There are plenty of precedents in the history of world sports when athletes find themselves behind bars for breaking the law. However, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the basketball player was put in prison without trial. His club simply decided to save money on rent during the tourist season.

Are there really no other ways to save your budget?

“It will make the work of the club easier”

The Sutjeska basketball club from the Bosnian town of Foca last season became the champion of the Republika Srpska First League and got the opportunity to compete in the Bosnia and Herzegovina championship. The management did not refuse a promotion, but, apparently, the team had financial difficulties, since it came to strange actions. To save on rent for athletes, it was decided to use the services of a local prison.

Perhaps no one would have known about the place of residence of the Sutjeski basketball players, but the club decided to express gratitude on social networks to the head of the local prison for allowing them to accommodate the athletes on a very budget-friendly basis.

“During a period of high rents in our city, this measure will significantly facilitate the work of the club and will contribute to its further development. Thank you for your support,” the club’s press service wrote on social networks.

Bosnia and Herzegovina Basketball Championship / Photo: © Anadolu / Contributor / Anadolu / Gettyimages.ru

The message caused a strong reaction, so the management of Sutjeska had to give an explanation. Only one basketball player will be accommodated on the territory of the prison in Foca, and not three, as originally planned. Who turned out to be the lucky one was not discussed in the club.

Gloomy landscapes

Don’t think that a professional basketball player will live with dangerous criminals. He will not even be accommodated in solitary confinement; we are talking about accommodation in a hotel, which is located on the territory of the correctional institution. Perhaps relatives of prisoners periodically stay there, but not the prisoners themselves. However, this does not change the fact that the unknown player of the Bosnian team will be stuck in the middle of gloomy landscapes for an indefinite time, and even close to difficult neighbors.

But Foca is a beautiful city, next to which there is a national park with a waterfall and the deepest canyon in Europe. During the season, it is worth assuming that hotels raise prices and it may be expensive for a poor club to accommodate everyone in expensive rooms, but was it really not possible to find a single suitable option other than prison, if not in the city itself, then in its environs?

Maybe Sutjeska is trying to solve motivation issues in a similar way and instead of monetary incentives, the best players are going to be rewarded with living in prison for the worst ones? But if there really are difficulties with finances, then it would be wiser to simply refuse an upgrade in class and an increase in associated expenses.