Krylia Sovetov Vows to Resolve Debt and Transfer Ban in February

Samara football club Krylia Sovetov is under a transfer ban due to a 519 million ruble debt, but management promises to pay it off by February 3 to allow new signings.

Feb 15, 2026

Samara fans are closely monitoring the club«s financial situation amid a transfer ban and debt crisis.
Source:
PFC Krylia Sovetov

Samara football club Krylia Sovetov has found itself at the center of a financial scandal. The Russian Football Union (RFU) has imposed a transfer ban on the club due to a debt to RT-Kapital (a subsidiary of Rostec), amounting to 519 million rubles (approximately $5.8 million at current rates). However, the club«s management assures that it will manage to resolve all issues before the transfer window closes.

The club«s debt to RT-Kapital dates back to 2016. In December 2025, an arbitration court ruled to recover over 928 million rubles (about $10.3 million) from Krylia Sovetov. The club partially repaid the debt: at the end of December, it paid 535 million rubles (about $5.9 million), and in January, another 54 million rubles (about $600,000). However, the remaining debt of 519 million rubles (of which 454 million rubles is the principal debt and 65 million rubles is an enforcement fee) remains outstanding.

This has led to harsh measures: a transfer ban from the RFU (the club cannot register new players), a new lawsuit for 146 million rubles (about $1.6 million) from RT-Kapital (dated January 19), and a notice of intent to bankrupt the club, published by RT-Kapital on January 21.

Dmitry Yakovlev, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Krylia Sovetov, stated that the club plans to fully repay the debt to RT-Kapital by February 3. This will allow the transfer ban to be lifted before the transfer window closes (February 19) and enable the club to register new footballers in time.

«We anticipated that this might happen... In turn, we plan to settle the existing debt obligations,» quotes Yakovlev as saying, according to the TASS news agency.

It is worth noting that if Krylia Sovetov fails to keep its promise, the club risks not only being left without squad reinforcements but also facing bankruptcy proceedings initiated by one of the largest state-owned holdings. Now, Samara fans are following the club«s financial maneuvers as closely as they follow the game on the field.