November 21 – The owner of Bulgaria’s Botev Plovdiv, Russian Anton Zingarevich, has spoken publicly for the first time after information appeared in the Bulgarian media he had been banned from entering Bulgaria for ten years.
The reports claim that Zingarevich, who also holds an Israeli passport, was listed as a “threat to national security”.
Botev Plovdiv has repeatedly denied these allegations and demanded official information on the case from the Bulgarian authorities.
Zingarevich’s lawyer in Bulgaria also sent a letter to the Bulgarian president, but no official information has been provided.
In the end, Zingarevich appeared on the Botev Plovdiv club channel to comment on what was happening and reassure fans that the club was functioning normally.
“It has always been a battle. I got used to this in recent years. This is nothing new. I never imagined that something like this could happen. When I heard the news I thought it was a joke or something,” said Zingarevich.
“However, when such things come out, then you have to take them seriously. We still have no answer from the government and the authorities. We are waiting for them to find out exactly what the truth is, because at this stage I only hear things from the news and these are rumors.
“It is strange for me that there is an order against me and at the same time that I cannot understand what it is. At the moment everyone is just hearing rumors and journalistic talk, but there is nothing official. I have no answers and I think that we probably need to take other actions to get an official answer,” Zingarevich continued.
“I still think that this is some kind of misunderstanding or mistake. I will fight it as best I can. The problem, as I said, is that we do not know what exactly is going on and we are only guessing. There are so many different options. You are right that in the end the club suffers from all this,” he added.
“I am happy that everyone at the club is united and believes. They support me in so many ways. In the meantime, we are functioning normally and will continue to do so. Nothing changes regarding Botev.”
Contact the writer of this story, Aleksander Krassimirov, at moc.l1734900763labto1734900763ofdlr1734900763owedi1734900763sni@o1734900763fni1734900763