Article by David Marinescu – Published Saturday, January 10, 2026 22:22 / Updated Saturday, January 10, 2026 22:23
Mihai Rotaru became a shareholder in the football club Universitatea Craiova in 2013, when he entered the world of football and took over the financial involvement in the club.
In November 2024, Mihai Rotaru announced that he is no longer the majority shareholder, after selling part of the shares to other investors.
According to the termene.ro portal, Mihai Rotaru's profit over the last five years is 16.5 million euros, with a turnover of 41.5 million euros.
The figures from the goalkeeper temene.ro regarding Mihai Rotaru
Where does Mihai Rotaru make money?
In an interview for GSP.RO, Mihai Rotaru revealed the businesses he has and where he “brings” money into the accounts of the University of Craiova.
“The main businesses are agriculture and energy. But also real estate. I mean I have a real estate portfolio (no real estate). I'm a big investor in agriculture. Or let's call it medium”says the businessman.
In his first appearance on the set of a Romanian show, Mihai Rotaru also stated that “the money is mainly from agriculture, energy and the stock market. At the moment, my holdings have reduced significantly. A few years ago, I was one of the most important investors in the Bucharest Stock Exchange.”
13 million eurosrepresent the loans to the club that Mihai Rotaru has made in the last 14 years and which he hopes to recover. Moreover, the documents also show almost 10 million euros that the businessman invested in the club through capital increases
Mihai Rotaru has strong businesses in agriculture
Being in Turkey with the team, Mihai Rotaru does not neglect his business in the country. Even though we are only at the beginning of the year, agriculture is one of the fields that bring him consistent income.
“I am focused on Dolj and Olt counties, on the border between them. We do agriculture there, but also energy. I have around 30 machines, but their number is less important. I don't have more because we are not the Big Island of Brăila. We work on 4,000 hectares that we own. It's an interesting business”, are the revelations of Mihai Rotaru.
Dumitru Dragomir, the former president of the Professional Football League, claimed that Rotaru had an estimated fortune of around 300 million euros. However, there is no estimate made by an economic publication.
Craiova University is my soul team. In 1983, when I played with Benfica, I was in town. My mother was a scientific researcher in the Ministry of Health, more precisely in the Institute of Hygiene and Public Health. She was on an inspection in Craiova, I went with her. I was 11 years old and I saw the madness in the railway station in Craiova. I stayed in town that night. I slept with Benfica in the hotel in Jiul. I bragged to my colleagues that I had been to the game, but I hadn't. Because, seeing the madness in the city, my mother wouldn't let me
Mihai Rotaru, patron of the University of Craiova
13 million euros from sponsorships and advertising in the last seven years
What did Mihai Rotaru get the most money from in 2024, the last published fiscal year? From sponsorships and advertising. The sum of 3.4 million euros represents the largest collection in this chapter from 2018 to date.
In 2024, the team's accounts received 1.5 million euros from ticketing alone, the best figure recorded in the last seven years. From the broadcast rights, the University of Craiova received 2.3 million euros, only 100,000 euros more than in 2023.
According to the documents consulted by GSP.RO and submitted by the team from Bănie to the Ministry of Finance, the University of Craiova had revenues of almost 12 million euros in 2024.
The financial situation of the University of Craiova
|
2024 |
-3,400,000 euros |
|
2023 |
-5,900,000 |
|
2022 |
-5,100,000 |
|
2021 |
-1,600,000 |
|
2020 |
11,846,180 |
|
2019 |
5,995,971 |
|
2018 |
7,174,120 |
