Coronavirus Outbreak: Football clubs, players strike pay deals amid halted seasons around Europe

With sports events around the world suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic, football clubs and leagues have been discussing pay cuts with players to help them make it through the crisis. Here is a summary of some of the agreements reached or negotiated by major football clubs. ITALY [caption id=“attachment_8136221” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image.[/caption] The Italian top-tier football league proposed on Monday to suspend players’ salaries for 4 months until June, Sky Sport Italia reported citing an official letter from the league to the Italian football players’ association (AIC). Players will be able to renegotiate their salaries if the season resumes before the end of June, the letter says. The players’ association told the league that it would prefer to freeze wages only for a month, Ansa reported following the first meeting between the two parties after the letter. AIC said on Monday in a statement that amateur football, women’s football and salaries in lower-tier leagues must also be protected. JUVENTUS Players and coach Maurizio Sarri have reached an agreement over a wage reduction that will save the Italian champions 90 million euros ($100.26 million), the Serie A club said on Saturday. INTER MILAN Players and coaching staff are willing to cut their wages for the rest of the season, Italian news agency Ansa reported citing sources in the club. The details of Inter Milan agreements will be defined once it is will be clear whether the current season will resume. ENGLAND The association representing England’s professional footballers denied on Wednesday that it has blocked wage deferrals for players during the coronavirus stoppage but said that clubs should pay all staff if they could afford it. TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR Spurs have imposed a 20% pay cut on 550 non-playing staff in April and May due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Premier League club said on Tuesday. NEWCASTLE UNITED Newcastle United have become the first Premier League club to place members of their non-playing staff on temporary leave in response to the coronavirus crisis, the BBC has reported. SPAIN The Spanish Football Federation said on 25 March that it planned to open a line of credit worth 500 million euros to clubs who will not be able to claim their full television rights. BARCELONA Players will make an extra contribution on top of the 70% pay cut they have agreed to take during the enforced La Liga break so that the club’s other employees can earn their full salaries during the coronavirus crisis, captain Lionel Messi said on Monday. ATLETICO MADRID Atletico Madrid have also temporarily cut players’ and coaches’ wages by 70% in order to cope with the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic, but guaranteed a full salary for their other employees, the Spanish club said on Thursday. GERMANY Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen have come together to create a 20 million euros solidarity fund to help German clubs in the top two tiers stave off a potential financial crisis during the coronavirus pandemic. BAYERN MUNICH The German champions said players would cut their salaries by 20%, ESPN reported citing a confirmation from the club. BORUSSIA DORTMUND The German club said on 24 March that players, managers and coaching staff agreed to cut their salaries to show solidarity with the club’s 850 employees and families. The club added it could save up to a double-digit amount in personnel costs, depending on the duration of the situation. BORUSSIA MOENCHENGLADBACH Sporting director Max Eberl said in an interview on the club’s website that the team has offered to renounce to their salaries if it can help the club and its employees. UNION BERLIN Players agreed to give up their salaries, while managers and employees agreed on salary cuts. FRANCE Lyon have put all of their staff on partial unemployment status like all the clubs in French top-tier league Ligue 1. Under a government scheme, companies can request a reimbursement for putting workers on shorter or zero hours since the coronavirus outbreak.