November 11 – FIFA’s lavish new museum, which opened earlier this year in Zurich, has already recorded a loss of CHF30 million, according to Swiss reports.
A FIFA spokesperson confirmed the figure and said a working group had been set up to devise a way forward.
Last month the museum parted company with its inaugural managing director Stefan Jost over “contrasting views” on its future development.
At the time, it was reported that the museum was performing well below expectations, attracting only 11,000 visitors a month equating to around 132,000 over the year as a whole in contrast to the 250,000 anticipated.
Over CHF140 million was invested in the museum, brainchild of former FIFA president Sepp Blatter. Covering 3,000 square metres on three levels, it retraces football’s history through artefacts, archive photographs and memorabilia including a library with 5,000 works.
But it would appear that lack of trust in FIFA as a result of the ongoing corruption scandal may have contributed to creating less interest than hoped for among fans.
The working group will present its findings in January when the FIFA Council next meets. Those trying to save it as a tourist site include FIFA special adviser and former Croatia captain Zvonimir Boban, and Evelina Christillin, who is president of the Egyptian Museum in Turin and sits on the FIFA Council.
The Task force will “look into new, innovative models and concepts in order to preserve the project’s social and cultural value to Zurich” as well as “evaluate all options, including a complete change of the museum’s current physical set-up.”
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