Although he is reluctant to talk about this sector, real estate has proven to be a more profitable venture than a career in football.
Despite the fact Popescu considers himself a novice in business compared with names such as Tiriac or Copos, the former footballer owns a holding made up of ten firms, with housing, hotel, as well as office and commercial space projects, with planned investments worth tens of millions of euros.
This venture came after 13 years as a football player, during which time he accumulated between 10 and 20 million dollars, and is backed by the confidence that Romania will follow the trend of other countries that benefited from a boom after EU integration.
As is the case with other former sports personalities, Popescu's main business is in real estate, but not just land or the acquisition of apartments, rather those activities that pertain to real estate development, such as interior design and furniture production.
Popescu's career as an investor started in the mid '90s when he met a former Real Madrid player, Pedro de Felipe, who presented several projects in Ibiza. "(...) I bought 2 apartments; sold them after one year, and reinvested the money I got," says Popescu.
Investments revolved around several hundred thousand dollars, but it was not just money gained from football, but funds from banks.
As a result of a profitable start in real estate, after his career as a footballer was over Popescu decided to properly enter the business in 2003. In the winter of 2003, Rafael Gordillo, a former Real Madrid player, contacted him concerning a group of Spanish investors who wanted to enter the Romanian market and needed a representative.
"They made me an extremely interesting offer, we set up a firm together and this is how we started," recounts Popescu.
The profits he brought for the Spanish investors whetted his appetite to venture into real estate deals on his own. "I had land in Baneasa from the period I played football.
There I built Amfiteatru project, a block of 30 apartments. I wanted something special and this is why I also made a few mistakes," says Popescu.
When it comes to the level of investments involved in his projects, Popescu refuses to provide any information.
He does hint, however, that the two projects planned for next year should include a hotel with around 150-170 rooms, located in central Bucharest.
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