Bulgarian police were called to an address in a Plovdiv neighbourhood at around 1am local time on Wednesday. When officers arrived, Iliyan Filipov was already dead.
He had been shot in the head, according to Bulgaria’s Interior Ministry, which said in a statement that “a report of a man who had been shot was received at around 1 a.m. at an address in a Plovdiv neighbourhood. His death was established at the scene, and an investigation into the serious crime has been launched.”
Officers sealed the main entry and exit points across Plovdiv within hours and began stopping vehicles as they searched for a suspect. No arrests have been announced.
Hristeva takes charge of the investigation
The killing is being handled as a serious criminal investigation by the Plovdiv district prosecutor’s office.
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Plovdiv District Prosecutor Vanya Hristeva told a briefing that pre-trial proceedings began in the early hours of Wednesday, immediately after a report was made to the 112 emergency number.
“We are actively pursuing all possible leads,” Hristeva said, as officers began working through surveillance footage from around the property.
No motive has been made public, and Bulgarian authorities have not linked the attack to any specific individual or group.
From PIMK to the Botev Plovdiv presidency
Filipov built his fortune outside football. He founded and ran PIMK, described by Bulgarian National Radio as “the country’s largest transport company” and one of the ten biggest in Europe.
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That business bankrolled his move into the game. He was the majority shareholder and president of Botev Plovdiv, one of Bulgaria’s oldest and most storied clubs, and was directly associated with the construction of the club’s Hristo Botev Stadium, the ground that stood empty just hours before he was killed.
Killed after watching Bulgaria and Estonia
Filipov had spent Tuesday evening at that same stadium. Bulgaria hosted Estonia in a UEFA Nations League fixture on 29 September, a game that ended 0-0, with the hosts creating the better chances but failing to break down a compact Estonian defence.
The shooting happened in the same city a few hours after the final whistle. There is nothing to suggest a link between the match and the attack, and authorities have not addressed a possible connection.
Botev Plovdiv paid tribute to Filipov later on Wednesday, with the club calling him its president in a statement published hours after the killing was confirmed.
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