Viktor Bakurevich entered football not as a former professional player, but as an entrepreneur who had already built a business in Bulgaria. He was born in 1975 in Tomsk, Siberia, studied law and worked as a lawyer for many years. In 2008, he left Russia and settled in Varna with his family.
Bakurevich lives in the village of Benkovski near Varna with his wife and their three children. In 2009, the family opened the first Beryozka store in Varna. It gradually grew into a chain selling food and beverages associated with the cuisine and markets of the former Soviet Union. The business expanded into Bulgaria, Romania and Cyprus.
“I moved from legal work to selling sausages,” Bakurevich said in an interview in which he described his transition from the legal profession to retail.At the beginning of the football project, he was not widely known outside business circles. On April 16, 2021, the Fratria club was founded, with Bakurevich identified as its creator and owner. The team began in Varna’s amateur divisions, but reached professional football and the Second League within three years.
What the Ownership Structure Looks Like
According to public company records, ownership of the professional structure is divided between Beryozka Trading, with 95% of the capital, and Viktor Bakurevich, with 5%. He is the company’s representative and a member of its board of directors. Thus, Bakurevich remains the face of the project in the public sphere, while the formal majority stake is held by a company linked to his core business.
Fratria was created with the idea of developing not only a men’s team but also young footballers. Bakurevich has repeatedly spoken about the need for the club to have its own facilities instead of constantly changing its home stadiums.
The Stadium in Beloslav Is the Long-Term Project
In October 2025, the club received the Dimitar Vatev Stadium in Beloslav for a period of 30 years. The facility needs to be renovated, with the aim of meeting the requirements for professional football. Bakurevich announced that within two or three years, the facilities, stands and conditions for staging matches should be improved.
By 2026, the changing rooms had already been renovated and the pitch improved, while the stands and floodlights were identified as the next steps. Until the project in Beloslav is completed, Fratria will continue to play its home matches at Spartak Stadium in Varna.
The sporting objective is for the team to reach the First League, but Bakurevich presents its development as a gradual process. “I want my club to play different football – fast, aggressive and interesting from the first minute to the last,” he said in March 2026 following a coaching change at the team.
So far, no decision has been announced on a merger between Fratria and Spartak Varna. Bakurevich says the two clubs have their own problems and that such a step is not under discussion, although he has not ruled out future negotiations.
The next major test for the project is whether the infrastructure in Beloslav will be completed on time to meet the requirements of elite football.
Sources: bnrnews.bg, btvnovinite.bg, bta.bg