Omna Taddele
March 28, 2026Saint George saved? Partners step in with crucial funding package for troubled club
From left to right Fikru Teferra (former Saint George striker), Jemal Ahmed (MIDROC Ethiopia CEO), Adanech Abibie (Addis Ababa mayor), Jantirar Abay (deputy mayor). Photo Credit: Mayor Office of Addis Ababa
Saint George saved? Partners step in with crucial funding package for troubled club
It is ultimately something Saint George fans have been waiting to hear. The Addis Ababa City Administration has confirmed that funding to save the Ethiopian giants has been made available to the club.
The financial backing is expected to help Saint George, who are in a dire financial situation, move forward and end the season on a high note as they also battle relegation in the CBE Ethiopian Premier League.
The year started on the wrong foot for the Horsemen due to a leadership crisis. A large debt, a contentious board election, and poor results on the pitch challenged the sustainability of the oldest Ethiopian football club. In March 2026, long-serving Saint George board chairman Abinet Gebremeskel resigned, and a normalization committee is now in place to run the club until the next elective General Assembly in three months’ time.
Addis Ababa Mayor Adanech Abiebie has revealed that, with support from partners, the city administration has provided 100 million birr (638,467 USD) in funding to Saint George. Former Saint George sponsor MIDROC Ethiopia has covered half of it, while another financial backer is beer producer BGI Ethiopia. The city has pledged to provide 10 million birr (63,846 USD) to support the club.
ታሪካዊውን ቅዱስ ጊዮርጊስ ስፖርት ክለብ ከገጠመው የመፍረስ አደጋ ለመታደግ 100 ሚሊዮን ብር ድጋፍ አድርገናል። ከከተማችን በጀት በተጨማሪ ለጥሪያችን ፈጣን ምላሽ የሰጡትን ሚድሮክ ኢንቨስትመንት ግሩፕንና ቢጂአይ ኢትዮጵያን በስፖርቱ ቤተሰብ ስም… pic.twitter.com/WzQPfNw3dI
— Adanech Abiebie (@AdanechAbiebie) March 28, 2026
There has been a change in stance at MIDROC Ethiopia after it distanced itself from the club. MIDROC is owned by Saint George patron Mohammed Hussein Ali Al-Amoudi, a longtime business partner of Gebremeskel.
It is expected that Saint George will use the financial support to settle debts and run the day-to-day activities of the club. The record Ethiopian champions are also expected to settle their financial obligations to their former foreign players after the club was banned from signing new players by FIFA in late 2025.
