B. Dortmund face 'life-threatening' financial situation

Borussia Dortmund are in a "life-threatening" financial situation, the German club said yesterday.

The former European champions said they had entered talks with creditors in an attempt to resolve their financial crisis and needed a debt moratorium until at least the 2006/07 tax year.

"Borussia Dortmund has entered a life-threatening profitability and financial situation," the 95-year-old club said in a statement.

"The approval of all creditors is necessary for the complete execution of the restructuring concept... the overwhelming majority have confirmed their approval."

The club said talks were ongoing with three creditors. Borussia, which has announced an overhaul with cuts for players and staff, said without a restructuring it expected its record debt to increase to €134.7 million by mid-2006.

The club posted an operating loss of €27.2 million in the first half of the 2004/05 fiscal year.

Bundesliga champions in 2002 and European Cup winners in 1997, Dortmund were flirting with relegation for much of the first half of the current season but a good run of late has seen them climb well clear of the danger zone. They have won three and drawn one of their four games in 2005 to move up from 14th to 11th.

That leaves them a comfortable 12 points away from the relegation places and still with an outside chance of making the UEFA Cup next season.

Dortmund said it had failed to find an investor for its stadium that was sold in a complicated sale-and-leaseback deal.

Earlier, German business daily Handelsblatt said British bond broker Stephen Schechter had ended talks with Borussia on a possible bond sale to finance the stadium deal, citing a "breach of confidence".