Brothel Saves Greek Soccer Team with Controversial Sponsorship

Never say a brothel didn't do some good for a Greek football team. 

Times are tough in Greece, as financial difficulty extends far into the depths of sports, mandating one Greek team look outside the box for sponsorship, well outside. 

The Associated Press (h/t Buzzfeed, Deadspin) reports one Greek amateur football team is causing quite the stir with the name it wears on its kits:

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Players on a cash-strapped Greek soccer team now wear pink practice jerseys with the logos "Villa Erotica" and "Soula's House of History," two bordellos it recruited as sponsors after drastic government spending cuts left the country's sports clubs facing ruin.

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Now, the amateur club Voukefalas isn't the only team to go above and beyond to find funding—just the only one to procure a brothel.

The report issues other clubs nabbed funding from places such as funeral homes or jam factories, but none as bizarre as a bordello. 

Where is Chico's Bail Bonds when you need them?

The teams chairman, Yiannis Batziolas, makes a great point that it's really just about surviving harsh times, stating, "Unfortunately, amateur football has been abandoned by almost everyone. It's a question of survival."

Not that this sentiment is shared by all. 

While prostitution is legal in Greece, some find the kits to be offensive. So much so that there is now a ban on jerseys that are harmless in the grand scheme of things:

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Though garish neon signs advertising their services are tolerated, the soccer sponsorship has ruffled some feathers in the sports-mad city of Larissa. League organizers have banned the pink jerseys during games, saying the deal violates "the sporting ideal" and is inappropriate for underage fans.

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Grown men are in dire need of funding, yet the league is worried the words "Villa Erotica" will cause a steep decline into depravity among the youth?

That's quite the hop in logic, especially when the profession is perfectly legal in the country. 

As the report reminds us, the country is well into the sixth year of recession, causing dire times for the entire nation. 

Sport continues to be just one of the remaining respites from the depressing reality.

Sure, the sponsorship is bizarre and brazen, but it very well may be necessary for some grown men who just want to play some football with shirts on their backs. 

If you were wondering how necessary it is to procure investment, the report puts the financial need of the team at about 10,000 euros ($13,120) a year. 

That's a lot of money to find when there is little to spare around the country. 

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