Qatari royal owner dethroned at struggling Malaga

Madrid, Feb 20, 2020 (AFP) - A member of the Qatar royal family was forced out of the presidency of financially troubled Spanish football club Malaga on Thursday by the official receiver.

"As soon as the administrator takes office, all the members of the board of directors will be dismissed," a court in Andalusia said in a statement.

Abdullah bin Nasser Al-Thani took over the club for an estimated 25 million euros in 2010 and led them as far as a Champions League quarterfinal in 2013.

Since then Malaga has increasingly struggled financially as well as on the field. They are in the second division, five points above the relegation places.

An investigation has also been opened by a Malaga court following a complaint lodged last October by a group of the club's small shareholders.

They have denounced Al-Thani's poor administration and alleged embezzlement of funds.

Al-Thani is a distant relative of the family of the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani.