the new president Iwan Postel thinks big

After a successful but financially chaotic sporting season, FC Rouen has escaped filing for bankruptcy since the takeover of the club led by its new president Iwan Postel. A determined man whose outspokenness stands out.

We meet a man in a hurry to leave his mark. The Dutchman, Iwan Postel, is the new strong man of FC Rouen. A club and a city that he discovered only a few months ago.

“I immediately had a good feeling with this city, but I didn’t sleep much my first nights here,” referring to the numerous twists and turns that punctuated the club’s takeover process.

“It was so chaotic, it’s indescribable, it was work seven days a week, 24 hours a day, from a legal, financial and sporting point of view. It was a real Netflix series but it gives even more spice and flavor to our history with the club.

Demoted for a time by the DNCG to National 2, Iwan Postel finally obtained the club’s maintenance in National before the financial policeman of football with the support of the City of Rouen and the Metropolis.

An important step in the life of this man with an eclectic CV. Rally driver, inventor of sports applications, and entrepreneur, he has today taken on the role of savior of the FCR.

People weren’t really interested in my past, they just asked me to pay the bills so that the FCR wouldn’t find itself in this situation again.

Iwan Postel, president of FC Rouen

Behind this project, we find the Turkish businessman, Tarkan Ser. He specializes in the purchase and sale of private jets with his company Black Eagle of which Iwan Postel is vice-president. The two men held on to overcome the turbulence of the takeover, convinced by the potential of the Rouen club.

“It’s an emblematic club which has 125 years of history, the FCR plays in the National in front of 5,000 spectators which is not insignificant. There is really enormous potential here and I want Rouen to continue to vibrate in football but I am convinced that there is much more than football here. It is a true cultural capital in the world.

He wants to create assets for the club by investing in real estate in Rouen and dreams of establishing cultural bridges between Turkey, where he lives, and the Normandy capital. His ambition? Restore the image of the FCR by wiping the slate of its predecessor.

“I think we saved Mr. Maarek’s life, but he doesn’t realize it. I found this club, it’s not the club that came to find me and I don’t owe them anything. We put more than two million to clear the debts, then we injected money to reorganize, at the end of the season we will have five million euros of investment.”

Another sensitive subject that Iwan Postel agreed to discuss with us, the cohabitation of FC Rouen with QRM, the second club in the metropolis which also plays in the National. His position is clear and meets the expectations of historic supporters of the Red Devils.

“There should only be one club and it is the FCR. I am ready to sit around a table to discuss and add the M of Métropole to the FCR. But if you are football players how do you feel? You play in the same city, you prefer to play in the club with two coats and three shorns (sic) who applaud you or be cheered by an entire stadium?

The new strong man of the club openly displays great ambitions for Rouen, a speech which breaks with the caution often required in the speeches of those involved in French football.

The minimum ambition is to be in Ligue 2, and in the medium term to be in Ligue 1. Every two years, we must reach a new level. People will say I’m crazy but my ambition is for FC Rouen to be in the Champions League within seven years.

Iwan Postel, president of FC Rouen

Iwan Postel knows he is waiting around the corner. Often resilient, FCR supporters now want to believe in a bright tomorrow.