Speaking to MBC Masr on Friday, Nasr said the value of Zamalek’s commercial partnerships “does not come close to a quarter” of Ahly’s, even after the new administration increased sponsorship deals four- to five-fold since taking office.
When the board assumed control, he said, the club had only one shirt sponsor; they now have up to eight.
“We discovered that the debts were two and a half times larger than we imagined, and the problem is the interest keeps growing,” Nasr said, noting that the club inherited both financial challenges and a decline in support from wealthy backers. “We are still dealing with that.”
Nasr added that the club faced several hidden liabilities, including a $150,000 payment owed to a foreign volleyball player, which had led to a registration ban.
He said the board chose to address these crises quietly rather than repeatedly alarm supporters.
Zamalek, he added, are preparing to establish a new football company and offer public share subscriptions, allowing fans to invest in the project.
They are also involved in a dispute over their land in 6th of October City, which authorities seized earlier this year. Nasr criticized the move as “wrong,” saying security and emergency forces unexpectedly arrived on site.
“We are Zamalek. We are not a profit-seeking company but a social sports club,” he said.
Nasr stressed that the club followed legal procedures in its development plans for the property and had received ministerial approval before a new decision reversed that status.
He said Zamalek worked with a sovereign entity to ensure compliance and expects the land “will return, God willing.”
The club previously lost a separate plot intended for a commercial mall and was later compensated with the current land, a cycle Nasr hopes will not happen again.
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