Article by Cosmin Nistor – Published Friday, 06 February 2026, 22:57 / Updated Friday, 06 February 2026 23:06
CFR Cluj is going through one of the most difficult financial periods in recent years. The club from Gruia had to resort to emergency loans, totaling almost 2 million euros, in order to be able to pay the outstanding salaries of the players and avoid drastic sanctions from the FRF.
The financial arrears accumulated at the end of last year have become the main danger for Transylvanians. Then, the Disciplinary Commission within the FRF analyzed the situation, and in the case of non-payment of debts, CFR Cluj risked de-pointing. The Transylvanians managed to pay off their debts, but after the patron Ioan Varga made some unprecedented “artworks”. The club had to solve the problem of arrears to the players, because the deadline for submitting the file for the Superliga license for next season is also approaching.
Ioan Varga pledged his players
In order to obtain liquidity, the club's management contracted two loans:
-
1.35 million euros from Andrei Zolotco, former Moldovan impresario and businessman, ex-owner of the Danish club Vejle
-
700,000 euros from Cornelut Rus
According to iamsport.ro, the method chosen to guarantee the loans is an extremely rare one in Romanian football: mortgaging the economic rights of the players from the CFR team, prepared by Daniel Pancu.
Official document: list of “pawned” players
In a document registered in the Electronic Archive of Real Pledges, CFR Cluj constituted a mortgage in favor of Andrei Zolotco over the economic rights of several footballers, up to the amount of 1,350,000 euros, notes the quoted source.
Through the Mortgage Contract 571 of 18.11.2025, the transferor CFR 1907 Cluj SA constituted a mortgage in favor of Andrei Zolotco over the economic rights related to the players:
Paulino Mario Jorge Malico (no Camora), Constantin Adrian Păun, Ioan Ciprian Deac, Damjan Dokovic, Louis Munteanu, Otto Hindrich, Ovidiu Ioan Perianu, Alin Răzvan Fică, Octavian Gabriel Vâlceanu, Andrei Ioan Cordea, Rareș Florian Gal, Karlo Muhar, Aly Abeid, Anton Kresic, Matei Christian Ilie, Meriton Korenica, Tidiane Keita, Mircea Alexandru Tîrlea, Sheriff Sinyan, Lindon Emerllahu, Muhammed Badamosi, Marcus Regis Coco, Kurt Happy Zouma, Iacopo Cernigoi, Islam Slimani, up to the amount of 1,350,000 EURO.
– it is shown in the Electronic Archive of Real Movable Guarantees.
Several footballers included in the document are no longer part of the team from CFR: Louis Munteanu, Otto Hindrich, Anton Kresic, Lindon Emerllahu, Iacopo Cernigoi, Muhammed Badamosi, Marcus Coco and Kurt Zouma. It is not known how this fact changes the deal, if the money collected on those will be used to collect the debt.
The guarantees also from the transfer of Louis Munteanu
According to the same source, the loan of 700,000 euros was guaranteed including 10% of the economic rights of Louis Munteanu, striker transferred at the beginning of the year to DC United, for approximately 6 million euros.
The contract signed with the businessman Cornelut Rus stipulates that, if the player will be transferred before the loan expires, on October 22, 2030, the creditor has the right to recover the amount invested from the value of the transaction.
Louis Munteanu signed with DC United // PHOTO: Instagram
