical condition so that they can play the matches in the best way.”
Ivanov also focused on the topic of the categorization of the terrains and their condition.
“The Licensing Commission licenses the club. The club determines in which stadium it will play. Based on the categorization of the stadiums that the state has categorized since 2018, the stadium is responsible for the relevant category. The Sports and Technical Commission determines whether the pitch is ready, this is a one-time act at the beginning of June or at the beginning of July, when the championship starts. The clubs are responsible for the maintenance of their pitches. And in Bulgaria there are not many pitches that are good. Given that the financial situation of most clubs is not good. What everyone says is that the pitches are bad, they only have a solution,” said the head of the BFS.
He also commented on the number of teams in the First League and whether this is the best option.
“The format in which we participate is optimal. The playoff phase was legal for 14 teams when it was created. So I don’t think that the teams will become less than 14. And I don’t see anyone rebelling. From the tour we went around, we must have passed about 400 cubes. We saw a calm environment, people understand, they know. We are in constant contact and dialogue with them,” explained the president of the football headquarters.
“What was 2 years ago, this war that was 3 years, in which it was clubs against federation, clubs against clubs, now there is peace and calm in football. One thing I have said before is that if someone wants to build, he must build in peacetime. When there is war and discontent and all kinds of interpretations of every president who is dissatisfied with refereeing, with pitches, with anything else, it does not lead to the development of football, it leads to disintegration”, he concluded Ivanov.
