Cantolao on television rights: “All clubs must align with the FPF regulations”

Total Sport spoke with Gisella Mandriotti to give us details about the challenges of this season, in addition to the sale of Bryan Reyna to Alianza Lima, the ingratitude of Yuriel Celi, the lawsuit for television rights and more.

—We know that he had a meeting with the FPF. What did it consist of?

Basically that the tournament starts on January 21. There is no going back on the issue of the start date. That was discussed at the meeting we had in the federation. Beyond that I cannot give information.

—Going to Cantolao, how was the sale of Bryan Reyna to Alianza agreed?

Yes, we just sold Bryan to Alianza Lima in December. He is a boy who was trained with us in Cantolao, then he went to Mallorca from Spain and we have repatriated him, because his dream was to play in the Peruvian National Team. Obviously, the closest thing for that to happen was for him to play in League 1. We brought him to Cantolao for that purpose: so that the team coach could look at him. He just earned his place and well earned, because the guy is a tremendous talent. From there, several offers for Bryan arose: Cristal, Universitario, but in the end the decision was made by talking with the player, because not only the decision is made by the club, but it is a joint decision. That’s how it happened.

—Alianza Lima offered you a four-year contract, what other factor was decisive?

What happens is that Alianza Lima was the first club that had the intention of wanting to buy Bryan Reyna, and the negotiations were advanced. After Alianza, came Sporting Cristal, the ‘U’ and, obviously, our priority was Alianza, because there was already a verbal agreement, despite the fact that there was no signed contract. The word has to be respected, right? We talked before reaching an agreement with Alianza, Bryan accepted, he liked the idea and the decision was made together. It is not that Alianza has offered us something out of the ordinary or superior to the other clubs, simply because Bryan Reyna wanted to go to Alianza Lima. Besides, it is one of the clubs that is best consolidated in League 1, it has emerged champion, it is going to play Libertadores, there Bryan can show himself internationally and future sales may arise. It suits all three of us: player, Cantolao and Alianza Lima.

—You have kept a percentage of Bryan Reyna’s pass letter to receive money in a future sale, right?

Yes, we have a percentage of future sales.

“Would you like to know how much it is?”

What happens is that due to a matter of figures I cannot say it because it is confidential, but enchanted. But yes, there is a percentage of his pass that Cantolao has.

—Were there only offers for Bryan Reyna from the local tournament or were there foreign clubs?

Some foreign offers were also presented, nothing concrete. But yes, there was a lot of interest from some clubs. The most concrete thing was that of Alianza Lima.

—Now settled in Primera, we know that they plan to build a high performance center.

Thanks to the Peruvian Football Federation and 1190 Sports for television, the clubs have a budget to invest exclusively in infrastructure. That money, which has come from 1190 Sports for the clubs, can only be spent on infrastructure. The FPF is going to be very strict in this regard, it is going to monitor that it is really complied with. Obviously, it suits us because we don’t have a property and it’s been perfect for us. We are looking for a site and see where our land and premises can be found.

—Where would this sports venue be located?

We still don’t have it clear, precisely, we were talking with my father and brother to see options.

—That amount that gave 1190, was it 500 thousand dollars?

Yes, it is approximately that amount.

—Is there a possible date for the property?

They have not given us a deadline, it has to be as close as possible.

—Did you have a contract with the Consortium? 1190 What benefits does it give to the clubs?

The contract with the Consortium has already ended in 2022. Now, with the new FPF statutes, the television rights correspond to the Federation, and the clubs do not own the television rights. For this reason, I can no longer negotiate with Consorcio or another company that the FPF has not chosen. 1190 Sports seems like a good option to me, since it is a prestigious, solvent company that gives us security and the financial support we need. The FPF chose very wisely. It is not that I decide whether or not to go with that channel, all the clubs have to align them with the regulations that govern the Federation, Conmebol and FIFA. It was very strange that each club negotiated with the television company and the Federation was oblivious to that. It suits us, because it is an associative issue. In the end, all the clubs are going to receive profits. Even in this new company there will be clubs that will belong to the board of this new company. I think it is something very beneficial for everyone.

