Former Bulgaria coach Silvano Prandi celebrates his 79th birthday today, Friday, November 13, under circumstances he hardly expected when he agreed to take over Paris Volley in the summer. One of the most successful French clubs faces the real danger of liquidation, and tomorrow's home match against Tourcoing, featuring Bulgarian international Venislav Antov, could be the last match in the history of the Parisians.
According to information from the French sports daily L'Équipe, published on November 12 by journalist David Loriot, the rescue plan for the club, which only two weeks ago seemed like a solution to its financial problems, is now seriously in doubt.
Aldo Fumagalli, owner of Vero Volley Monza, and Philippe Peters, president of the women's club Mariannes 92, are involved in the negotiations. However, the agreement between the two has been shaken, with a possibility that Fumagalli might withdraw from the project. On Thursday afternoon, talks were still ongoing, but without guarantees of a successful conclusion.
Paris Volley has debts estimated at just under one million euros. In October, the club managed to secure temporary funding, which allowed the team to start the season, but the expected change of ownership was never finalized. If negotiations fail, the threat of judicial liquidation becomes increasingly real.
Against this backdrop, Prandi's players continue to train and play, without knowing if their next match will be their last in a Paris Volley jersey.
"It's not my place to talk about it. We are aware that the situation is complex. Frankly, it's tough for us," libero Jérémy Mouiel admitted to L'Équipe.
He added that the players do not have information on the progress of the negotiations and are awaiting talks with the coaching staff and shareholders.
Tokyo Olympic champion Daryl Bultor also did not hide the uncertainty:
"For now, the team remains focused on the matches, even though it's complicated. Before the Supercup, we didn't ask ourselves if this would be our last match. Whatever happens, will happen, with the hope that a solution will be found. For now, we have no clarity, we live match by match."
The situation is particularly unusual for Silvano Prandi, whose name is well known to Bulgarian volleyball fans. The Italian specialist led our national team to bronze medals at the 2009 European Championship in Turkey, and a year later, Bulgaria finished seventh at the World Championship in Italy.
Prandi returned to lead our national team in 2019, when he also coached Bulgaria in the Olympic qualification in Varna. Our team then dramatically lost to Brazil 2:3, after leading 2:0 in sets and being one point away from qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics.

After half a century of coaching, the Italian had already considered retiring from the profession. In January, he left Chaumont, and it seemed that this might be the end of his long journey on the court. However, in the summer, he accepted Paris Volley's offer.
"I said 'okay,' but my career ended last season. It was a moment of weakness," Prandi commented with a smile to L'Équipe about his decision to return.
Now, at 79, he again finds himself in an unusual situation where even the holding of the next match was uncertain until recently.
"I think about my health, about my family's health. That's life, as they say in France. I hope we play on Saturday. I hope we continue," Prandi stated after the loss to Montpellier in the French Supercup. Paris Volley lost 0:3 (21:25, 30:32, 23:25) in Nancy on Wednesday evening, but the sporting result took a backseat to the club's uncertain future.
The Parisians' next opponent is Tourcoing, where Venislav Antov continues his career after strong performances with Levski Sofia. The Bulgarian international is among the important players of the French team and on Saturday will face a team whose fate remains unclear. The match from the sixth round of the French championship is scheduled for November 14 at 7:00 PM local time (8:00 PM Bulgarian time). The latest information from Paris indicates that the match will indeed take place, but there is no clarity on whether Paris Volley will be able to continue its participation in the championship.
Founded in 1998 after the merger of Paris Université Club and the volleyball section of Paris Saint-Germain, the club has nine French championship titles and a Champions League triumph in 2001.
Twenty-eight years later, its existence is in question.
And for Bulgarian volleyball fans, Saturday's match will have an unusual plot — Venislav Antov against Silvano Prandi, in a match that could be the last for one of the most successful Bulgarian coaches and for one of the most decorated clubs in France.

photocollage: volleyweek.bg with photos by Nikolay Varadinov andTLMVolley