—In the case of Yuriel Celi, is there a percentage for any future sale?

It is with great sadness that I tell you no. Yuriel Celi trained very young with us until he was 17 years old. We gave him everything you can imagine. Cantolao welcomed him as a son and we had several proposals for him, there was a very interesting offer to go to Racing in 2021 and unfortunately for letting himself be carried away by third parties, I do not want to name names, in the end the transaction did not materialize. It was very strange that they did not accept the proposal, because it was a springboard to go to Europe. Before there was an offer from Flamengo for Yuriel Celi in 2019, they rejected it. Again due to the fault of third parties the transaction fell. From there the agent took him free. It is very unfortunate, what happens in our country with the issue of representatives, because the club trains him, gives him everything and it is not fair that the agent arrives when the boy is trained and takes him away just like that. The clubs should do something to stop the issue of agents, how they act does not seem correct to me, I do not want to generalize: some act well.

—Yuriel Celi’s present is uncertain, what sensation does it give you?

He went to Mannucci for two or three years and now from what I’ve heard in the press, the representative wants to take him free to the ‘U’ and what’s more, he didn’t even show up for training, abandoning work. Yuriel is very talented, but sometimes his character wins him over and makes him lose important things, because you not only have to be a good player, but also a correct person with values. Even Aron Sanchez had the same representative, but being a very correct, disciplined boy and with very marked values, today he is without an agent, he manages only with us.

—Is there any projection of Cantolao to bring out new talents?

Right now we are working on Arón Sánchez, who is a tremendous talent and has been trained since he was very young. He plays central back and is now in the U-20 team, he is going to travel to Colombia for the South American Cup and there are many foreign teams interested in him. They will just go to see him in Colombia. We are waiting for the championship to take place and something that suits the player and the club, but above all that Aron feels comfortable. Just like the case with Reyna, the player must also agree.

—Is it Cantolao’s only bet on the future?

We have Valentino Delgado in the sub-17 who is very talented, we will just make him a contract, since it is category 2006. He is very good, disciplined, correct. Who knows and this year he may debut with us.

—Your relationship with Claudio Pizarro, is there any plan to work with him?

I’m quite honest, I haven’t had the chance to talk to Pizarro. I know him when I was very young, neither he remembers me nor I remember him, but my father had a very close relationship with Pizarro. He has been trained with us, everyone knows the story, then he went to Pesquero and from there he went to Alianza.

—Your relationship with Carlos Zambrano, what is it like?

Zambrano has a close relationship with my father and brother, as we do with his family. Even the son of Carlos Zambrano plays with us in the Federation Gold Cup in the 2007 category and he is a great player, tremendous talent. I think he’s also a center back.

—Where does Cantolao get his talents?

We have 84 offices nationwide. Of the academies, we have a scouting area that goes to the championships. There we see the possible talents. From the Academy they go to Federation, from Federation they go to Pre-Reserve and from there to Reserve. That is the process. We have how to bring them to the players according to the level.

—Was it difficult for you to assume the Presidency of Cantolao?

It wasn’t difficult for me because I was always linked to my dad. We founded Cantolao when my brother was very young and he always went with them to games and trips. Later, I opened my Academy at Sede Chorrillos and Cantolao La Molina. There I learned with the boys on a day-to-day basis. Later, my father held a political position and delegated the presidency to me. Today look how long we remain in the First Division, despite being a small team, one of the clubs that receives less money, we try to make an effort to comply with everything. We are an organized club and we try to make correct contracts and that this margin of error is minimal. We are still in the First Division and God through this year we aim to participate in a Copa Sudamericana. The Uruguayan technical command Matías Rosas has every predisposition to work and get Cantolao forward.

—Have they reinforced themselves well for this year?

We have the pull of Luis Ramírez, we have brought back Gabriel Leyes who in 2021 was our scorer. We have made a great team and we hope to achieve positive things.

—What is the success of Cantolao?

My father, the founder of Cantolao. He went to the poorest places in Callao to look for talented low-income kids to be able to support them in everything that was within his reach and grant them scholarships at the Academy. My dad gave them study, food, helped his family and so on. Cantolao’s success is due to my father, a football fan.